Idris Elba Urges African Filmmakers to Prioritise Quality For Global Success

British actor Idris Elba has called on African filmmakers to concentrate on producing high-quality content to compete on the global stage. Speaking at the Africa Cinema Summit in Accra, Ghana, Elba emphasised that filmmakers should first aim to satisfy local audiences across Africa before breaking into international markets.

He highlighted the importance of meeting global standards, noting that technological advancements have made professional-grade equipment more accessible.

We have to focus on quality; We can’t make films that do not keep to the standard of the rest of the world. There is no excuse for that because the democratisation of equipment means we can all shoot on a nice camera, and we can all shoot with good mics. So we have to pay attention to quality, he added.

Elba, who is set to play Okonkwo in the series adaptation of Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart, had expressed his excitement about the African Cinema Summit, stating that

Africa has been at the forefront of communication and storytelling for centuries, but sadly, this innovation and the complex stories originating on the continent have been largely unnoticed. So, I am thrilled to be part of this year’s Africa Cinema Summit, where the focus will be on how Africans, on the continent and in the diaspora, can propel the cinema and content ecosystem to new heights and bring global awareness to our rich, dynamic, youthful, and vibrant Africa.

The summit, organised by Ghana’s National Film Authority, began on October 7 at the Movenpick Ambassador Hotel and ended on Thursday, October 10, 2024. Its focus is to promote collaboration and sustainable growth in the African cinema industry.

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