NFA Launches Cinema Train to Revive Local Films

The National Film Authority (NFA) has launched the Cinema Train Initiative, a platform designed to connect filmmakers, distributors, cinema operators and audiences while creating more ways for local productions to earn revenue.

Launched on Saturday, October 31, at Silverbird Cinemas in Accra, the initiative is expected to revive Ghana’s cinema-going culture and address limited screening opportunities that have made it difficult for filmmakers to reach audiences, even after months or years of work.

This new initiative aims at addressing the challenges of film distribution and exhibition in Ghana, while creating more opportunities for local filmmakers to reach audiences and earn revenue from their productions.

For many filmmakers, completing a movie is only half the journey. Finding a screen, attracting viewers and recovering production costs can be just as challenging. The NFA hopes Cinema Train will help close that gap by bringing key players in the industry together.

Speaking at the launch, NFA Chief Executive Officer Kafui Danku said the initiative was developed in consultation with industry stakeholders to create a more accessible and commercially sustainable exhibition system.

She said filmmakers needed more than opportunities to produce movies; they also needed clear pathways to get their work seen and earn from it.

“We cannot build a sustainable film industry if we produce films without creating pathways for people to watch them. So, that is why we are launching the CinemaTrain initiative today,” she said.

Danku said the project went beyond screening films. It was designed to create an ecosystem where producers could earn from their work, distributors could connect content to markets and cinema operators could attract audiences.

At the centre of the initiative is the CinemaTrain digital platform, www.cinematrain.com, where users can discover film screenings and purchase tickets.

The NFA also plans to take cinema beyond major urban centres by working with private businesses, public institutions, communities and industry partners to develop more exhibition centres across the country.

Danku said the Authority had engaged the National Commission on Culture and visited some of its centres to identify spaces that could be turned into screening venues, especially in communities with limited access to cinemas.

However, she stressed that the initiative would depend on public support. She urged Ghanaians to make cinema attendance a habit by buying tickets and encouraging others to do the same.

“Buying a ticket is very important. We can all start by buying a ticket, watching a movie and encouraging somebody else to do the same,” she said.

She also appealed to corporate organisations, sponsors and investors to support the project, saying their involvement could create more opportunities for exhibitors and strengthen the industry’s commercial prospects.

NFA Board Chairman Ivan Quashigah said the initiative formed part of the Authority’s wider effort to strengthen the film industry and address long-standing problems in distribution and exhibition. He said the NFA was targeting one per cent of Ghana’s population to patronise local films.

The platform brings four groups onto one track: producers, distributors, exhibitors and audiences. Filmmakers Shirley Frimpong Manso and Ampong Kwaku Kwakye of Kornerstonez have pledged their support, alongside cinema operators Silverbird Cinemas, Ozone Cinemas and The Trust Sports Emporium Limited.

Tickets are already available through the website for three productions: No Man of God, directed by Ampong Kwaku Kwakye; Shirley Frimpong Manso’s Agency for the Dead; and Joseph, an African-Caribbean drama.