Accra, May 26, GNA – Ghanaian filmmaker and creative industry expert Mawuko Kuadzi has begun his continental mentorship mandate as Africa’s highest-ranked Image Ambassador, following his historic second ARTIOS award win in the United States.
Mr. Kuadzi, recently honoured with the title, became the first African in the 40-year history of the ARTIOS awards to break the longstanding record of an African winning the prestigious award.
A statement copied to the Ghana News Agency in Accra said in the light of that achievement and his new role as a Sectoral Content Fellow (SCF) of the Africa Image Ambassador, Mr. Kuadzi has been tasked with mentoring creatives across the continent to represent excellence and the highest achievements as Image Ambassadors of Africa.
He has since launched his mandate with a high-impact masterclass for final-year directing students at the University of Media, Arts and Communication – Institute of Film and Television (UniMAC-IFT), formerly NAFTI.
The session, titled “Casting the Truth: The Director & Casting Director Relationship,” was designed to move away from academic theory and offer practical, honest, and inspiring industry realities.
During the hour-long session, Mr. Kuadzi emphasized a core philosophy that resonated with the students: “Most directing problems are actually casting problems.”
He explained that casting was not merely about finding people who fit roles, but about “finding human beings who can truthfully carry emotion.”
He outlined five key things directors should look for in actors: emotional truth, presence, listening ability, flexibility, and chemistry.
A major highlight of the masterclass was a live audition exercise, where students observed how different directing approaches; realistic, emotionally intense, or comedic; could completely change a performance. Mr. Kuadzi also demonstrated the difference between vague direction (“do it better”) and effective, emotionally clear direction (“you’re trying not to cry because you don’t want them to see your weakness”).
He advised against celebrity or “family and friends” casting, urging future directors to prioritise suitability and truthfulness over popularity.
Speaking after the masterclass, Mr. Kuadzi noted that his new role as Sectoral Content Fellow carried a huge responsibility to mentor more people within his sector.
“I pledge to deliver that mandate,” he said. “This masterclass at UniMAC-IFT is just the beginning. I am expected in Uganda in the coming days to offer a similar mandate to creatives there.”
The honour of citation which carried this huge mentorship responsibility was presented to Mr. Kuadzi by the ACCP Executive Council led by veteran actor and producer Harold Roger Quartey, chairman of the Media and Culture Sector of the African Chamber of Content Producers (ACCP) , and veteran actor Fred Nii Amugi, an advisory board member of the chamber.
Other industry players and members of the Chamber across Africa were present to bestow the responsibility.
Nana Dwomoh-Doyen, President of the African Chamber of Content Producers, revealed that the Chamber was currently working on identifying working strategies from one African country and replicating them in other parts of Africa, with Image Ambassadors serving as mentors to drive these replications.
“Other African countries are in waiting to receive Mawuko’s expertise in growing their own industries, and the chamber was working with Mr. Mawuko Kuadzi in honoring all of them,” Nana Dwomoh-Doyen said.
George Bosompim, Lecturer at UNiMAC-IFT’s Department of Film Artistic and main facilitator of the masterclass, expressed satisfaction with the programme’s results and participants feedback.
“Mawuko, has taken the act of casting to a professional level that none in the industry today can be compared to. The masterclass for students of UNiMAC-IFT, Level 300 and 400 was to prepare them for their final productions.
It was also an opportunity to share his achievements and experiences. It gave students an insight to the real world of the film and television industry, particularly in the act of casting for the screen.
It was eye opening, insightful and educational”, he said.
Students who attended the masterclass described it as eye-opening and career-defining.
Thompson, a former student of IFT, said: “I learnt that one reason for hiring a casting director is to reduce the workload of the director, so the director can focus on the creative side. Casting directors negotiate actors’ fees and are the mouthpiece for the actor.”
Mavis Aboagye Dankwa, a Level 300 student at UniMAC IFT, added: “This masterclass with MK Casting was super helpful. I learnt so much about what casting directors actually do, the challenges they face, and how to even get into the field. I’d definitely recommend a casting course in Ghana.”
Jared Akwesi, another student, simply stated: “It gave me a direction to follow as an aspiring director.”
Ending the session, Mr. Kuadzi left the students with three core takeaways: great casting solves half the directing; actors remember how directors make them feel; and audiences connect to emotional truth, not perfection.
“Don’t cast actors because they are famous,” he told them. “Cast actors because they are truthful. The audience forgives many things, but they never forgive false performances.”
GNA
Edited by George-Ramsey Benamba