CMFD Productions

01/10/2026

Want to boost the visibility of your next event, campaign or publication? 📢

Your organisation’s own social media channels are only part of the opportunity. Partners, speakers, funders and supporters can help messages travel further - especially when you make it easy for them to share.

A well-planned social media toolkit can help, bringing together:
🔹Clear messages and calls to action
🔹 Captions ready to post or adapt
🔹 Downloadable, shareable graphics
🔹Accurate links, handles and researched hashtags

Our latest blog looks at what makes a social media toolkit genuinely useful

📖 Read: Social Media Toolkits to Boost Reach
https://cmfdproductions.com/social-media-toolkits-to-boost-reach/

Whether you are hosting an event, publishing a new report or launching a campaign, getting the word out is likely high on the list.

29/09/2026

🌍Ahead of International Translation Day tomorrow, we’re reflecting on creating content in 30+ languages across Africa.

Good translation carries meaning, tone and intention between languages. For us, translation and adaptation often go hand in hand - particularly when it comes to storytelling.

A familiar reference in one location may mean little in another. Humour, proverbs, character names, examples and even sound effects may need reconsideration.

The Crossroads radio drama series is a good example. First produced in English and Swahili for Kenyan audiences, the six-part series was subsequently translated and adapted into French for Francophone West Africa, Portuguese for Lusophone Africa, and isiZulu and English for South Africa.

Each edition was recorded locally, with attention to names, phrases, settings, cultural references and music. Local review and audience feedback was essential.

The goal? Ensure the body-swapping storyline stayed entertaining and humourous, while true to its purpose - supporting advocacy related to the Maputo Protocol and women's rights.

21/09/2026

Stories can create space for difficult conversations.

🕊On International Day of Peace, we’re looking back at Stories for Peace - a beautifully illustrated six-part series exploring conflict, dialogue and everyday actions for peacebuilding.

Developed to support community-based, interfaith peacebuilding in conflict-affected northern Mozambique, the video stories and accompanying booklet were created as practical resources for facilitated discussion.

The idea was simple: provide dialogue facilitators something to start conversations - content people would pay attention to, connect with and want to talk about.

Creating them was a little more involved! Complex peace and conflict concepts were translated into human-centred stories grounded in real and relevant experiences, with questions and facilitation prompts built into each story.

This year’s theme, – For Everyone, Everywhere, Every Day, celebrates the role we can all play as peacemakers.
Sometimes that starts with everyday conversations, connections - and stories.

🔗 Read more about how we developed Stories for Peace: https://bit.ly/4h4Wrqe
🔗 Explore the English Stories for Peace toolkit: https://bit.ly/4iFzz1K

Produced as part of the ID-Peace project, for Fundação MASC & Peacemakers Network

15/09/2026

One of the most useful parts of our productions rarely gets the spotlight: the discussion guide.

Discussion guides are a standard part of how CMFD Productions works. They take a radio drama, documentary or digital story further - providing a practical resource to understand the content, explore the issues and bring in local voices.

📻 Radio presenters use them to introduce programmes, open the phone lines, plan follow-up interviews or invite in-studio guests.

💬 Community groups use them to host discussions, connect the issues to local realities and create space for people to share their experiences.

A typical guide includes background information, summaries, questions, reporting ideas, local resources - and guidance for handling sensitive issues with care.

The goal isn’t to tell people what to think or talk about. It’s to encourage questions, bring in different perspectives and inspire finding out more. The production becomes the launching point for conversation, connection and action.

01/09/2026

Women’s Month in South Africa came to a close yesterday.
🌍 September brings another busy calendar of awareness days and commemorative moments - from literacy and democracy to equal pay, peace and reproductive health.

For organisations, that means plenty of opportunities to connect your work to wider conversations already happening. But you don’t need to mark them all.

Choose the moments that genuinely align with your purpose and audiences - and be clear about what you want the communication to achieve.

It’s not just about the day. It’s about making the most of a moment when people are already paying attention.

Build interest beforehand, add something useful on the day and keep important stories, information and action visible afterwards.

The date passes. The communication - and the commitment behind it - continues.

Looking for tips, tools & templates? Download our free Social Media for Awareness Days on Hashtag Nonprofit :
🔗https://bit.ly/4x3Eayf

Keep gender justice on the agenda with the Amplify! Gender Justice Social Media Toolbox packed with practical guidance, templates and ready-to-use captions:
🔗https://bit.ly/4cUQjy7

03/08/2026

📣 Communication conversations often start with the format.

The format matters. The purpose matters more.

A video may be the right choice. Or the answer may be a radio feature, community dialogue, briefing note, social media series, practical guide - or a combination of formats.

The most important question comes first: What are we trying to achieve?

The answer to that informs everything else - the audience you need to reach, the message, what channels and formats will reach and engage.

When you start with purpose, you're far more likely to create communication that doesn't just look good - it delivers results.

Need help choosing the right approach? CMFD Productions works with organisations to turn communications goals into effective strategies, content and campaigns.
📩 Get in touch: [email protected]

14/07/2026

Information alone rarely creates change.
People need to understand it, relate to it and see why it matters.

At CMFD Productions, we believe good communication and content aren't just about presenting facts. They help people make sense of ideas and inspire conversation, learning and action.

Across health and rights, gender equality, disaster risk and social justice, we partner with organisations to communicate for social impact.

From writing and storytelling to audio, video, publications, training and practical tools, our work makes information more accessible, engaging and useful.

Because knowledge only creates impact when people can use it.

📩 Get in touch: [email protected]

08/07/2026

⚽ The FIFA World Cup has reached the quarter-finals with millions of people around the world tuning in to every match.

We've been following a communications campaign that stands out - not because it's about football, but because it understands audiences.

The CIVICUS Solidarity World Cup taps into the global excitement to shine a light on civic freedoms - the right to speak freely, organise safely and protest without fear.

By drawing on data and analysis from the CIVICUS Monitor and linking it to participating countries and match-day conversations, the campaign makes complex issues more accessible, timely and engaging.

For social impact communicators, it's a valuable example of how effective communication doesn't just share information - it connects evidence and advocacy to people's interests, experiences and the conversations they're already having.

What stands out?

⚽ Connects advocacy to a global moment
Builds on a conversation that already has worldwide attention.

💡 Makes complex information accessible
Translates civic space concepts into familiar football language and imagery - from red cards to uneven playing fields.

📖 Builds a strong narrative
Teams, players, referees, supporters and matches create a story people can easily follow.

🤝 Encourages participation
Invites people to join the Solidarity Squad, receive updates, share stories and take action.

📊 Brings data to life
Links civic space ratings to popular current events and participating countries.

At the heart of strategic communications is a simple principle: people are more likely to engage with complex issues when they can relate them to their everyday interests and experiences.

The CIVICUS: World Alliance for Citizen Participation Solidarity World Cup is a thoughtful example of what that looks like in practice.
📖 Worth exploring:
https://www.civicus.org/index.php/engage-and-act/campaign-with-us/the-global-solidarity-world-cup-2026



(Screenshot from campaign page)

06/07/2026

🎙️ Some of the strongest communication begins by 'handing over the microphone' - so people can create media and content about the issues, priorities and perspectives that matter most to them.

On World Rural Development Day, we're looking back at a project that helped shape CMFD Productions' approach to co-created storytelling from the very beginning: Rural Women Reporting.

In South Africa, Kenya and Sierra Leone, rural women came together to produce radio programmes about the issues that mattered most in their lives and communities - women's rights, inheritance laws, health, governance and everyday realities.

They chose the topics, conducted interviews, learned reporting skills, voiced their own programmes and worked side-by-side with the sound engineer to bring them to life.

One of the biggest lessons?

Meaningful communication doesn't always need to be created by professional communicators.

Given the opportunity, skills and support, people and communities can create powerful communication that brings lived experience into public conversations and makes them more relevant.

More than 20 years later, that lesson still shapes how CMFD approaches storytelling. We believe some of the strongest communication is created with people, not for them.

02/07/2026

Every story of change doesn't begin with the result.

One of the biggest missed opportunities in social impact communication is waiting until a project is finished before telling the story.

Instead, share the journey.
✔ Launches and new partnerships
✔ Milestones and progress
✔ Community meetings and site visits
✔ Behind-the-scenes moments
✔ Learning and adaptations
✔ Stories of change and impact

People don't only connect with outcomes - they connect with the process, the people and the progress that make change possible.

Sharing the journey also creates richer content, keeps stakeholders engaged and makes final impact stories far more meaningful.

Because good storytelling isn't only about celebrating success.
It's about showing how change happens.