Alakija, others kick-start Africa Cinematography Festival
Prominent business tycoon, Mrs Folorunsho Alakija, alongside other personalities, has disclosed plans to stage what has been dubbed: Africa Cinematography Festival (ACF) in Lagos. At a briefing in Lagos, Alakija who is the Grand Patron of ACF described the initiative as one that is capable of driving the entrepreneurial spirit of existing and prospective players […]
Prominent business tycoon, Mrs Folorunsho Alakija, alongside other personalities, has disclosed plans to stage what has been dubbed: Africa Cinematography Festival (ACF) in Lagos.
At a briefing in Lagos, Alakija who is the Grand Patron of ACF described the initiative as one that is capable of driving the entrepreneurial spirit of existing and prospective players in the Nigerian film industry.
She said she was convinced that the ACF initiative speaks to the Nigerian spirit, but more importantly, the yearning of many talented men and women who presently appear to have hit the crossroads between their dreams and their realization.
“I share the view that the future of a country, nation or people is a direct function of what the younger generation makes of it. This fact, as common a cliché as it may have become in our national discourse, stresses the need to prioritize the empowerment of those within the bracket. This may explain why the Africa Cinematography Festival (ACF) is a platform that I am proud of and also share huge optimism in its ability to contribute immensely to the overall development of the nation and particularly the movie industry.
“As a development partner of the governing authorities in this new vision, the Africa Cinematography Festival (ACF) is committed to complementing existing efforts while pushing for new frontiers that can guarantee the development we all long to see in the country.
Similarly, the Chief Executive Officer of Legacy Empire Management (LEM) and the Co-Founder, Africa Cinematography Festival Henry Emenike said the ACF initiative is one capable of propelling to greater height, Nigeria’s and indeed Africa’s film industry.
Emenike explained that the Africa Cinematography Festival is a child of necessity, especially when one weighs what is currently obtainable against what should have been the gains of the industry. He lamented that despite Nigerian film industry enjoying massive followership, due largely to the hordes of Nigerians in diaspora, the reluctance of foreign partners, particularly equipment manufacturers to tap into the huge market potentials has been quite disheartening.
“How does Africa Cinematography Festival want to address this? Let us just put it this way: the Africa cinematography festival envisions a new era and embodies an industry buoyed by technological advancement.
The ACF is not just about master classes, trainings and workshops, but also exhibitions in film technologies. As a platform, it will provide renowned and emerging cinematography equipment manufacturers and their local partners a huge window for expansion into the Nigerian market,” he said.
Also, the Founding Brand Ambassador /Director General, Event Coordination ACF, Mrs Judith Alakija said one of the mission statements of ACF is to bridge the knowledge gap in the film industry so as to make it reckoned with on the global stage.
“It provides all industry players and stakeholders, including you and I, the platform for optimization of the inherent potentials and prospects of technological advancement in audio-visual, sound, light and still photo productions. I believe in the ‘Project Nigeria’ with a great focus on promoting youth capacity building and development in film making and entertainment because, film making and entertainment form a great window of enhancing Nigeria’s GDP,” she said.