Nairobi, Aug. 27 -- For most Kenyan filmmakers, getting a film into local cinemas is considered a victory. But with barely a handful of functioning cinemas in Kenya, producing a feature film can feel like investing in a business with almost no market.

For producer and screenwriter Jinna Mutune Odede, that reality forced her to rethink everything she knew about distribution.

Instead of making films solely for Kenyan audiences, she began imagining stories that could travel across Africa and eventually around the world.

After years of painstakingly building relationships across continents, she is taking her latest project, Cocoa Dreams, on a multi-city international tour-a journey she says reflects a conviction that African stories should...