 Alright, to the S.P.M.Bahs family or the socials they know me as Seva Kido, I'm standing next to a great legend, of course legendary in the industry and the film industry director Eric. Yes. Can you introduce yourself? My name is Eric Morioki, I'm a director by profession. Yes. How's life as a director? Directing is something that I've always wanted to do. I like it. I like it. The money. Make-up, bang. Make-up, bang. How's life as a director in the film industry? Well, directing is good. It's taken a turn lately. Originally, it was a film. It was on television. It was a squeeze. I was on TV, but it was not on television. I was on TV. I was on TV. How is the journey now? Are you watching now? The transition from television now to the digital space. I think the cheese has moved. We joined the industry many months ago, broadcast television was the thing. We could all sit by the TV around seven, prime time, after news, Kulkonaio favorite show. That's what, as directors, we all wanted to do. But now nobody has terrestrial television anymore. Everyone is on it. But the desire to watch dramatized content is still there. So we have to move. We have to move our skills from the television to online. You are the director. You're in the right place to tell me. If given a chance today, I have two offers on table for the last two seasons to go on air. Do you guys stick to the other plans of having it on digital space? Digital, for sure. I mean, taking it on air, Nika Maksima, Puan Zekuza, DVD, all, all DVD players, I think digital is now and we are not going to go back any time soon. Is digital the future? It's already the present. The future is too far. Digital is present and to be here for a very long time. You are the director of course, coming on board PR. I believe you're trying to align yourself now in the digital space because PR, you don't want to miss out on this opportunity to maybe to connect, to get to meet the new fresh audience. Yes, for sure. I mean, again, as I said, my training was in television, so we have to move to online because that's where the audiences are and that's where the new format is. People are doing from one minute content all the way to an hour, an hour and a half. But for us in television, we were stuck to 24 minutes or 30 minutes, sometimes actually 24 and 30 minutes and that was it. For film, it's either 60 or 90 or 120 minutes and that was it. So we were stuck in these boxes, Natunga Toka, but the beauty of digital, it's open-ended. You could, you know, the world is out there for your taking because if you shoot something that's 30 seconds, if you shoot something for 30 minutes or one and a half hours, someone is going to watch it and they want it. So our skills are still needed here. How are you planning to commercialize in the digital space? I think it's by connecting with brands that have already started taking off. Like Anastro To is a very good example. It has a huge following, people love it. It's taken almost a year for people to watch another season and you can already feel the anticipation online. So, I mean, you just follow the eyeballs and that's what everyone is doing. So if that's where the platform is, that's where we have to go because that's where the audience is. You as a director coming on board for the Anastro To season two, did you feel like pressure because the audience is demanding? Yeah, for sure, for sure. So I wasn't there on season one. So I came in in season two to try and take it to the next level. But what is this next level? Because already you had an audience, they had a very good following, they had made stars, the show is full of stars and every single episode more stars are coming as we move on. So for me, and I'm already joining a crew and a cast that have already worked together for a minute. So for me, it was just to try and understand how the working of the show is, reading the material and the vision from Eddie Butita and just try to take it a notch higher. So the pressure is there and it's real. What is the experience working with Butita and then why did you decide to work with Butita? Butita is a brilliant writer. I mean, I remember when I made the decision to come and direct it, what a script reading and I was just, you know, reading some, the first four episodes and I was just cracking up because this is something that I could not imagine, you know, that would happen. But just the writing is amazing and if there's something that attracts directors, it's good writing. You just want to run towards it. Yeah. So his writing is very good. He's very, very creative. He knows how to bring people together. He knows how to identify brilliant minds and bring them to the table. And that's a very good recipe for success and nobody, everybody wants to be part of that. Is there something special about Butita that we don't know, we're here to see, we're here to learn in this new series of Anastatocison 2? I think his idea of trying to revolutionize the digital space with dramatized content, that's not something that we've done for a minute. And I think if this is the amount of success is had with one show, imagine if we had four, five shows in the pipeline. That's a Taylor Paley right there. All right. Take us through about Anastatocison 2. So we have spanned 13 episodes. Every episode is standalone. Apart from the core cast that we all know about, we have cameos all through. And that's a brilliant idea, both for the audience and also for marketing perspective. Because every cameo that's coming, every guest that's coming, is coming with a constituency on board. So we have that. But we have a story arc as well for the whole season. Humbo is the main character of the show. And as we know, the first season ended with her going, quote, unquote, going abroad. And so the big question in this season is to answer, is she coming back, is she not? And if she's coming back, what are the modalities around that? And so that's our big seasonal arc that we are trying to unpack. But in between, we have other characters coming on board. I don't want to give away too much. We have very, very good guest stars that are just cracking us up on set every single day. And I think this season, this season for sure, the audience is in for a very good treat. They are really, really going to enjoy this season. What makes Humbo a unique, a lead in Anasteto season two? I mean, Anstela is a star. I mean, like her performance on set is just stellar as the name goes. She's very, very good. And we were reading her script. And when she's trying to play that she's in the States, I had visualized a way that she was going to say this. And so when she came on set, I told her, oh, this is how I want to do it. And she turned and did it. And she said, oh, Mr. Director, could I do something different? And what she gave us is the performance that you saw. She is brilliant. She understands her character. She's a seasoned actor. She understands the Kenyan audience. And I think every time she steps in front of a camera, she just aces it. And I think no one can take that away from her. You can confirm to us if Humbo is the favorite. Is she your favorite? Well, that's like apparent picking from their own children. So I love the whole cast. They are amazing. Yeah, very, very good. So far you have a favorite scene, maybe? A moment? No, I think they spread out in different episodes. The reception is always an amazing place to shoot. The interaction with Marianne and all the crazy people walking in and out, you're always guaranteed you're going to get a really good performance in that setup. But the world as well, especially in the later episodes, has come to really pick up. There's some very, very interesting things happening there. So if I don't want to give away too much, I think the audience should just sit in there. And they're going to love it. So the sly is really good. Fausiche has some good performance in there as well. There's someone that we've thrown in there as well that the audience are going to really enjoy. And of course, one bo, whether in or out of the set, I mean, amazing performance. At the moments, maybe you can sit down and reflect today that maybe I had to sacrifice this just for this scene to come through. I'm up for this idea to actualize on this scene. I mean, we've gone to great lengths as a crew and a cast. We've really given our time. For example, I'll give you the scenes that, all the scenes that you saw, one bo shooting in one bo's bedroom, and they're supposed to depict daylight. We shot them from around midnight 1 a.m. to 2 a.m. We've done really, really long nights to do that. We've also managed to shoot in very high security points according to government. And I don't think even regular television does that, let alone a web series. For editing, again, it's been very many late nights with the crew and the post production team in the office. So people have really, really given their time to make this a success. And I'm very, very grateful to the crew and cast. Where do you see Anastatou in the next five years? I think there's been rumors of people who have very favorite different characters. I think it's going to have a few more runs, a few more seasons, and there could also be a possibility of a spin-off. Our tour lights. Hilda, what do you want to do with the lights? Say where you are. Where do you see Anastatou in the next five? I saw definitely very many more seasons to come. I feel like the story, we're just scratching the surface. We have a brand new set. It's amazing. We have not even started treating diseases. There's so many, many people that can walk in through that door with multiple problems. We have a much, much bigger story arc going down there. The writers are already cracking their minds to give us something different. There have also been rumors here and there about a spin-off. So, I mean, let's see. I think the sky's the limit. You're the director, of course. I wish you wished to, I might get a chance to tell today, you know, the commission board on what to invest now to the creative, because this is an example of what maybe Kenyans should expect more in the film and in the creative space. I think this is a key area, I think, for government to invest in. If you look at a show like this, you're looking at 30-plus people that are making a living out of this one show for a few months. And it's just going online, not even at a paid platform. But the beauty about production like this is the volume of people that can work on it and can generate an income from it. So, if there was a way that government can come into support, either to lobby for better pay from these distributors, like, or rather, platforms, online platforms like YouTube, Facebook, X, TikTok, I think that's going to be a very big boost. And also for the producers like Eddie, Eddie Butita and others, to just bring them to the table and ask them, how would you like us to even extend this space for you? Like, for example, filming in government offices or in streets, if we can reduce a lot of those restrictions and licensing, just to make it easier for us to produce a product. And we can sell it out there. And with the income we make from it, we can support our country with tax and, you know, we can better our services, but not at the point of entry. At the point of entry I think is need for a lot of support. Then later, we can pay back to the system. You as a director, we don't get enough time to appreciate directors in the film industry. Do you feel like we should do much to appreciate directors? Because limelight goes to the actors and actresses? I think it's a double-edged sword. We walk behind the scenes and you have to like it that way. Although there are more and more directors that are coming in front of the camera, music directors, TV directors, more and more people are coming on board. And I think it's a personal thing, but definitely directors do a lot of work. And, you know, people appreciate our work. And I think, for me, I think that's a beautiful thing. All right, as we wind up director, just to ask you this, of course, there's a wider audience for Anastu to tap in. Of course, I'm talking about Africa and beyond. How are you guys planning now to penetrate to this, you know, market, new market? I think Bhutitta has mentioned this before. I think the first place is first to reach out to the Kenyan diaspora even more, to engage them more in this platform. But there are also countries around that we can create content for. And I think Bhutitta has that in the pipeline, the neighboring countries, and to just bring them on board as much as possible. I think it's one step at a time. Definitely Anastu has made a huge step when it comes to web cities in the country. And I think the sky's the limit. All right, thank you so much. Maybe a message to Anastu to fans, Anastu to cast and crew, director, producer and the team. Well, for me, the director, Eric Morioki, I'd like to say thank you very much to the cast and crew for what you've done for the show. And for the audience member out there, there's an amazing, amazing show ahead of us that was written and produced by, executive produced by Eddie Bhutitta. You're going to love it. Season 2 is going to be bigger and better. Watch it on YouTube. All right. If you're still watching, my name is Silverkid. Of course, Anastu to season 2 premiere anytime from today. Of course, guys, right to us, we'll say which scene, which moment, which cast are you looking for, of course, in the Anastu season 2 premiere? And I wish you all the best. May this be another breakthrough in the film industry. Thank you for watching. My name is Silverkid.