FIPAG WARNS OVER INFLUX OF NIGERIAN ACTORS

Ghanaian movie producers in Kumawood who intend to involve foreign actors in their movies should expect to pay a levy to the Film Producers Association of Ghana (FIPAG) and the Actors Guild.

The measure, according to Asare Hackman, president of FIPAG, is meant to protect the Ghanaian movie producers and the industry as a whole, but “not scare off foreigners”.

The leadership of FIPAG has expressed worry over what they term the influx of Nigerian actors into the local movie industry. A few Nigerian acts have been spotted in some famous Kumawood movies; a situation which appears to be gaining grounds in Ghana. The situation, according to the President of FIPAG, would prevent some Kumawood actors from getting roles in movies.

“The coming of Nigerian actors and actresses into Ghana to shoot our local movies is a worry to me and FIPAG as well. It is a worry basically because most of our local films are not in English. You know we have a huge market for Twi movies in Ghana and if we allow these artistes to come and take the role of Ghanaian artistes, it means that we are depriving our artistes here in Ghana from getting jobs,” the FIPAG boss told News One.

This new trend, according to Mr. Hackman, came into being because there was no regulation to check the situation “making it look like it was free for all.”

“Now we have put a system in place. Before a foreign artiste comes to Ghana to shoot a movie, the Ghanaian producer who engaged the artiste will pay a levy to FIPAG and the Actors Guild before the artiste will be allowed to work,” he stated.

Some Kumawood producers have argued that if they pair the Nigerian actors with Ghanaian artistes, the possibility of sales of the movie increasing is high.

“At least what we have put in place now will check the situation. People are starting to be cautious about which foreign artiste they bring down. Indeed, some producers can afford to pay all the sanctions but what we are trying to do is to try to put some measures in place to check the industry.

We should be careful about the seed that we are sowing as producers because if we are not careful, the likes of Lil Win and Kweku Manu will start to charge according to how much the producers pay these Nigerian artistes to act for them,” he added.

However, some players in the movie industry have held that no producer is mandated to pay FIPAG or Actors Guild any levy should they decide to bring down foreign actors. They also warned that the move by the union might create problems for Ghanaian actors who also ply their trade in Nollywood.