Renowned and celebrated movie producer and director Leila Djansi has stated in a post sighted by kmjofficial.com that many Ghanaians lack basic film literacy.
Here is a post she shared on Facebook;
I am sorry, but many Ghanaians lack basic film literacy. If you can afford to know everything about European football, then you should also know something about film industry because you consume that too!
Let’s address a few things.
1. Releasing a film on YouTube every two months is not an achievement. I daresay it is NOT filmmaking. That’s content creation.
A single filmmaker consistently releasing films every few weeks or months should raise questions about the production process, and the quality of the work. I don’t mean quality by YOUR subjective standards. World standard. Hollywood. 😎And I don’t mean quality by “picture quality”. Quality by mis-en-scene. Story.
Some films take years to develop, finance, shoot, and complete. Major productions can cost millions of dollars. Film is not simply content you throw together with a flimsy story, a camera, and a few jokesters, with one actor dominating every scene and every movie.
There is a difference between making films and churning out content.
2. There is no such thing as an “old movie” in the way people use the term to dismiss a film.
A film you have never seen before is new to you.
In my class this semester, we have watched films made in 1972. There are television channels in the United States dedicated to classic cinema, including black-and-white films.
3. Learn how to find films for yourself.
If you like a particular filmmaker or actor, Google their name followed by “movies.” For example, search “Yvonne Nelson movies.”
If you know the title of a film, type it into Google. It’s a search engine, and it is already on your phone.
We cannot keep complaining about the lack of access to films when we are unwilling to make even the simplest effort to find them.
4. Stop expecting filmmakers to perform a song and dance routine before you watch their films.
You think we can go up to Tyler Perry and ask “where can we watch this feeeem?” Or “when will you upload this to YouTube?”
😂😜🙄 So you even have access to Paul Thomas Anderson?
Why must a filmmaker practically beg you to watch a film that is already available on YouTube?
You will follow gossip, circulate scandals, and share every piece of bad news about people in the industry. Yet, when those same people release films, you claim not to know about them.
How much are you even paying to watch a film on YouTube? Nothing.
Filmmakers have a responsibility to market their work, of course. But audiences also have a responsibility to develop an interest in the art they consume!!
4 1/2. Go on Prime. Not Netflix. Prime Movies and search for any movie ever, it’s there.
5. Ghana needs a centralized database for its films.
A website or app where filmmakers can register their newly released films, provide basic information, upload trailers, and include direct links to legitimate viewing platforms.
This would make films easier to discover, give filmmakers a central place to showcase their work, and help preserve a record of Ghanaian cinema.
6. Dear Ghanaian filmmakers, take your art beyond Ghana.
Think bigger. Learn the business of international distribution. Build relationships.
Mo Abudu has opened a cinema in London.
The NAACP now has an African Cinema section. Who knows? Distribution opportunities could follow.
AMC has an independent film section where you can submit your film. If they like it and you have a marketing budget, they may release it for you. You can also 4-wall your film in the USA.
There are independent distributors who can help!
Learn about service deals!
Tell standardized stories and get out of the Ghanaian audience loop. The world is bigger than Ghana.
3000 people bought tickets to watch Like Cotton Twines in India!
Long before Netflix became a thing, my films “Where Children Play” and “And Then there was You” were hitting number 1 on Netflix.
Tell standard stories!
Ask Francophone African filmmakers. They sell their films directly to Hollywood.
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