Film makers in Ghana to embark on nationwide strike

• Posted on May 19, 2015
• by Nana Kwesi Coomson
• Comment

On Thursday, May 28, there will be no sale of movies anywhere in Ghana as film makers in the country embark on a nationwide strike and a demonstration to be held in Kumasi to protest government’s dismal handling of the continuous electricity crisis.

The demonstration cum sit-down strike is being spearheaded by the Film Producers Association of Ghana (FiPAG) and will be attended by members of the Ghana Actors Guild (GAG), members of the Creative Arts for Change, as well as some of Ghana’s popular actors, movie and stage directors, scriptwriters, editors, producers, makeup artists, soundtrack singers & producers, acting guilds’ members, retailers, marketers, and distributors among others.

“We have decided there would be no production, no acting, no shooting, no directing, no editing, no sale of movie, no distribution of movies and we shall be converging at the Cultural Centre in Kumasi to tell government we are fed up with the mishandling of the power crisis and that it is killing our business,” Executive Director of Movie Africa Productions and member of FiPAG, Socrate Safo, told NEWS-ONE.

Michael Kwaku Ola, Public Relations Officer for FiPAG, has also explained that the May 28 demonstration is strictly apolitical and that organisers would not want any politician to attend in party colours or make partisan statements.

“The film making industry in Ghana relies directly on electricity and this irrational power rationing is killing us. Already government has not helped our industry and if we have toiled to bring our industry this far, what is the sense of government destroying it. Who buys movies when there is no light? How can you shoot by using generators and expect to get the right sound? How can you edit when there is no light? How should we get money to cater for our families? Mind you, we are not like the politicians who get end of service whatever. We live on our own and we are simply asking government to bring back our lights now,” Mr Safo said.

By Halifax Ansah-Addo