Development of Ethiopian film sector is becoming relatively better than it was in the previous times. The rapid growth of the local film industry has emerged when young filmmakers began to produce documentary and fiction films with the help of digital filmmaking technologies.
The technological revolution resulted in the rise of audiovisual productions that accelerated quickly. There are many other Film Companies not formally registered with the government office, but producing films to be released in DVD/VCD format. These informal films are scripted and shot quickly, often in a matter of months, then distributed on Compact Disc Digital Video (VCD) through a network of small stores, markets and itinerant traders.
However, this encouraging activity has never been on the right track to grow up as an industry. There are many notable challenges that face the infant stage of film development in Ethiopia.
Various journals stated that there are also some specific barriers that need urgent action for the proper development of the film in the country. One of which is absence of professionalism. In fact, the film industry in Ethiopia has been based on talent rather than taken as a professional job.
Like most of African countries, Ethiopia has practically no educational or governmental support for the film sector. Despite the country’s long and rich history in the arts, its schools hardly have any film programs.
Most of the Ethiopian films are made by enthusiastic and talented young people who unfortunately lack the real training and professional contacts needed to succeed in the long term and gain international visibility. In most cases, these people learn from trial and error and observation. Though there is an increase in the number of the filmmakers, huge gaps in the basic knowledge are being noticed yet.
This unprofessional filmmaking structure remains as a recurrent problem for the lack of quality film productions. Meanwhile, many people who start producing films call themselves Director or Cameraman, while they are neither certified nor professional. The unprofessionalism structure makes it possible for films to be made quickly and cheaply, but it has also resulted in the instability and a fly-by-night mentality among producers.
The films produced by them are of low quality and it does not meet the standards of good films. The absence of professionalism plays a major role in the films being produced with boring stories, monotonous contents, plagiarized techniques of directing and acting. Anything without knowledge does not have a life in this century.
Desalegn Hailu, President of Ethiopian Film Makers’ Association told The Ethiopian Herald that Producing a film is not a success, but reaching the intended audience must be the target. Though Ethiopia is producing over a hundred films in a year, there is lack of venues and distribution channels where the films could be shown to a wide range of audiences both locally and internationally.
Currently, there are many governmental and private owned cinemas in Addis Ababa showing locally produced films on a daily basis, but they are not able to host screenings to accommodate the increasing film productions.
It is not only the movie goers who stand in a queue at the gates of the state owned cinemas; producers also get into queues and wait for over a year to get their films screened for the public. This is one of the major factors for the failure of Ethiopian films to engage local audiences and commercial success.
When, after a long wait, the producer gets a chance to show the film, it will be outdated. This is increasingly becoming a problem for more ambitious producers wishing to scale up their movie-making and reach audiences worldwide, learnt from Ethiopian Business Review.
Additionally, there is also a shortage of distributors where Ethiopian films could be distributed on VCD through a network of video shops. In the 1990s, there were a considerable number of distributers operating in Addis Ababa, but their number has declined drastically over the past decade in an alarming rate.
They are also getting out of the market due to several factors, including copyright infringement. The country has now left over very few distributors that are not capable enough to keep up with the increasing film productions.
According to Dessalegn, the Ethiopian film is at an infant stage. It has not reached the industry stage yet, because films are not produced in Ethiopia at the industry level. So it does not match the quality of the local and international markets. The film operating system is not clear or it doesn’t have one chain and there is lack of professional equipment. Thus, Ethiopian movie can be called as a ‘cottage industry.’ The operating system of Ethiopian film is not in a way that suits the industrial zone in terms of quantity and quality.
The reason why the film sector did not grow as expected for a long time is it had no policy. It has been two years since the Ethiopian film policy was issued. After much hard work and applause, it was approved by the Council of Ministers. However, policy by itself is not the end or goal.
Adding he said: “The policy is where we set the direction for the film industry to grow and to work. The policy with nine major elements and 104 strategic implementations covers how the film sector should grow and develop. So the policy needs implementations. It requires professionals who can produce films in quantity and quality; cinema houses need to be high quality and content.
“Institutions for Film Festivals and Awards are required. It requires value chain that means the ability, knowledge, skill, talent and expertise to publish and distribute films in digital or other means. Without the above mentioned inputs, we cannot develop the film sector.”
The Ethiopian film policy has set out solutions for those challenges. Therefore, the policy needs to be implemented. Unfortunately, budget is not allocated for the implementation of the film policy. The required budget can be gained from private investors or foreign investors who want to support the Ethiopian movies. Sources may be available but not paid attention. To solve the existing challenges of the Ethiopian film sector all stakeholders should work together, he said.
He added that nowadays the film sector is facing other challenges following the occurrence of Corona virus. “It is hardly hit by COVID-19. The Ethiopian film society has a social responsibility, following this we are working on awareness creation on COVID-19. There is also a Media and Art Task Force established by the Office of the Prime Minister in collaboration with other partner organizations such as the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, with more than five TV channels and art professionals.”
Currently, various stakeholders and artists are working on advertising, singing and other awareness campaigns to fight the spread of the virus. It has been a month since the work began, and other works will be done next.
Artists are playing important role in raising awareness of how the society should protect them from the pandemic. Media and art are not separated so that they have to work together on raising awareness of the public to combat Corona virus, he noted.
The Ethiopian Herald May 19/2020
BY ESSEYE MENGISTE
