Be original; Filmmakers urged to kick their copycat habit

UFF Judges: L-R: Phillip Luswata

Ugandan filmmakers have been challenged to be original and try to tell the Ugandan stories from an objective perspective. The jury for the Uganda Film Festival 2022 warned filmmakers to stop being copycats aiming at short term goals instead of maximizing their full potential and progress of the film industry.

During an engagement with the jury of the 2022 Uganda Film Festival organized by the Uganda Communication Commission, Chief Judge Njoki Muhoho from Multichoice Talent Factory said that whereas this year the number of film entries increased tremendously, there is need for improvement in terms of authenticity and quality.

Nalwawo was voted best Local Film at the just concluded Uganda Film Awards

Muhoho added that despite the fact that Uganda is endowed with a rich culture that offers enormous original story ideas; many of the Ugandan film makers are replicating movie ideas from Hollywood and elsewhere which they cannot favorably compete with.

She reminded the Ugandan talent that they are better placed to tell the Ugandan story than anyone else, giving them an advantage over other film producers.

Dorothy Atuhura, a lecturer of literature and film at Kyambogo University advised filmmakers to always tell their Ugandan stories with an objective perspective instead of focusing on the negative aspect alone.

Matthew Bishanga also known as Bish, the Creative Director at Bish Films stressed that based on this year’s submissions, Ugandan filmmakers still have a problem of language and structuring of the good story ideas.

Bish, like Atuhura noted that there is no need for actors and actresses to force English accents but rather tell the stories in their native Ugandan way.

Speaking at the same Actors’ workshop held at the UCC Innovation hub in Nakawa, Philip Luswata, a renowned actor and lecturer at Makerere University asked filmmakers to come with new faces and extraordinary drama features to make their movies unique and sellable on the market.

Luswata noted that film-makers ought to tell the stories with the target market at the back of their minds instead of focusing on their personal interests.

The actors, actresses and other filmmakers that turned expressed gratitude for the opportunity of engaging with the jury to get feedback about their movies and see how to improve.

The 9th edition of Uganda Film Festival was held last Friday June 3, 2022, after 23 movies were nominated out of over 150 films submitted.

Besides giving Ugandan Film and video makers an opportunity to showcase their work to local and International audiences, the Annual Festival aims at building the capacity of the country’s budding film industry.

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