Nick Cannon is among the participants for an event Friday focusing on the future of Black storytelling and content creation around the world.

It is a part of the Showtime/MTV Entertainment Studios Storytellers Lab, which was designed with Paramount’s Content for Change and Paramount Africa “to create impactful partnerships with Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) in America and cultivate diverse creator pipelines within the entertainment industry,” per the studio.

The panel and conference features students from U.S. HBCUs and film students Kenya, Nigeria and South Africa from AFDA and the Multichoice Talent Factory.

MTV and Paramount on-air personality Dometi Pongo moderates the event live from The Gathering Spot in Atlanta. Lerai also moderates from Johannesburg. Nick Cannon is appearing in Atlanta in front of a live audience, and the conversation will “address centering the Black experience in storytelling, uplifting fresh voices that reflect the diversity of the BIPOC culture in the entertainment industry and how Black narratives are resonating with a global audience.”

Others participating include:

• U.S.-based: Sheila Ducksworth, President of CBS Studios NAACP Ventures and Tolani Holmes, SVP of Unscripted Development at Showtime/MTV Entertainment Studios
• Africa-based (virtual): Jerry Mofokeng, actor and director; Ferry Jele, director and producer and Desireé Markgraaff, producer and executive.

“We are delighted to have this important conversation with Paramount Africa to explore how telling stories rooted in culture and sharing global experiences is important for creating meaningful content,” said Ti-Shea Meadows, VP of Operations, Channel Planning and Culture, Showtime/MTV Entertainment Studios & Paramount Media Networks and Head of the Storytellers Lab. “In today’s interconnected world, learning from one another and exchanging skills and knowledge helps keep our storytelling relevant and reflect our diverse identities. By embracing each other’s perspectives, we can craft stories that resonate universally while staying true to who we are.”

“We are thrilled to be able to leverage our global influence and network to include students from the African continent in this industry development initiative. We hope the AFDA and Multichoice Talent Factory students will benefit from the international exposure and the opportunity to network with like-minded creatives. Paramount Africa has made significant investment in the local creative sector with popular productions like Redemption, Nkalakatha, Dj Zinhle and Faith Nketsi’s reality shows, and initiatives like this are an important part of growing the industry. Our ambition is to evolve this over time and give young African creatives a bigger platform to shine as we continue to invest in the industry across Africa with ” said Monde Twala, SVP and GM for Paramount Africa and Lead, BET International. 

“The broader HBCU engagement and global integration around conversations happening among creators and storytellers stateside and across the diaspora are in lockstep with the overall mission of Content for Change, which is to transform how the world sees people,” said Melissa C. Potter, Executive Director, Content for Change. “We are intentionally expanding the message globally, so that we ensure representation in storytelling on and off the screen remains accessible, authentic and inclusive.”

Other programming after the panel includes workshops and activities with Cannon and the Wild ‘N Out cast, a fireside chat with Kurtis Blow and Karla Winfrey, and a chat with the executive producer of the upcoming series, Everybody Still Hates Chris.