Promoting the Film Industry in Kenya: State Support versus Entrepreneurial Innovation

In Nairobi, filmmakers cannot rely on support mechanisms from the government such as loans or grants to make their films, and they widely consider their industry to be neglected by the state. Yet, Nairobi is home to a film industry where women have been remarkably successful as filmmakers and developed thriving careers. In this chapter, I show that Nairobi-based female filmmakers have responded to their environment, and its lack of conventional state mechanisms for supporting filmmaking, by becoming radically flexible and entrepreneurial in their work. I argue that further developing the industry requires following and building on this entrepreneurial dynamism.