New Level 1 Students

I’m always amazed when a new batch of students blows through the door.

At the end of each year we celebrate the students with a red carpet film festival—and I think to myself, “It just doesn’t get any better than this.”

Then a student like Gasthon Lewis walks through the door.

Gasthon is not from Kayamandi, he lives 20 minutes drive in a place called the Strand.  His community is similar to Kayamandi—in that poverty and crime are rampant—but Gasthon is by South African definition “colored”.

It’s a strange world where you learn to classify people in such ways—but what it means is that Gasthon speaks Afrikaans and is not from a black tribe like the rest of the new Level One students.

He came to Film School Africa through a friend when Gasthon had attempted a short film in his community, and our common friend knew that I’d be able to point him toward success.

At his interview I was overwhelmed with the feeling that I’m here for young people like Gasthon!

Guys who have the passion and the desire, but lack the tools and training.

A young man who once struggled with drugs and gangs, but now desires to use film in youth ministry.

In the interview he asked me a question that tied our fates together, “Can you come and teach in my community?  My community has never had anything like Film School Africaand people are asking me how can they do this too.”

I told him that we’d do one better—he’s going to be equipped to teach in his community—and I’m going to stand behind him as we continue to touch the lives of students through the power of storytelling.

Please pray for these 12 new students that have entered Level One—for the 5 more that continue onto Level Two—for the 2 students that are running the race in Level Three—and the 2 students that we sent off to City Varsity to spend 3 years in the directing program.

We’re making large strides here thanks to the generosity of people like you—but we’re far from knowing how all the funding is going to come together—but like Gasthon we move forward in faith…together.

Katie Taylor

To support Gasthon and other students like him, donate at threadsafrica.org

"You could start as a second-year student."

We turned and looked at each other—stunned.

You see, Odwa never thought he'd be able to attend school again. Having dropped out at grade 10—so his sister could continue her education—Odwa thought his hopes and dreams of going to school were just that—hopes and dreams.

Never a reality.

But when we sat in the admissions office of City Varsity, a media school in Cape Town, they clearly indicated that the education Odwa had received at Film School Africa was enough to allow them to accept him and he could skip the entire first year.

We were stunned for the moment, and then the reality settled in.

We were thrilled that they thought so much of Odwa's gifts and talents and passion for film—not to mention his desire to return to his community so he could teach others—that they were accepting into the program and crediting him with a year of study.

So if you were stunned and thrilled with those initial comments, can you imagine what we were feeling when they indicated they were giving him a full ride scholarship?

But then the other shoe dropped. (There's always another shoe.) They explained that they had seen it happen many times before—that if Odwa was going to be a successful student, he would need to live in an apartment near campus. Students who early in the morning took the train to school, only to return home to the township late each night, rarely made the necessary grades and quickly washed out of the program.

And at this juncture, the negotiations began.

City Varsity made it known that they were willing to accept Odwa into the program, provide him with a tuition scholarship, and invest heavily in his success as a student. But they had one question.

Would Film School Africa be willing to participate and make it possible for him to live in an apartment near campus?

Now, this is a student I really believe has the talent, ability, and desire to succeed and make a difference in his world. He will thrive in this educational setting and will be forever changed by his experience—much like I was at Taylor University in Indiana.

So this is my question. Will you join City Varsity, and Film School Africa, and me in our commitment to Odwa, and students like him?

Here is the reality. Your monthly or one time gift can make a huge difference in the life of Odwa and others like him. In many ways it sounds too simple to be true, but film is making a significant difference in the lives of Film School Africa students.

Odwa's is a great story. And it is just beginning to unfold.

And this is just the start for so many others. In fact, I have been privileged to witness so many success stories this year. And I'm encouraged by the path that we're taking and the impact that is being had on the lives of African young people.

It's like my younger sister Nana said, "These guys, (Odwa and Ayanda) they never would have known that this is what they wanted, and now their whole lives are changed."

It's true.

Together we continue to shape and change the direction of young lives.

From alcoholism to editing. Thievery to camera work. Lives of hopelessness to lives that glorify God through the art of storytelling.

Pretty exciting stuff!

Film School Africa is about shaping a generation of Africans.

But for this to continue to take place, your prayers and financial support are essential. Whatever your gift might be, $100, $200, maybe even so much more, it will be used to change lives for Christ and revolutionize the way young people think and work.


Katie Taylor
Film School Africa


For giving online go to www.threadsafrica.org. Your monthly or onetime gift will be deeply appreciated. We're going to make sure that Odwa has the opportunity to go to school so he can impact his world.

I've settled on a verse that I feel will be the Film School Africa banner - it comes from The Message: Romans 5:2-5


We throw open our doors to God and discover at the same moment that he has already thrown open his door to us.  We find ourselves standing where we always hoped we might stand--out in the wide open spaces of God's grace and glory, standing tall and shouting our praise.


There's more to come: We continue to shout our praise even when we're hemmed in with troubles, because we know how troubles can develop passionate patiences in us, and how that patience in turn forges the tempered steel of virtue, keeping us alert for whatever God will do next.


In alert expectancy such as this, we're never left feeling shortchanged.  Quite the contrary--we can't round up enough containers to hold everything God generously pours into our lives through the Holy Spirit!

First the Great News—

• God is so incredibly Good—you already know that!
• Our first group of Level Two film students are about to graduate—you might have guessed that.
• Odwa Nomavuka and Ayanda Msebenzi, have been accepted into a degree program in film with full tuition scholarships—now that’s really exciting!
• And next year the program will expand to include a new Level Three (two students)—nobody knew that (till now).

And now for the Challenging News—

• The largest monthly contributor to Film School Africa must significantly scale back her giving this next year—now that’s going to be a challenge.
• It will be necessary to secure funding for Odwa and Ayanda to live near campus—I don’t have an exact figure yet but I’m guessing that’s a $700 a month commitment.
• The cameras and computers we have used day-in and day-out for the past four years are falling apart before our very eyes—surprise surprise!
• To learn lighting techniques Level Three students (2) need a course that will cost nearly $1000 each—we don’t have the lighting kits or the $2,000.

By all standards this has been an incredibly amazing year.

God has performed numerous miracles in the hearts and lives of our students, and I’m absolutely overwhelmed and grateful for your prayers and support.

But as I anticipate an exciting future, I realize we won’t be able to get there without God’s blessings and your unwavering financial help.

So here goes. Will you consider a monthly donation for Film School Africa? Your one-time or ongoing monthly gift can’t be too small or too large. Click here to donate and designate your contribution.

And if you missed the video made for you by Film School Africa students last month – check it out here!

Thank you so much for your prayers and financial support. Together we’re using art to give life,

Katie Taylor

Breakthroughs

As you well know, watching a breakthrough happen in someone’s life is one of life’s greatest rewards.

Recently one of my Kayamandi students was attacked. His attackers used guns to beat him on the head and face, leaving him with stitches and a face swollen beyond recognition.

When I went to visit him at his home, he embraced me in a way I could sense not only the pain of recent events, but the pain of losing his mother as well.

He needed a mom’s loving arms, and he got them from me.

While our time together was incredibly special, it wasn’t until a few weeks later I began to see the full impact of the film ministry.

You see—it was time for this young man to stand before the class and pitch his next film. He weaved a story about two friends who unknowingly run into the wrong kind of guys, he described how one of the men would be beaten and hospitalized, and how his friend would react and seek out the assailants.

It was beautiful because he was utilizing film to work through his trauma.

By using a camera and actors, he was put in a position of power to explain a situation in which he had no control.

While I thoroughly enjoy teaching students the art of film and equipping them to move into a career of storytelling, helping kids with their traumas is my most fulfilling work. And it’s the reason I reach out to friends like you for help.

Will you consider making a generous monthly commitment to Film School Africa so we can effectively use film to change lives?

You can give online by simply clicking on www.threadsafrica.org. Or you can secure the address where you can send your check. Just be sure to designate your gift to the film school.

If you’re not able to participate at this time, there are other ways you can help. Certainly your prayers are powerful and effective. And Film School Africa is blessed to have an American high school student, Stephen Linam, helping us with our numerous equipment needs.

Stephen is repairing and enhancing used mac computers and video cameras so that we can put them to use. We’re also gathering headphones, microphones and computer speakers. You can contact Stephen directly at macsforafrica@gmail.com if you have questions or would like to donate some equipment to the cause.

Thank you for all you do to support this ministry—I’m forever changed because of your generosity.

Katie Taylor

The students put together a video so that you could see the impact of your giving. You can watch it by clicking this link http://youtu.be/df99FSH-YUY

Ayanda's triumphant return!

I just wanted to share with you a little bit of the joy that I was able to experience recently as Ayanda returned safely from Kenya. Odwa, Luvuyo and I all attended his graduation from the Discipleship Training School (DTS) as well as the completion of his outreach phase. It was a wonderful day to celebrate, and really take in the life change that is so evident in Ayanda. It's hard to put it into words, so I won't try, rather I'll let his words speak.

"Hey!!!! I just want to thank you for everything you've done for me, I really appreciate everything. This has been an amazing experience starting from lecture phase till Outreach and now the debriefing. I believe that "DTS" planted something in my life that I can't describe: because it is too great, too deep, too high and too wide to prove, but I know I am not the same as before. The whole thing affected the way I think, speak and how I see things.

The new Ayanda is being born, am ready to do God's will, I know it's not going to be easy but am willing to take it. For I know the Lord will be by my side and he will never leave me. I feel that the Lord is calling me to Kenya to take care of his children but the problem is who is going to take care of my family because I feel that they are expecting me to support them. Which is true somehow I have to take the responsibility because they invested in my life. And if I become a missionary who will do that?"

What wonderful issues to grapple with - and what amazing ministry lies ahead. I've always believed that Film Project Africa could and should be replicated - perhaps these are just the first steps toward a Kenya branch. :)

Please continue to pray for Ayanda as he finds his feet in Kayamandi once again. As he tries to swim upstream in his community and with his friends, that he might stand firm in all that he has learned.

In three weeks he'll be starting the video production semester and it will be nothing short of a challenge, but it's one that will equip him, and for that I'm grateful. For all who have supported us, you've made a real impact in the lives of many - but it's so fun for a moment focus on just one.

To become involved or donate to Film School Africa, simply go to www.threadsafrica.org and click on the donate button. Together we're harnessing the power of film to forever change lives.

Leadership Camp - 45 Student Leaders Camp in Tents

Three and a half days of leadership camp left me simply desperate for God, desperate for answers, and desperate for a bed!

It was incredibly fulfilling to work with these young leaders and help to provide guidance and instruction during these few days.

The weekend started with an intense challenge that would rival Survivor because of its more than two hour length! Students were put into groups of 5 and were given laminated maps, two inner tubes, 3 sticks and a rope. They were then sent into a gently moving river of varying depths to take their team and their raft upstream.

Several stops along the way had them searching for flags and working as a team. But easily the greatest challenge was the fact that of 45 students, at least 20 were not at all comfortable with water! Some could not swim at all and one of my own students said later that it was her first time being in a body of water of any kind! (It was great fun to watch her learn to swim in the pool throughout the weekend.)

“Going against the flow” was a common theme over the next few days as students grappled with issues of their identity, the effect that Apartheid has on how they value themselves, and forgiveness. Huge topics for a huge weekend.

If I’m being honest, I didn’t really want to go. Just the idea of taking a long weekend and spending it in tents was not that appealing to me. But man was I glad I was there!

The weekend really brought me back to the heart of what I do – and it connected me with students that I wouldn’t otherwise have known.

The weekend made me desperate to find all the answers in the bible to every question they have.

The weekend reduced to me tears as conversations about forgiveness led one young girl to speak about how rape had left her pregnant at 15. Through tears she told me about the blessing of that little girl’s life, even in such turmoil and hardship.

Days later I was struck with this picture of what happens when we don't strive after forgiveness as people who have been forgiven so much. I'm sure the analogy stems from so much talk about who is able to swim and who is not...Our feet are shackled to the bottom of a pool and the water is filling up around us, but we have the key to unlock our chains in our hand. But it's just too scary to put our face under the water, dive down and begin the process of unlocking ourselves. So instead we settle for drowning slowly.