Lights! Camera! Roll! Action for third Graphic Showbiz forum

“A story should have a beginning, a middle and an end… but not necessarily in that order.” This is a quote by renowned French-Swiss film director, screenwriter, and film critic, Jean-Luc Godard.

THE importance of the above quote comes in handy perhaps at a time when players in Ghana’s movie industry get ready to hold important conversations on the sector at the third Graphic Showbiz forum on the theme, “Future of Ghana Movie Industry, Bright or Bleak?”, at the head office of MultiChoice Ghana, Accra, tomorrow, July 25, 2023.

What is the current state of Ghana’s Movie industry? Is it at the beginning, the middle or has it hit the end of the road, as has been the narration in the last few years, particularly after the COVID-19 pandemic?

It is worth mentioning that in the last few years, Africa has exported several worthy talents and their works, including movies, continue to make great strides on the world market.

With the soaring popularity of online platforms, film industries across the continent are getting world attention by appearing on big screens in Europe and other reputable international film festivals across the globe.

The widespread use of new technologies, the affordability of digital film equipment, and the rise of online platforms are enabling a new generation of African filmmakers to emerge.

Across most of the continent, however, the economic potential of the film and audiovisual sectors remains largely untapped, with the film industry continuing to be structurally underfunded, underdeveloped and undervalued.

According to the Pan African Federation of Filmmakers (FEPACI), the industry generates $5 billion in annual revenue out of a potential $20 billion.

Also, A UNESCO report on the progress of the African film industry released on October 5, 2021, reflected the vitality of African cinema, driven by digital technologies.

For instance, Nigerian Film Industry, popularly known as Nollywood, is said to produce an estimated 2,500 films a year and is perhaps a representative of this growth.

The real game-changer is the ongoing digital revolution, which has enabled the emergence of a local production and distribution industry with its own economic model.

But while some African countries, with special mention of Nigeria, are said to be making huge progress by employing various measures, including using platforms such as Netflix to market their products, conversations about Ghana’s movie industry have certainly not been too positive in the last few years.

The upcoming Graphic Showbiz forum, which is in partnership with Multichoice Ghana, intends to, among others, address how Ghana can be a relevant global movie industry.

 Panellists

Panellists for the forum are George Bosompim, a lecturer at the National Film and Television Institute (NAFTI) and Public Relations Officer of The Ghana Academy of Film and Television Arts (GAFTA), and Peter Sedufia, a film director and CEO of Oldfilms Productions.

Others are Ivan Quashigah, Film Producer and CEO of Farmhouse Productions; actor Prince David Osei and Afua Kissi-Nyame, Head of Marketing, Multichoice Ghana.

The event will be moderated by Media and Communications Consultant, Francis Doku.

Ivan Quashigah

As a multi-talented filmmaker with over 29 years of work experience in advertising and marketing, Ivan Quashigah worked for 13 years in the creative and production departments of Mullen Lowe Lintas Ghana before setting up Farmhouse Productions Limited in 2006.

He also produced and directed the award-winning adolescent reproductive health television serial drama Things We Do For Love and a host of top TV programmes, including YOLO, which won seven out of eight awards at the Ghana Movie Awards in 2016 and 2019.

Ivan’s work in film has won over 20 local and international awards, including the prestigious Pan African Film Festival( FESPACO-Ouagadougou 1993) award for Best Short Feature and several awards for television and radio commercials at the Gong Gong Awards.

 Prince David Osei

Actor Prince David Osei made his debut appearance in the silver screen industry in 2005 and has since featured in movies, including Nana Means King, Why Should I Get Married, Before Noon, When Love Comes Around and Hollywood thriller The Dead, in which he starred alongside American actor, Bob Freeman.

He has won many awards, including Ghana Entertainment Awards—Most Outstanding (2019), Best Actor Lead Role in African International Film Festival Awards (2019) and honorary awards at Ghana Film Summit in 2018.

 Peter Sedufia

A graduate of the National Film and Television Institute (NAFTI), Peter Sedufia is an award-winning screenwriter, film producer and film director.

He is also the CEO of OldFilm Productions and some of the films he has to his credit include Keteke (2017), Sidechic Gang (2018), Away Bus (2019) and Aloevera.

 George Bosompim

 George Bosompim is an award-winning documentary filmmaker and a lecturer at the National Film and Television Institute (NAFTI). He is also a producer/director in film and television.

Before joining NAFTI, he worked with Gama Film Company as a writer, director and producer for 15 years. Within that period, he wrote, produced and directed TV drama series Cape Coast Motel, District Colonial Court, Chorkor Trotro, Barber and Shoeshine Boy and All that Glitters. He is currently working on his next series Return of the Dove.

George is the Convener for the Film Task Team of Ghana, a member of the Ghana Culture Policy Review Committee, an Executive Member of the Ghana Culture Forum, a member of the Drafting Committee for the Creative Arts Industry Law’s Legislative Instrument (L.I.), and PRO of Ghana Academy of Film and Television Arts (GAFTA).

Afua Kissi-Nyame

Afua Kissi-Nyame is the Marketing Communications, Brand Management and Event Management professional with experience on working on iconic brands within the Restaurants, Media, Tele Communications Network, Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG), Banking and Airline Industries.

She describes herself as a Creative thinker, passionate, and results-driven leader with high-integrity who has demonstrated the ability to effectively influence internal/external stakeholders across the business to grow the bottom-line.

She is An Associate Member of Chartered Institute of Marketing Ghana (CIMG) and she has been instrumental in highlighting the potentials of Ghana’s Movie Industry through productive initiatives as Head of Marketing, MultiChoice Ghana.

Expectations

In separate interviews with Daily Graphic, the panellists were positive the upcoming forum would provide the platform for making relevant contributions to the sector.

Actor Prince David Osei said he was excited about the prospect of exchanging ideas, learning from others, and contributing to the growth and development of the movie industry.

Ivan Quashigah expressed optimism about the forum setting agenda for the implementation of government policies.

“I hope that through this dialogue and the subsequent publications to be generated, policymakers will begin to see the potential of the film industry and to begin to appreciate the need to support the industry to take its rightful place as a source of meaningful employment for the teeming youth,” Ivan Quashigah said.

According to the Editor of Graphic Showbiz, Ms Adwoa Serwaa Bonsu, “Film is a powerful medium that evokes emotions, shapes ideas and potentially affects attitudes and behaviour. So whether our film industry here blooms or withers should be of concern to us all. That’s why through our forum we are bringing together a knowledgeable panel who understands the elements of filmmaking to figure out the direction of our movie sector.”

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