Shirley Frimpong-Manso’s new haunted comedy, Agency for the Dead, opens in cinemas this Friday, 30 October, and one of its leading ladies, Yvonne Okoro, is asking Ghanaians to turn up for it.
Produced by Sparrow Studios, the film will screen at Silverbird Cinemas in Accra Mall and West Hills Mall before moving to other venues, including the University of Cape Coast campus, MyJoyOnline reports. Its cast includes Joselyn Dumas, Yvonne Okoro, Omari Dwamena, George Quaye, Rhoda Ampene, David Dontoh, Mawuli Gavor and Anita Erskine.
Written and directed by Frimpong-Manso, the story follows two sisters who fake ghost sightings to avoid being evicted, only to summon real spirits by accident. The filmmaker has described it as a move into comedy inspired by Ghanaian folklore and childhood ghost stories. She even suggested it could be the funniest film her team has made.
Frimpong-Manso shared the official trailer in a post on X, confirming 7pm and 9pm screenings on opening night, with tickets at GH¢150.
Okoro has spent the week promoting the film and making a wider case for local cinema. On Onua TV’s Onua Showtime with Nana Ama McBrown, the station quoted her as saying: “Support us like you support Avengers from Hollywood.”
She made a similar point in a discussion on Joy FM, as reported by Adom Online. “We do not support our own. Everything Ghanaian, we see it as substandard. And when you say this, people get offended by it, but it’s the truth,” she said. She added that audiences forgive weak foreign productions but come down hard on Ghanaian ones.
Her comments add to a wider debate about the health of the local film industry, which has also drawn in actor Majid Michel and other industry figures this week. Online reactions to Okoro’s plea have been mixed. Some fans have pledged to buy tickets, while others say Ghanaian films need better promotion and more consistent quality.
Frimpong-Manso, whose earlier work includes The Perfect Picture, Contract and Potomanto, is also working with filmmaker Peter Sedufia on The 70 Slate. The three-film project marks Ghana’s 70th independence anniversary, with its first title, The Return of Makunse, due in December.
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