The ruler of the Ga state, King Tackie Teiko Tsuru II has called on the government to financially support the production of movies that narrate Ghana’s untold stories, stressing the significant role played by movies in cultural heritage conservation.
Addressing the participants of the Africa Cinema Summit, held at the Mövenpick Hotel in Accra, the Ga Mantsey underscores the role of cinema in celebrating the legacy of the country.
The Ga King, in his keynote address read by renowned broadcaster Nathaniel Attoh on his behalf, urged the next government to bankroll a film focusing on telling the legendary story of Ghanaian boxer Azumah Nelson.
“One, considering we are on the Ga Adangbe land and considering that he is a custodian of the Ga Adangbe culture is a story of one of the most achieved athletes from the African continent Berima Professor Azumah ZumZum Nelson who is a son of the Ga soil,” he said.
The Ga Mantse also highlighted that “His story embodies culture, inspiration, and projects the future of the African way. This is one of the many stories that can be pursued in a very vigorous way by the government that takes over in the year 2025”.
Azumah Nelson, a former professional boxer, is widely regarded as one of Africa’s greatest athletes. Throughout his career, which spanned from 1979 to 2008, he earned world titles in two weight classes, including the WBC featherweight and WBC super featherweight championships, and is highly acclaimed for his remarkable accomplishments.
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Touching on African cinema, King Tackie Teiko Tsuru II also spoke against how the foreign media negatively portrays the continent, recalling the painful images often shown to the world, such as the Rwandan crisis, despite the country’s ongoing progress under President Kagame.
He called on Africans to use cinema as a tool for transforming society: “As we gather for the Africa Cinema Summit, let us reaffirm our commitment to cinema as a vital tool for cultural preservation, economic empowerment, and social transformation. Cinema reflects our past, represents our present, and projects our future.”
The Africa Cinema Summit, a four-day event running from October 7 to October 10, 2024, aims to enhance the quality of local content production and consumption while advocating for greater investment in the cinema industry.
Being headlined by British actor of Ghanaian descent, Idris Elba, this year’s summit is aimed at discussing efforts to consolidate progress in the African film space and fostering collaboration and growth.
A Legacy Award ceremony will be held on, Wednesday, October 9, as part of the summit, at the Mövenpick Hotel.
The summit is hosted by the Juliet Asante-led National Film Authority (NFA) in conjunction with Filmhouse Group (Nigeria), Silverbird Cinema (Ghana), Century CineMax (Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda), Cinema Exhibitors Association of Nigeria, and Canal Olympia, among others.
