eNCA’s Against All Odds by Mpho Lakaje has been shortlisted for best short documentary by The Association for International Broadcasting (AIB) awards for the story of Lucas Sithole.
The AIBs, now in their eighth year, celebrates creativity and reward success in factual programming. Each year the AIBs searches for the most inspiring story-telling across radio, TV and online. It includes entries from 23 countries across five continents, from Norway to Nigeria and from Canada to Taiwan, reflecting the best of global TV and radio production and technology.
“We are really excited by the nomination. It’s encouraging to know that our work is appreciated by viewers and the media industry at large. The nomination proves that the world is hungry for stories of hope and development,” says Mpho Lakaje, presenter and executive producer.
“The shortlist has been even more challenging to compile this year,” says Simon Spanswick, AIB chief executive. “We received an extremely wide range of entries from a large number of organisations located all over the world. Most were of an extremely high standard which meant some hard choices had to be made in determining the shortlist for the 2012 AIBs. Now it is up to our global panel of independent judges to deliver the names of the winners in this year’s competition.”
AIB believes that entertainment programmes already have their own festivals to celebrate excellence in fiction. Engaging an audience in a factual narrative requires different skills. Investigative journalism is difficult, especially in an age of austerity and spin-doctors. But powerful storytelling can command large audiences. The AIBs are judged by a panel of independent, international jury members. The constantly changing panel consists of producers, editors, journalists, writers and critics.