The African Dialogues Student Exchange Programme (ADSEP) UNIMAC-IFT/HFF München Exchange Programme 2025 is one of the international maiden programmes for the University of Media, Arts and Communication’s Institute of Film and Television (UniMAC-IFT), the UniMAC Centre for Global Education and Collaboration (CGEC), and the University of Television and Film (HFF München), Germany.
In May 2025, the programme saw two of UniMAC-IFT’s top students, Joachim Kekeli, a Level 400 student in the Motion Picture Photography Programme, and Joana Adu Amoani, a Level 400 student in the Film Directing Programme, travel to Germany for a six-week period from May to July 2025. The purpose was to broaden the scope of storytelling by engaging film students and staff from the two universities in dialogues and exchanging ideas about the future of filmmaking and distribution in the global and diverse world. They completed their programme and have since returned to UniMAC.
In a special meeting set to brief management on their experiences on Monday, July 7th 2025, the students shared some of their exciting moments about the projects to the management of UniMAC. They indicated that they were being mentored by lecturers and students of HFF München, who guided them in shooting a ten-minute short film in Munich. The film would be edited in Ghana, and they would attend an international film festival with it.
The students also reported that they gained a deeper insight into European and German culture, including films, through interactions (both individual and as part of a group). Through interactions, they became aware of the excellent prospects for shooting films in Ghana and Africa, revealing the rich narratives embedded in various cultures. The staff in Germany were very supportive and made them feel at home.
The main challenge the students encountered was the language barrier. Most of the courses were taught in German, so they only joined the few that were taught in English. According to the students, the process of filmmaking is much difficult at UniMAC-IFT but much easier at HFF as the university is far more advanced in Technology.
The Pro-Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Winston Abroampa, who met the students and faculty on behalf of the Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Eric Opoku Mensah, was delighted to hear their experiences and expressed his pride in them. He expressed gratitude to the students and coordinators for the good job they had done and their commitment to the Programme.
He also extended appreciation, especially to the parents of the students who had supported them since the beginning of the programme to date. Prof. Abroampa advised the students to be always humble and be ready to share their knowledge and support their colleagues with their gained experiences at Germany. The Parents of the students were also very appreciative and impressed with the programme and how UniMAC had ensured that their children got the best out of the exchange programme.
In his closing remarks, the Pro Vice-Chancellor remarked that UniMAC is unique as a university due to its one hundred and seventy-seven (177) years of combined experiences. There is a need to work hard to bring all together and leverage those experiences to position UniMAC on the global map.
Other UniMAC members in attendance at this special meeting were the UniMAC-IFT Rector, Prof. Samuel Manasseh Yirenkyi; the Ag. Registrar, Mrs. Patience Sowah; the UNiMAC-IFT Institute Registrar; Ms. Josephine Akunde, the UniMAC-IFT Programme Coordinators of the Student Exchange Programme: Mr. Yao Ladzekpo and Mr George Bosompim; the Assistant Registrar at the Centre for Global Education and Collaborations (CGEC), Mrs Perpetua Opoku-Agyemang; and the parents of the students.