“Morocco is currently considered a model of success and excellence in the film industry in Africa,” he added, in an interview with MAP, praising the efforts made by His Majesty King Mohammed VI for the development and promotion of the film industry in the Kingdom.
“Generally speaking, I find that African cinema as a whole has evolved a lot in recent decades, despite the various challenges and obstacles that may exist,” he said, expressing, in this sense, his great pride in being part of this great family of the 7th African art for more than thirty years.
Furthermore, in order to make African cinema more competitive on the international scene, Mr. Bemile, also former director of the board of directors of the Pan-African Film and Television Festival of Ouagadougou (FESPACO) suggested developing more South-South cooperation in the African film industry.
“If we want to face the financing challenge that distribution, production and exploitation in the industry are suffering from, it is imperative to sign agreements and establish partnerships and cooperation with the different countries of the continent,” he continued, explaining that “the African Union (AU) had expressed its willingness to help the African film industry in terms of financing but some countries are hesitant or slow to respond.”
The Burkinabe filmmaker also raised the issue of distribution, broadcasting and the lack of cinemas in Africa, calling for “opening more cinemas that meet international standards in order to counter this challenge.”
Furthermore, Mr. Bemile stressed that “an internationally competitive cinema essentially requires the cinematographic training of professionals”, explaining that “industry professionals must be able to master cinematographic techniques and art, in order to have quality cinematography that stands out on the international scene”.
Asked about his assessment of the feature films participating in the official competition of the 23rd FICAK, the former Secretary General of the Ministry of Culture, Arts and Tourism of Burkina Faso, noted that “all the films that we watched during the festival were of good quality”.
“It is a great source of pride for me to highlight the great development of the 7th art in Africa through these productions,” he said.
“I am also particularly honoured for myself and for my country Burkina Faso to be the president of the feature film jury this year at FICAK, one of the pioneering film festivals on the continent,” he added, hoping that “the jury’s view of the films will be consistent with that of the public.”
The 23rd edition of FICAK, held under the High Patronage of HM King Mohammed VI, features 12 feature films made by filmmakers from ten African countries as well as 15 short films representing 13 countries on the continent.
This great annual festival of African cinema celebrates the 7th art and pays tribute to African film productions. It also promotes the image of the Kingdom and highlights its specificities, its potential in terms of cinema and its interaction with the cinema of African countries.
It is with a program rich in colors, cultures and cinematographic productions that the FICAK will take film buffs, critics, intellectuals and the general public of the phosphate city on a unique journey to discover the cultural wealth of Africa.
2024-08-19 09:54:47