AROUND AND ABOUT NOLLYWOOD, Author of this article: BY SHAIBU HUSSEINI

Ali-Balogun’s short documentary on fuel protest ready

THE filmmaker Mahmood Ali-Balogun has said work is almost complete for his short documentary on the January fuel price hike protest titled, Nigerian Autumn, for a possible premiere at the 2012 edition of the i-Represent International Documentary Film Festival. The film fest holds between March 22 and 25 at Terra Kulture, Lagos. The film is one of the works from ‘Occupy Nigeria’ that will dominate the film fest . Ali-Balogun disclosed that the short documentary would have been ready before now, if not for the challenges faced when he was sourcing the fund for his ‘next project’. This edition, according to a statement from the organisers, is conceptualised on the framework: Africa in self conversation, and it would explore the theme: Democracy and Culture — The Documentary Film Intervention. As would be deduced from the sporadic people's mass action that attended the January 1 removal of fuel subsidy by the Federal Government, a new sense of participation in governance, the organisers say, is evolving on the African continent, hence the need to explore opportunities open to African filmmakers to bring better understanding and approaches to participatory democracy as part of African political culture through the medium of documentary films. According to Ali-Balogun, his film fits the bill and he hopes to finish the work before the start of the festival. Executive Director of i-Rep Documentary Film Forum, Femi Odugbemi, said the four-day festival would cover areas such as democracy and demonstrations, new media technology and participatory democracy. It will also examine the potentials of the Nigerian films to explore and exploit the documentary format in its production virtues. The festival’s subtheme is: Is Nollywood Documentary? This will feature a conversation among filmmakers and their publics on the potentials of Nollywood films to embrace the documentary ethics in its operation and outputs. For this edition, organisers have invited Professor Jean Paul Colleyn (Director of Institute of African Studies, Paris) to deliver a Keynote. Details on the festival can be sourced at www.irepfilmfestival.com.

Pennies for the Boatman get Madrid Filmfest nomination

NIYI Coker’s engaging feature, Pennies For The Boatman, has been nominated in four categories of the 2012 Madrid International Film Festival. The movie, which had its Nigerian showing last year at LifeHouse, Victoria Island, Lagos, under the auspices of the LifeHouse and iREP screening collaboration, will compete in Best Film, Best Director, Best Film Script and Best feature film. In an email exchange, the Nigerian-born Desmond Lee hinted that the festival and awards would be announced in Madrid, Spain between June 6 and 9. “Many thanks to all for your support with this project. It has meant the world to us. We would not be at this point without it,” he said. Details about the festival and its nomination list can be sourced at www.madridinternationalfilmfestival.com/nominations2012.

NFC announces winners for film essay competition

THE Nigerian Film Corporation (NFC) has released the result of the 7th edition of its Film Essay Competition. According to a statement signed by Brian Etuk, Head, Public Affairs, the winners are Moses Daodu (first), Fedelis Okoregbe ( second) and Onyedika Okafor (third). They beat other participants to clinch the cash prizes of N100, 000.00, N75, 000.00 and N50, 000.00, respectively. The topic of the essay was Re-emergence of the Cinema: Impact on the Local Industry and National Economy. The competition, which began in 2005, has, as at today, recorded a total of 232 participants, producing 21 winners. Afolabi Adesanya, managing director of NFC, while commending the high level of intellectual essays, congratulated the winners. Adesanya described the participation level in past editions as encouraging noting that the choice of the topic for the 2011/2012 edition, no doubt, presented an interesting turning point in the history of the competition, which now serves as a benchmark for assessing critical issues germane to the growth of the Nigerian movie industry. Presentation of cash prizes and certificate of participation will hold during the 6th edition of ZUMA International Film Festival, scheduled for Abuja from May 6 to 10.

Audio-visual practitioners to be armed on right infringement

AN international workshop that will further strengthen the capacity, rearm audio visual professionals on intellectual property rights, and as well fightpiracy and copyright holds in Lagos from April 11 to13 at NFC Lagos office, by Voice of Nigeria (VON), Obalende . Organised by the Nigerian Film Corporation (NFC), in collaboration with Nigerian Copyright Commission (NCC) and the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO), the workshop intends to address new media and other related issues that affect the sustainable development of the motion picture industry in the country. Participants are drawn from the professional guilds of the Nigerian motion picture industry (Producers, Marketers, Exhibitors, Actors etc.) creative industry experts, copyright and anti-piracy officials, entertainment outfits, satellite, telecoms, and terrestrial television and radio stations. Others include officials from the NFC, the NCC, National Film and Video Censors Board (NFVCB), selected development banks, Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) and WIPO Geneva, Switzerland. The workshop, which also intends to evaluate the current status of the Nigerian motion industry and the impact of copyright and piracy, starts 9am and participation is free.
In a statement by Chinwe Okonkwo, Head of Legal Unit, NFC, and programme’s coordinator, the workshop will also attempt to chart a way forward for the growth and expansion of the industry with a view to increasing its contribution to the economic development of Nigeria. Facilitators and discussants include Mr. Rob Aft from Los Angeles, USA; Mr. Richard Moxon from the United Kingdom; Donna Hill of WIPO, Switzerland; Afolabi Adesanya; Tarja Koshinen-Olsson; Mr. Bankole Sodipo; Tunde Kelani; Sandra Obiago of Communication for Change; Femi Odugbemi, Chief Executive of D-V Works; Fidelis Duker, Chief Executive of Abuja International Film Festival. Others include Efere Ozako, Gabriel Okoje, Don Pedro Obaseke, Chinwe Okonkwo, James George, Ag. Director, National Film Institute, Jos, and others.
Identification of the major characteristics and profile of the audiovisual industry in Nigeria with the objectives of assessing and determining the number, type and size of companies, major stakeholders, the employment and trade generated by the audiovisual industry will also feature during the workshop, which will also address the importance of chain of title documentation establishment ownership in film production, methods of acquiring underlying property rights, sales and distribution process for independent and foreign copyrighted materials including film, television, new media markets, sales agents, film festivals and distributors. The statement also added that, the importance of developing domestic film markets and how to develop other channels for the sale of Nigerian film rights, including how to improve infrastructures for collective bargaining and management would also be addressed.

AMAA heads to the Gambia to announce nomination

FILMMAKERS who submitted entries for the 2012 edition of the yearly African Movie Academy Awards (AMAA) will know how well they have performed when the nomination for AMAA is formally released today in the Gambia. Though details of the nomination is still being awaited, there are indications that Nigeria will have countries such as South Africa, Kenya and Ghana — its traditional arch rivals, to contend with this year. An inside source noted that the battle for who will receive most of the diadems out of the 20 in contention is keen. He hinted that the competition seem keen this year because ‘the entries are very rich.’ Held yearly in Yenegoa, Bayelsa State, Nigeria since 2004, the main award ceremony is scheduled for Saturday, April 22, in Lagos. This is the second time the award will be staged outside its traditional venue — Bayelsa. The first time it was held outside Bayelsa was in 2007.

6th Kids For Kids Festival Africa calls for films

LOLA Kenya Screen invites films from children and youth in Africa for
the 6th yearly Kids for Kids Africa Festival (KFKF-A) Competition that has since 2008 been organised and presented in the framework of Africa's premier audiovisual media initiative specifically designed for children and youth. “The films we are looking for must be made by children and youth in 2011 and 2012 only; any film made by adults masquerading as children or youth are unacceptable,” Lola Kenya Screen director Ogova Ondego says. “We define a child as any one aged 18 and under. And such people need not be citizens of Africa, but can be resident in the mother continent at the time the film was made.” Ondego clarifies that films made by children under the guidance of adults are eligible for the Kids For Kids Festival Africa but that the contribution of adults should be confined to training or facilitating the process but should not be extended to areas such as scripting, shooting, story-boarding or animating. “Eligible films are those made by children resident in any part of Africa. All kinds of moving images — animation, experimental, documentary, fiction — will be considered,” Ondego says. Any film in a language other than English must be sub-titled in English. “All entries will be received, processed, assessed and awarded by a film selection committee and jury comprising children. Winning entries will represent Africa at the international Kids for Kids Festival,” Ondego adds. Deadline for receiving entries at the directorate is April 15. KFKF is an international community of young filmmakers and media educators; it constitutes a unique, international movement for the promotion and advertisement of audiovisual messages created by children for children.
KFKF-A was first held in Johannesburg, South Africa, in 2007. However since August 2008, KFKA has been organized and presented in the framework of the Nairobi, Kenya-based Lola Kenya Screen reputed to be Africa’s first audiovisual media initiative exclusively designed for children and youth. Details of the festival can be sourced from director@lolakenyascreen.org
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Author of this article: BY SHAIBU HUSSEINI