Popular actress and producer, Day Amusa, has expressed frustration at Nigerian cinemas that refuse to show her films and probably others’ simply because they are in indigenous languages.
The actress-turned producer has shot 12 movies but she said none had made it into the cinemas, thus hindering her financial breakthrough.
In an interview with ‘The Sun’, she said:
“I love doing good movies and putting up good content. I think my major challenge now is that my movies are not showing in all cinemas in the country like I hoped and it saddens me. Their excuse is that my movies are indigenous and the titles are local but I am like ‘we get to watch foreign movies indigenous to different parts of the world yet subtitled and these movies are being shown in our cinemas so I ask the question ‘why can’t we encourage our local content?’ I want to believe that even if a movie is 100 per cent indigenous, that does not stop it from showing in cinemas as long as the movie is well subtitled.
“It has greatly affected me as an independent film-maker, I do most of my productions from my purse. It is not like I get grants and it really eats moviemakers up when we don’t get the opportunity to showcase what we have.
“Even if they feel we are not getting it right, there is a way they can inform us that this is what you need to achieve this and that. But they just label it local content, indigenous this and indigenous that, giving what we do all sorts of names. But, the fact is, when you preview a job and story-wise you have it, picture-wise you have it, quality-wise and artistic whatever, you have it, then why the barrier? Why can’t such a movie be seen in all cinemas across Nigeria.
“But they are giving excuses that when cinema-going audiences hear the title, they will not like it. Who says so? Yes, a title could have a very positive impact on a production but a title is a title, be it local or English or what have you. An indigenous title cannot stop a good film from flying at the box office.”
