What the world already knows is that the pandemic wiped out all commercial sectors around the world. But there were companies that knew how to make the best of the periods of restrictions. Far from thinking that it would only be the big companies in the world's largest economies, Africa also knew how to take advantage of the confinement, in this case, the film industry.

While the pandemic has led the African film industry to cancel recordings, on the other hand it has created new opportunities by boosting video on demand and streaming.

Alex Moussa Sawadogo, Delegate General of FESPACO, said that the industry can take advantage of changing consumer behavior. The truth is that the changes are being driven mainly by increased access to high-speed Internet.

According to a report by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, Africa's film and audiovisual sectors have the potential to create more than 20 million jobs and generate about $20 billion in annual revenue, up from $5 billion today.

On the other hand, with the arrival of Netflix on the continent, video-on-demand subscriptions are expected to grow from 3.9 billion in 2020 to 13 billion in 2025

Netflix and other major industry players like pay-TV platform Vivendi Canal+, Orange and MultiChoice are looking for local content and signing distribution deals as they fight for market share.