An Agency for International Development (AID) project established an educational film production unit in Malawi. The project was designed to deliver extension services and information from the Ministry of Agriculture to rural farmers and had to: 1) produce films which meet the needs of villagers; 2) keep costs to an absolute minimum; and 3) fully train a Malawian staff within two years. The project borrowed its major ideas from television news cinematography, shooting only color film with single system optical sound equipment. The basic production steps of preparing scripts, shooting and processing originals, editing, making release prints, and distributing copies were followed. Short single concept films were shot on location to educate and entertain villagers and to demonstrate improved agricultural methods. The project was successful, for costs were kept to less than $27 a minute (excluding labor), the films were shown to one-third of the country's population each year, and a Malawian staff took over the operation of the film unit after 18 months. (Author/PB)