| More Women to delve into film directing Will Yaounde women’s film festival be platform? |
| Thursday, 04 March 2010 09:43 |
|
Usually, they would prepare the beautiful costumes and make sure the actors are properly clad in them. They would display their make-up prowess on actors' faces, giving out just what the director desires. Perhaps, their most significant role is "welfare". Since actors and directors are red carpet personalities, the women make sure they are well fed, taking into consideration quantity and quality. Unfortunately, the role of women, for over 40 years has not gone beyond these. They have hardly stood behind the cameras to call the shots. Ask why it is an issue. It is established that directing is the most prestigious aspect of filmmaking. So, does it mean when it is juicy, women should be left out, whereas, directing is something they too can do? This is a reflection that has inspired GIC VIDEO STAR, a film common initiative group, mostly made up students of the Performing Arts and Cinematography Department of the University of Yaounde I. To get women on board and encourage them to direct films, the CIG is organizing a festival to their honour. Dubbed Mis Me Binga, the festival will take place in Yaounde from 4 to 8 March 2010, with three major aspects: a round-table conference to discuss strides women have made and how far they could go, film projects and film contest. Dozens of films (including some from English-speaking Cameroon), directed and produced by women have been lined up for projection at the Goethe-Institut, the French Cultural Centre and the Nkomkana Youth Centre in Yaounde. Also on the programme will be films from other countries including Namibia, Germany, Israel, Finland, Spain, Canada and Japan. Sixteen of the films lined up for projection will contest in three chosen categories: best fiction, best documentary and best actress. At a press conference last week in Yaounde, organizers of Mis Me Binga hoped the initiative would change the current phase of film making, not only in Cameroon, but in the Central African sub region and the rest of Africa. "We think women have potentials that must be exploited. So why shouldn't they get behind the cameras and direct the films?" GIC Video Star's Martial Nguea questioned rhetorically. To him, Mis Me Binga which has come to stay should face the challenge and get female filmmakers out of the doldrums of unpopularity as far as directing is concerned. Otherwise, Nguea didn't why in 40, the country would only boast of about 15 female filmmakers, producing not more than two films per decade. "We think the time has come to redress the situation," the young film maker said. The first edition of Mis Me Binga is now a reality, thanks to partners including the Ministry of Culture, Ministry of Women's Affair and the Family, the Embassy of the Federal Republic of Germany, the Goethe-Institut Kamerun and French Cultural Centre. Media partners such as Vox Africa, Vision 4 and Radio Campus have also been prominent. Some films on the Mis Me Binga schedule: · Sister in Law (Cameroon) by Kim Longintho & Florence Ayissi · Bongfen (Cameroon) by Sunjo Petra · The Last Bus (Germany) by Maria Hensse · Nairobi Love Story (Gernmany) by Maria Weber · Lily Festival (Japan) by Sachi Hamanu · Rape (Cameroon) by Naah Joyce · Cries at Night (Namibia) by Oshesheni Hiveluah KAM by Astrid Atodji · La Divorce (Gabon) by Manouchka Labouba · Dans l'Ombre d'une autre (Cameroon) by Francine Kemegni |
Anxiety has grown ten folds in Africa, four weeks to the maiden edition of the Cameroon International Film Festival (CAMIFF). The Central African nation, usually described as Africa in miniature,... Read more
Ernest Kanjo Be the first to comment! 25 Feb 2016 Hits:75755 Latest
The timing is reasonable – December – the month of the birth of Christ, savior of mankind. And the big news about December 2013 is the coming of Suzie Ukum’s... Read more
TUDI NDI NATHALIE Be the first to comment! 19 Nov 2013 Hits:6401 STAR CORNER
It only takes two - an Abakwa breed such as South Africa-based Wax Dey Ndifonka and Naija song hero Don Tom to serve a palatable musical pudding like this irresistible... Read more
TTS Be the first to comment! 25 Jan 2012 Hits:12802 STAR CORNER
Tabala Dance is a contemporary piece of music which from its title, relates to the enviable past, especially to Cameroonians of the older generation who lived in the... Read more
Lylies Asakwa Be the first to comment! 08 Jun 2016 Hits:9680 Latest
The Cameroon Film Industry, CFI and the Ecrans Noirs film festival are fast becoming associates. At this year’s edition, CFI’s board chair, Otia Vitalis was honoured as one of the... Read more
Ernest Kanjo Be the first to comment! 13 Jul 2013 Hits:5588 Latest
When a team of young Belgium-based Cameroonians involved in the seventh art set out on a production adventure, this group did not cast doubts on their ambitions. That was way... Read more
Ernest Kanjo Be the first to comment! 05 Jan 2014 Hits:8274 MOVIES
She now sells like hot cake. This description is undoubtedly the most appropriate of USA-based Cameroonian actress Mairo Sanda who virtually spends more time on movie sets now than at... Read more
Ernest Kanjo Be the first to comment! 29 May 2012 Hits:9930 MOVIES
To go by the words of the organizers, the décor is already almost completely planted for the 2013 edition of the Cam Movies Merit Awards, CMMA. “We are currently observing... Read more
Ernest Kanjo Be the first to comment! 22 Nov 2013 Hits:9056 MOVIES
There is an exciting wave of anxiety gripping the Cameroonian community in Europe and Germany in particular as they await the popular music group X-Maleya this weekend. The songs heroes... Read more
Ernest Kanjo Be the first to comment! 24 May 2012 Hits:8212 Latest
After Stuttgart, the German western city of Essen will host another Cameroonian cultural event. This time, “Paysans” (fond name for Cameroonians in the diaspora) will join the alumni of St. Joseph's... Read more
Ernest Kanjo Be the first to comment! 03 Jul 2012 Hits:6862 Latest
The health stalemate caused by the ravaging Ebola virus and the frightening security threat brought about by the invasion of Boko Haram are two current situations that naturally call for... Read more
Ernest Kanjo Be the first to comment! 12 Oct 2014 Hits:210740 Latest
WardRobe is one! One year on, the fashion shop that is now known to make men and women look gorgeous has kept waxing on strong. In Cameroon’s economic capital... Read more
Ernest Kanjo Be the first to comment! 16 Nov 2015 Hits:6598 Latest
MONA is a Cameroonian film that is highly anticipated. African Fiesta 164 Nov. 2020 Guests: Giress Ebangha (Producer) Sanchez Bessem (Actor) Read more
TTS Be the first to comment! 10 Dec 2020 Hits:2063 Latest
Prosper Menko is true to his art. He so loves his music time and puts it his all to make it fruitful. That explains why every piece of work he... Read more
TTS Be the first to comment! 17 Jan 2018 Hits:7337 Latest
Maija is short film (29.41 seconds) on albinism, shot in the Bakweri mother tongue. It is produced by Karl Njuma and Karl Safindah and directed by Nkanya Nkwai, starring Martha... Read more
TTS Be the first to comment! 10 Dec 2020 Hits:2111 Latest
{jb_blackbox}The Cameroon Academy Awards, Sonnah has negotiated the last bend towards the grand event billed for the night of December 29, 2013 at the Yaounde Hilton Hotel. This follows the... Read more
Ernest Kanjo Be the first to comment! 01 Nov 2013 Hits:7373 Latest
In a press release by the Cameroon Academy Awards, SONNAH organisers, the following were nominated for the awards event billed for the night of December 29, 2013 at the Yaounde... Read more
TTS Be the first to comment! 01 Nov 2013 Hits:7242 Latest
Cameroonian arts and culture enthusiasts who are promoting the entertainment industry from the southern region of Africa will no longer have their works shielded from their counterparts the world over.... Read more
Ernest Kanjo Comments(1) 07 May 2012 Hits:7639 Latest
Africans in the United States who have a penchant for entertainment and Cameroon in particular, with the same taste buds for showbiz, are about now pulling themselves together, ahead of... Read more
Ernest Kanjo Be the first to comment! 23 Mar 2015 Hits:14567 Latest
“You are hilarious”! That was the soothing manner in which a gospel music lover and fan of Maybelle Boma described the up-and-coming singer. The said fan was reacting to... Read more
Ernest Kanjo Be the first to comment! 14 Feb 2013 Hits:6987 STAR CORNER
As preparations continue ahead of the maiden edition of the Cameroon Entertainment Awards (CEA) slated for July this year, a number of popular Cameroonian and foreign artists have confirmed their... Read more
TTS Be the first to comment! 18 May 2012 Hits:6205 Latest
Official nominationBarely two months to the maiden edition of the Cameroon Academy Awards (CAA), otherwise called Sonnah Awards, preparations have registered great progress. According to latest reports, the organizing…
The reason, skeptics would like to know why beauty contests keep flourishing in the world of art is because the idea goes beyond competition for physical beauty. Designated queens have…
Cameroonians who practice the craft of filmmaking have been enjoined to restore order in their ‘house’ and present themselves as an organized group. It is only by doing so,…
Just a couple of times listening to him on radio is enough to fall in love with CRTV's young and energetic Moki Edwin Kindzeka. One of the CNN best journalist…
The Houston based label is set for a double release ( two audios + two videos) this week as they launch their first artist in Cameroon in the person of…
If she use to underrate herself, gone are those days. Sara is a completely new individual after emerging victorious at the 2013 Belgium-run Miss Elegance beauty pageant, thanks to the…
It is much easier to talk about the university when Buea is mentioned. Fewer Cameroonians are yet to be aware that the South West regional headquaters is fast growing in…
That film criticism may soon find space in the Cameroonian news media is something to write home about. The practice had virtually been absent, especially in the Anglophone…
