Ghana’s filmmakers have answered the call, and then some. The National Film Authority’s (NFA) new Film Development Fund has received nearly 100 applications seeking almost GH¢100 million, about five times the GH¢20 million on offer, MyJoyOnline and 3News reported.
Fifty-six applicants made it to the final stage and have been pitching their projects in person to a panel of evaluators in sessions that started on Monday, 9 November, and end today, Friday, 13 November. The combined budget of all the projects submitted is almost GH¢1 billion, roughly 50 times the size of the Fund.
“This is not a prize draw”
“The response has been remarkable. Close to a hundred applications and a combined project value approaching one billion cedis tell us the industry has been waiting for this kind of structured support,” NFA Executive Secretary Kafui Danku-Pitcher said, as quoted by Adomonline. “Our job now is to be rigorous and fair, and then to move quickly. Filmmakers who are selected should be on set, not waiting on paperwork.”
Mawuko Afadzinu, who chairs the Fund’s Management Committee, was just as blunt. “This is not a prize draw. We are looking for projects with a credible plan, a capable team and a clear route to audiences and revenue,” he said.
How the money works
The NFA says it will favour projects that are bankable, deliverable and rooted in Ghanaian content. Under rules drawn from the Film Development and Classification Act, 2016 (Act 935), the Fund can cover up to 60 per cent of an eligible project’s budget, with filmmakers raising the rest themselves.
More than 66 per cent of the applications are for the Production Window, making finished films the most sought-after support. The seed money is split across ten windows, from production, distribution and cinema infrastructure to training, research and international co-production. The NFA is targeting disbursement from the end of November into early December, so funded projects can start before the year ends, MyJoyOnline reported. The Fund was formally launched in May, according to 3News.
It comes at a lively time for local cinema, with titles such as Shirley Frimpong-Manso’s Agency for the Dead drawing audiences to the big screen.
Which Ghanaian story would you love to see funded? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.
