In 2015, Abraham Attah, a young Ghanaian actor, got multiple accolades for his portrayal of the character “Agu” in the Netflix film, Beasts of No Nation. He won several awards including the Marcello Mastroianni Award for Best Young Actor at the 72nd Venice International Film Festival.
Abraham Attah, at the time of filming the movie, was 12 years old and had no prior training in acting.
Since then, he has appeared in other Hollywood productions such as Spider-Man: Homecoming and Tazmanian Devil.
With his success, you would think this would open more opportunities for young actors in the Ghana movie industry. But unfortunately, the Ghana movie industry has done little to nurture and support such young potential actors.
There Is No Pipeline
The Ghana movie industry missed its chance to get a pipeline of talent from Attah and other promising actors like him.
The industry could have benefited from his exposure, popularity, and skills, as well as from the international recognition and collaboration that he could have brought. The industry could have also invested in development and education, as well as in creating more quality and diverse content for potential actors to showcase their talents.
Gatekeepers and Aging Talent
The Ghana movie industry is currently dominated by veteran actors including Lydia Forson, Joslyn Dumas, and John Dumelo, who constantly get cast in the majority of Ghanaian movies.
There is a lack of “fresh blood” in many movies.
There are various reasons for this stagnation including lack of funding, vision, infrastructure, professionalism, and creativity.
The industry also suffers from a lack of regulation, standardization, and quality control, as well as from piracy, corruption, and nepotism. As a result, the industry produces content which caters to a narrow and local audience, while ignoring the global market and trends.
Where Do We Go From Here
The Ghana movie industry needs to learn from its mistakes and take advantage of the opportunities that actors like Attah present. The industry needs to improve its production values, storytelling, diversity, and innovation, as well as its marketing, distribution, and collaboration strategies.
The industry also needs to support and empower its actors, especially the young and emerging ones, by providing them with training, guidance, resources, and platforms.
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