Tell Ghanaian stories to attract investors - Filmmakers urged

The Chief Executive Officer of the National Film Authority (NFA), Juliet Yaa Asantewaa Asante, has admonished filmmakers to produce movies  in local languages and tell  Ghanaian stories to help attract investors to the sector.

She said telling Ghanaian stories would enhance their creativity and give them the competitive advantage as  investors in the sector were very interested in such  unique content.

"Producing movies in our local language enhances our creativity, enables us to tell our story without any form of restraint and gives us a competitive advantage internationally” she noted.

Capacity building

Ms Asantewaa made the call at a day’s workshop organised for  filmmakers and various stakeholders in the film industry in Tamale.

Organised by the NFA in collaboration with the Ministry of Tourism,  Arts and Culture(MOTAC), the workshop was aimed at building the capacity of filmmakers and various stakeholders to help reposition the sector.

It formed part of the Ghana Tourism Development Project (GTDP) funded by the World Bank under the auspices of  MOTAC.

The participants were taken through  the new trends in the production and marketing of films, new technologies and equipment for film production and best practices in international film production.

As part of the event, the participants were also taken through the draft of the Legislative Instrument (LI) which is to be submitted to the Parliament of Ghana for approval.

Improve skills

Ms Asantewaa advised them to improve their skills to enable them to tell good stories of their localities and beyond.

She reiterated the authority's resolve to work hard to revamp the Ghana Film Industry.

A Technical Consultant to the GTDP, Professor Gabriel Eshun, lauded local filmmakers  for their efforts towards the growth of the film industry.

He expressed optimism that the ministry, through the GFA, would reposition the industry to be more vibrant and lucrative.

The President of the Northern Drama and Film-Makers Association (NORDRAFILM), Ahmed Saani, commended the NFA for the intervention and appealed for more support for members of the association to help enhance their work.