PHOTOS + Film Directors Guild of Ghana (FDGG) Duly Inaugurated in Accra | Association to Join Forces With Government to Establish a Solid Film Industry

The Film Directors Guild of Ghana (FDGG) has officially been launched in Accra on Friday, February 27, 2015. The ceremony which was chaired by a representative of the Speaker of Parliament – Rt. Hon. Mr. Edward Doe Adjaho – seeks to bring film directors across the country under one umbrella to champion a worthy cause.

Delivering the keynote address, President of the Film Directors Guild of Ghana, Mr. Richard J. A. Boateng stressed on the need for film makers and the government of Ghana to collaborate and establish a strong film industry.

According to him, Ghana as a country does not have a film industry. He attributed this to lack of unity among film makers; therefore couldn’t join forces to champion that course. Mr. Boateng indicated that it is based on this that they (Film Directors) have established the Film Directors Guild of Ghana. As he puts it, “Ghana is ready to put structures and professional measures in place to help govern and administer the businesses of film making in this country.”

Mr. Boateng then used the occasion to highlight some of the challenges film directors in Ghana face when administering their work. One of the areas he stressed on was the working relationship that exists between film producers and film directors in the country.  According to him, the working relationship between these two entities is very unprofessional.

“There exist no contractual agreement between producers and directors. This is going on because film producers want to have their own way as business men/women; demanding that movies which ideally should take 6 months to shoot be produced in less than a week”, he stated.

As part of the efforts to build a solid film industry, Mr. Boateng announced that no film producer forces a film director to shoot a film in less than 2 weeks. Also, every film director shall sign a Basic Collective Agreement  with any employer before he/she directs the film. Again, the he contends that film directors insist on good structured stories, professional equipment for production, professional crew members and skillful actors before directing a movie.

Presently, the FDGG consists of 13 National Board of Directors and they include:

1. Richard J. A. Boateng
2. Miss Nana Ama McBrown
3. Claude Afrani Arhin
4. Chris Dell Agbozie
5. Van Vicker
6. Sampson K. Mensah
7. Asare Kwame Bediako
8. Kofi Asamoah
9. Miss Veronica Lekete Avickson
10. Moses Amoh Essuman
11. Blackmore Anthony Ayivor
12. Christian Kweku Semenyo
13. Roosevelt Kofi Yeboah