By Philomena Gitau
The creative industry is so far the most promising frontier for income generation across the world today. Now, if we may do some comparisons. According to a recent report published in the Fortune Magazine, the arts and culture in the United States are estimated to be contributing 3.2% of the G.D.P translating to $504 Billion annually. On the other hand, Nollywood is currently performing very well and has actually overtaken Bollywood to become the world’s second largest film industry by volume. If we may hastily look at the state back home, the film industry currently generates 7.2 Billion Shillings every year, creating direct and indirect employment to more than 100,000 people, according to the Pan-African Federation of Filmmakers.
Now, if we may do some comparisons. According to a recent report published in the Fortune Magazine, the arts and culture in the United States are estimated to be contributing 3.2% of the G.D.P translating to $504 Billion annually. On the other hand, Nollywood is currently performing very well and has actually overtaken Bollywood to become the world’s second largest film industry by volume. If we may hastily look at the state back home, the film industry currently generates 7.2 Billion Shillings every year, creating direct and indirect employment to more than 100,000 people, according to the Pan-African Federation of Filmmakers.
The good news is that with the advancements in technology such as Digital Migration and the emergence of Over the Top Service providers, the industry has flourished and promises to generate even more income thus greatly contributing to the country’s economy and therefore enhancing Kenya’s G.D.P drastically.
A special ceremony was yesterday held at Hilton Hotel, Nairobi, with the aim of sponsoringRiverwood Academy Awards, 2017 courtesy of Riverwood Ensemble. In attendance was the C.E.O of Kenya Film Classification Board (KFCB) Dr. Ezekiel Mutua, Dr. Korir Sang’oei who represented the Office of the Deputy President, William Rutoamong other potential sponsors.
Riverwood Ensemble’s main objective and goal is to tell our story, the Kenyan story across the globe, something Dr. Ezekiel Mutua emphasized during the event urging producers to focus on telling our local stories from our local lenses, and keep the culture of celebrating our positive attributes, glorifying our virtues of hard work, patriotism, love, generosity etc. alive. Riverwood comprises of over 200 film producers all over Kenya and employers of over 4000 youths who decided to come together and recognize the players in the film industry in Kenya. This is made possible through Riverwood Academy Awards which was launched on 26th of February, 2014 at the Kenya National Theater. This year, it has received 81 entries for the awards, and on 22nd February, 2017, the nominees will be unveiled at Alliance France.
Kenya Film Classification Board has come in handy by making it possible for Riverwood to go across the country carrying out training and initiatives to support artists and producers, both young in age and young at heart, with the goal of nurturing talent and creating employment opportunities through entrepreneur ventures in the creative sector.The board is in the process of establishing a Creative Arts Centre of Excellence at Norfolk which will provide training opportunities in various creative arts including film and music. It will also provide production equipment to aspiring producers at subsidized rates. During the event, Dr. Mutua mentioned that the board, in partnership with the government, is also working on the Sinema Mashinani Concept, which aims at reviving theater culture and encouraging more film production among communities in vernacular languages.
The highlight of the event was when Dr. Mutua announced that KFCB was glad to sponsor the 2017 Riverwood Academy Awards with a total of Sh. 2.5 Million shillings up from Sh. 1.5 Million shillings last year, and stated that this sponsorship is testament to the Board’s commitment to grow local content, and promised to work closely with the film industry to develop it even further. To make it even better by words and actionsfor Riverwood and the Film Industry, KFCB has sponsored two teams to participate in two International Film Festivals in India and Burkina Faso. The first team is currently in India to screen their local film ‘Kizingo’ at The Prestigious Bollywood Bodhisattva International Film Festival. The team to Burkina Faso is participating in the Pan-African Film and Television Festival in Ouagadougou. Besides putting the Kenya’s creative industry on the international map, the teams will without doubt learn new ideas in film making.
You and I know that there has been a lot of cry and gnashing of teeth especially from film lovers around the country as KFCB has been banning films at a very alarming rate, yes? The board has received a lot of pressure from the public to come slow on the banning. Well, by trying really hard not to sound like he and the board admits it, Dr. Ezekiel Mutua mentioned that they are in the process of ‘reviewing’ the Film and Stage Plays Act Cap222 stating that it’s in order to spur growth in the creative industry. He, however, reiterated that the reason for banning some films including American box office The Wolf of Wall Street, Kenyan Film Stories of Our Lives, Fifty Shades of Grey among others, is in order to protect children from exposure to powerfully harmful films and broadcast content, emphasizing that the strength of all societies is the principles and values upheld.
Did you know that Kenya is among the best filming destinations in the world? Now you know. If only the filmmakers and creators, who coincidentally share the creating part with God, would turn these advantages into money-making ventures!See, this will in turn increase the volume of content produced locally to attain the 40-60% threshold that is expected of broadcasters to promote local creators of content and reclaim Kenyan Culture, national values and aspirations.
There has been a very misleading narrative about Africa of it being a dark and hopeless continent and everyone in this industry should strive to change it by highlighting the positive aspects through film; talking about the beauty of our land. One thing I know is that Kenyans love clean content, for us, our children and the generations to come. The Question is, are we doing something if any, to maintain this principle? Look, you don’t have to be a filmmaker, producer or an actor to do this. On the contrary, it can be by what you allow your kids to watch, how you talk about Kenya, how you view Kenya, is it close to your heart? Let’s be part of the change we want to see especially in our film industry. Yes, we can.
