Twenty-four-year old Faith Msole was this year enlisted in the MultiChoice Talent Factory (MTF) programme. The aspiring Malawian movie maker was one of the 20 students from seven countries enlisted in the 12-month immersion programme.
Faith saw the opportunity as her chance to realise her long held dream of becoming a film producer.
Living her dream: Msole
The MTF is an African skills development incubator for emerging filmmakers that provides extensive theoretical and hands-on training in cinematography, professional video and audio production and storytelling.
A dream come true
Faith fell in love with drama and theatre as a 14-year-old schoolgirl when she joined her secondary school’s drama club. Over the next five years, she was featured i and directed several plays, fuelling her passion for storytelling and capturing stories in evocative ways.
Heartbreak and hope
However, Faith’s delight at being selected as one of only 20 students from seven countries to attend the MTF Southern African Academy was short-lived.
First, Faith battled to get her passport to travel to the Academy in Zambia due to passport system challenges in Malawi. She spent the first two months in her home country, joining lessons online, strongly supported by her peers in Lusaka.
Once her passport was ready, Faith joined the other students and thrived on campus, learning everything she could about filmmaking. But after her passport woes were resolved, another challenge emerged: Faith suffered a serious health setback.
One day, while working on set, Faith developed a severe headache and fainted. Although she gradually recovered, she suffered temporal memory loss. This episode kept recurring, prompting her concerned fellow students to notify MTF management.
Said Faith: “In 2017, when I was 18 years old, I was diagnosed with a brain tumour. For the next four years, I suffered from headaches, fainting spells, nosebleeds, and memory loss, but there was little doctors could do to help.
“All I could do was stay home with my mom and pray that it would get better. I had faith I would get better. Then in 2020, I went for a scan, and the doctors said they couldn’t find any trace of a tumour. It was gone. All that remained were headaches and occasional blackouts.”
MTF management quickly arranged that Faith should see the top specialists in the country. After extensive medical examinations, doctors discovered that Faith’s tumour had not recurred but that she had water in one of the valves in her heart instead.
She said: ““They wanted me to have access to the right care, and not have something happen to me while on set or out in the field. So, the difficult decision was made to terminate my contract with MTF.
“I was absolutely heartbroken. I cried like I had never cried before in my life. I had been working with peers on a production where I was a line producer. My dream was just starting to be realised, and it was cut short. I was being sent home. I couldn’t believe it.”
But Faith’s passion and thirst for knowledge and skills never diminished. She admits the situation was hopeless, but she knew she had to remain optimistic.
The following week MTF Academy director, Christopher Puta called Faith and told her the faculty had found a way for her to retain her scholarship and learn in a safe environment, surrounded by friends and family.
She returned to Malawi and continued to attend classes in real-time online. Faith was overjoyed.
“If they were working on set, my fellow students would use their phones and data to film what was happening so I could be part of the learning. They would send me voice notes and emails to keep me in the loop and share photos and videos of their field excursions,” she said.
Faith has directed a short film called Racist? which was nominated for an Australian Focus on Ability Film Festival Award.
In a separate interview, MultiChoice Malawi head of corporate affairs Deborah Matowe-Mzembe said the experiences Faith has undergone have strengthened her resilience, which is a crucial attribute in the professional life of a movie maker.
“Managing a demanding study schedule remotely is not easy. Looking at the personal sacrifices that she had to make shows how much focused she is on attaining her dream. She is an example to many girls her age,” she said.
This month Faith will graduate together with her classmates at a ceremony expected to take place in Zambia. She said her plan is to start her own film production company.
“I want to employ women who have a passion for film like me. MTF changed my life, and I want to help other women access these skills I have learnt over the past 12 months,” she said.
