Lessons from the film industry

The film industry in Malawi seems to be in its infancy stages so much that few actors and actresses, directors and producers are producing high-quality films that compete favourably on the international level. This is partly because of lack of resources. HOWARD MLOZI engages Shemu Joyah, one of the country’s exceptional film makers who have managed to export his two films—The Last Fishing Boat and Seasons Of A Life—to international film festivals such Zanzibar International Film Festival, on the lessons of film making in Malawi.

What is the secret behind your successful film making?

Passion for film-making and hunger to achieving quality material is what motivates me to concentrate on film making. I also do my homework such as researching and preparing a script before rushing into producing a film. In addition to that I read a lot to understand the standard concepts of film making and its market dimensions.

Do you think film-making has opportunities in Malawi?

My feeling personally is that film-making presents lots of opportunities here in Malawi and Africa as a whole. If you look at a country like Nigeria, from their film industry, which we have to admit that it does not produce high quality films, has managed to establish an industry that is now generating close to $300 million annually. And that is very critical as far as I am concerned; it shows potential that film has.

The entertainment industry in America contributes huge percentage of money coming in as forex into America. The last time I checked it was around 13 percent. And that is Hollywood including other entertainment industries such as music. And I think that if we can get organised in the country with assistance of government and other institutions, we can achieve a vibrant industry.

The other thing that gives an opportunity to Malawi is that there are beautiful places where we can shoot films and these films can actually be sets for Hollywood movies. We have got the beautiful Lake Malawi itself, Nyika, Majete Game Reserves and if we can expose these places properly they can help a lot in terms of bringing forex into the country and create employment.

For example, if you can look at South Africa now it is one of the biggest centres of making Hollywood movies. They are being shot and processed there. In fact, I once visited a place in South Africa where the final process of films like Blood Diamond was made plus other Hollywood movies.

If we look at another angle, Malawi has been complaining about tourism which can be improved through film-making. For example, when a film was made in Kenya in 1984 and released in 1985, it helped to boast the country’s tourism through those beautifully shot game reserves. It puts Kenya on the world map as one of the tourists’ destinations in Africa. That is the very reason why I shot The Last Fishing Boat along the lake so that it should also help to push Malawi’s tourism industry.

Do you see the film industry improving soon?

I have always said that the films that can help to put Malawi on the international are not the ones we know that that lack standards. But if we can sit down and work on concrete strategies to achieve good quality movies, we can have a booming industry within a five or 10 year period.

What are major challenges facing the film industry?

At the moment, the major challenge in the local film industry is lack of finances. Most Malawians fail to see entertainment as lucrative business as a result they do not invest in it. Technically, training institutions in Malawi should equip young people with necessary skills in making films because most of them do not have the expertise as they do it out of passion. Poor distribution system is another big challenge which continues to haunt entertainment industry in Malawi. This has compelled artists to sell their products through Filling Stations or on their own which we cannot call distribution.

How can these challenges be addressed?

Malawian artists should take a step to fighting for the position of film in the country by showing seriousness when producing films. Apart from the need for business-minded people who can invest in entertainment industry, Malawi desperately need policies and laws in place to safeguard arts products. n