A new flavour of African entertainment is on the rise as Burna Boy and Wizkid made Nigeria proud by bringing home Grammy Awards and leaving a permanent mark for Afrobeats on the international music scene.
While African musicians collaborate with the biggest names in the global music industry, African films and filmmakers are also gaining international acceptance. This time, we have a success story of our very own.
Ghanaian-American Writer and Director, Amartei Armar, is steadily making a name for himself in the global film industry, one movie at a time.
His first release, Vagabonds, instantly gained recognition among industry peers and was nominated for awards worldwide. It won Best Short Film in Italy's "Life After Oil" film festival and Canada's prestigious "Montreal World Film Festival".
His latest release, "I Like It Here", is set to debut at The BlackStar Film Festival in Philadelphia, USA, on August 6.
This festival is recognised by Hollywood's Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, and winners automatically qualify to be nominated for the Oscar awards.
Together with producer Ike Yemoh, Armar led an all-Ghanaian cast and crew to create a 15-minute drama that tells the eventful story of a Ghanaian-American youth on his way to catch a flight out of Accra, hoping to leave deep-rooted feelings of cultural displacement behind.
Although most of the film's dialogue is in Ga, film critics from Africa, Europe, and America have had the privilege of pre-screening, empathise with the themes, and respect the high level of craftsmanship.
This level of craftsmanship will pave the way for Ghanaian films to cut across cultures and borders to audiences outside the Diaspora.
"We want to tell realistic, local stories innovatively, at a world-class standard. That is what sets us apart", says Armar.
We are excited to see the outcome of the journey Amartei and his team have embarked on and look forward to cheering with pride as he takes the Ghanaian flag into the halls of Hollywood fame.
Latest Stories
-
Gunmen in Nigeria kidnap about 100 in weekend attacks
1 hour -
Aftermath of soldiers killings: Bloodbath in Delta, villagers flee, hide in forests
1 hour -
Evergrande: China property giant and its founder accused of $78bn fraud
2 hours -
All set for ‘Detor – The Rise of A Warrior Hunter’ premiere
2 hours -
Obaapanin Grace Duoduwaa aka Ogrey
2 hours -
How to heal your heart after you’ve been left
3 hours -
Joy FM’s Eastern Camp Adventure: Discoveries, experiences, excitement!
3 hours -
There are 3 types of divorced men — and only one is relationship material
3 hours -
More than 79,000 Ghanaian girls 12 -17 years married, living with men
3 hours -
Tamale water crisis forces students out of school
3 hours -
Religious leader urges participation in 2024 election; calls for support for Aflao community
4 hours -
Who followed up when Elon Musk closed Twitter’s Ghana office – Sam Georges questions government
4 hours -
‘Only God can change this place’: Haitians see no end to spiralling violence
4 hours -
SB4: Supreme Court blocks Texas police from arresting migrants
4 hours -
Trump unable to get $464m bond in New York fraud case, his lawyers say
4 hours