Home SHOWBIZ Gov’t to build ultra-modern film studio, set up National Film Authority

Gov’t to build ultra-modern film studio, set up National Film Authority

The government has announced the construction of an ultra-modern Film Production Studio in 2019.

The construction of the studio, according to the government, will attract the international film community to Ghana.

This was contained in the Budget Statement and Economic Policy for the 2019 Financial Year presented by the Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta to Parliament on Thursday.

The construction of the studio will come as good news for the movie industry considering the massive uproar after the government, in 1996, sold 70% of its equity in the Ghana Film Industry

Corporation (GFIC) to the Malaysian television production company, Sistem Televisyen Malaysia Berhad of Kuala Lumpur. The GFIC was renamed ‘Gama Media System Ltd’.

Ghana, after the success chalked by “Deadly Voyage” in 1996, lost out on another juicy international movie deal because the GFIC was sold.

That film, “Amistad,” directed by Steven Spielberg, had a budget of $36 million and it made $44.2 million at the box office.

Ghana’s economy would have possibly benefitted from about a third of that budget or even more, it was reported.

The Finance Minister also announced that the government will pursue the passing of a legislative instrument to establish a Secretariat for the National Film Authority.

This Authority, he said, will facilitate the construction of the ultra-modern Film Production Studio.

“In addition, Government in 2019, will pursue the passing of a Legislative Instrument to establish a Secretariat for the National Film Authority” and will also facilitate the construction of an ultra-modern Film Production Studio to attract the international film community,” Mr Ofori-Atta said.

The Minister announced that “the Creative Arts Industry Bill is now in Parliament for deliberation and passage into Law. The Creative Arts Fund is incorporated in the Bill to ensure the economic viability of the Creative Arts Sector in the economy.”

The Finance Minister also said, to commemorate the 400 years of slavery, a delegation led by President, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, went to the US to declare 2019 as the “YEAR OF RETURN” in September of this year.

“The Ghana Tourism Authority is leading this campaign that will see a great number of African Diaspora from the United States of America, the Caribbean and the United Kingdom return to Ghana on a pilgrimage to promote heritage tourism in 2019,” he said.

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