UBA Extends Goodwill to Filmmakers

United Bank for Africa (UBA) Plc has restated its commitment to the growth and development of the African movie industry, through the creation of an enabling environment for film and movie financing.
Speaking at the just concluded 2009 African Movie Academy Awards (Amaa) Ceremony held in Bayelsa State, Mr. Martin Anyanwu, group director, Marketing and Corporate Relations, UBA, said that though the UBA-Amaa partnership is a platform for recognizing and rewarding filmmakers, actors and actresses; the bank is going a step further in providing the tools and environment required to access finance.
“Financing is a critical problem faced by the industry not just in Nigeria but across Africa. Apart from this, there are other challenges too. For instance, many filmmakers require coaching and support when it comes to business planning and writing,” he noted.
Anyanwu said that UBA-Amaa will in the present arrangement work in partnership with various sectoral groups including the Association of Movie Producers (AMP) and Empretec Nigeria Foundation, for training platforms through workshops/seminars aimed at enhancing the entrepreneurial and business planning skills of industry practitioners.
“We have already taken twenty such filmmakers in Nigeria through such programmes and they have in turn submitted proposals which are currently being evaluated by our entertainment desk,” he said.
Mrs. Peace Anyiam-Osigwe, president, Amaa, noted that African films have the potentials of changing the negative perception of the continent based largely from images fed to the world over the years through the conventional news media.
She said there was the need to produce the right films and equally reward stakeholders so they can be encouraged to do more.
The 2009 UBA-Amaa would go down as one of the biggest gathering of movie makers across the African continent. Hollywood star, Forest Whitaker who won an Oscar for his portrayal of the former Ugandan president, Idi Amin Dada in the ‘The last King of Scotland’ and Danny Glover, witnessed the handing over of the UBA-Amaa plaque to worthy winners.
Since debuting in 2004, UBA-Amaa is increasingly attracting attention from the global community. This is clearly reflected in the growing number of entries submitted from other countries namely: Ghana, Burkina Faso, Cameroun, Uganda, Kenya, South Africa, Egypt, Rwanda, Niger and Zimbabwe.
With UBA partnership, Amaa is extending its frontiers to the establishment of an African Film Academy, large scale training, production, marketing and commercial distribution of films.
In Nigeria, UBA is also working with the National Film & Video Censors Board (NFVCB) and the Lagos State Film and Video Censors Board to enforce anti piracy laws; an effort which has culminated in the signing of a memorandum of understanding to frustrate the sales of pirated works on the streets and shops.