DrumBeat: Local films lose pulling power

Standard People
By Godwin Muzari   MORE than a decade ago, local filmmakers took turns to come up with exciting feature films because of the great reception their products got on the market.

Films like Yellow Card, Consequences, More Time, Everyone’s Child and Neria made a serious impact on the market and some actors rose to fame through their roles in the films.

We can talk of Jesesi Mungoshi who starred in Neria, Ben Mahaka and Leroy Gopal of the Yellow Card fame and Prudence Katomeni-Mbofana who was the star actress in More Time among others.

Such was our film industry those days. The corporate world would support the productions while audiences embraced the films with zeal.

But there have been a lot of negative developments over the years and the filmmakers cannot say the same today.While the number of locally produced films has actually increased, some of them just go unnoticed because of lack of financial and audience support.

Just a few years ago the film Tanyaradzwa that was written by Tawanda Gunda Mupengo won international acclaim yet appreciation back home was lukewarm.

It was introduced to the local big screen after scooping an international award but many film lovers will tell you that they never watched the film.

Tanyaradzwa actresses like Tendai Musoni and Kudakwashe Maradzika could not amass the fame that yesteryear film actors got.

Of course the film can be said to have catapulted Tongai Arnold Chirisa to the success that saw him landing in Hollywood but the talented actor had always been in the game and took part in many local productions prior to Tanyaradzwa.

Other films like The  Evil in Our Midst, Dice and Sores of Emmanuel barely stirred the pool of local film followers although they were commendable productions.

A recent example is Lobola, which stars ‘diamond boy’ Munyaradzi Chidzonga.

The film was highly marketed and launched amid pomp and fun fare but all that excitement has died down.What has happened to the support that local audiences and sponsors used to give to local film productions?Some people might argue that we no longer have the talent that rocked the yesteryear industry but I strongly disagree.

Some of the recent uncelebrated films are much better than the old productions because of growing expertise and technology.

Talent is still abundant in our arts and that is a fact.

The lack of support for local productions has been highly linked to growing technology that gives Wetern films great advantage over local productions.

Of late, the mass production of Nigerian produced ‘African movies’ has also disadvantaged consumption of local products.

An attempt to package a local film in the ‘African movie’ style in the form of The Zimbabwe I know, which was produced in Nigeria never worked.

Maybe the Zimbabwe I know was rushed but many other local productions deserve a fair share on the market.Maybe it has something to do with the influx of satellite television that has given us many viewing options leaving our pathetic ZTV with a massively depleted viewership.

Yesteryear films had an advantage of being screened on our only television station then and people did not have options but watch them.

But nowadays, filmmakers are not inspired to take their products to local television because the lengthening string of viewing choices.

It probably also has something to do with commercial value because filmmakers need returns and they see the big screen as the only route worth pursuing.

Well, the factors might differ but the truth is that appreciation of local films has largely decreased. It is time for those involved in film to start a huge campaign that will help resuscitate viewers’ interest in local productions.   

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