Intentionally support local films to boost the industry –James Gardiner

National Film Authority official and Actor, James Gardiner has argued that Ghanaian films can achieve global reach, urging local audiences to support home-grown cinema rather than overly scrutinizing local productions compared to foreign movies.

In an interview on Joy FM, Gardiner said audience backing and a strong production environment were essential to the growth of Ghana’s film industry.

He said; “We can do all the work. We can make sure that we create an enabling environment for all our stakeholders, producers and what not. It can be as vibrant as it should be. But if we don’t have that support system backing us, it’s not going to work.”

Gardiner maintained that a well-made film could reach audiences beyond Ghana, regardless of the country’s population size.

He added; “If a film is good, it will travel. When a film is good, forget the numbers, it will travel, but it still plays a key role.”

He also criticised what he described as the tendency of some Ghanaians to scrutinise local productions more harshly than foreign films. According to him, viewers sometimes watch Ghanaian movies primarily to identify flaws instead of appreciating the work that goes into making them.

He said, urging audiences to place greater value on home-grown productions; “We make excuses for the foreign stuff and we are so critical, judgemental and so hard on our very own.”

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