Imo international film festival will unlock state’s tourism potential –Stakeholders
BY ORJI ONYEKWERE
With the announcement of the Imo International Film Festival slated for July 25 to July 29, the residents and government of Imo State have been urged by tourism and entertainment stakeholders to tap into the vast economic potential inherent in the event.
This came to the fore during the unveiling of the festival which took place at Havana Cinemas, New Owerri, Imo State on February 29, 2024, with the theme: ‘Film: A Veritable Tool for Economic Empowerment’.
Many stakeholders drawn from Nigeria’s creative industry took turns to extol the idea of a film festival in Imo, urging the organizers to remain focused considering the enormous advantages in terms of economic empowerment, image-making and equipping the younger generation of filmmakers from Imo State with the necessary tools to succeed.
The founder of the festival, who is a veteran Nollywood producer, Don Nkems Chikezie, while stressing his passion said, he was poised to use the platform to tell the Imo story. According to him, “Nobody will tell our story in Imo apart from us. This will be the mirror with which our people are seen.
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I know that a film is an embodiment of culture, ranging from fashion, to food to music, so the Imo International Film Festival is a platform to draw attention to what we, Imo people have to offer, not only Nigerians but the world in general.
My passion in the creative industry is number one, secondly, we don’t have any International Film Festival that can stand the test of time in Eastern Nigeria, so Imo International Film Festival has come to fill the gap.
“Imo International Film Festival, IIFF, is holding from 25th to 29th of July, 2024. It’s going run for 3 fruitful days. We are expecting visits across the globe; we are going to have screenings, workshops, trainings, master classes and conference at Imo State University.
“Our guests will also have the opportunity to see our heritage and landmark efforts of the government in place. We will cap it with a loud dinner and award event. So, you can see it is a huge event”, he remarked.
Some of the personalities at the event are Dr. Shaibu Husseini DG National Film and Video Censors Board ably represented by Mr. Hubert Udeh, the South East Coordinator of NFVCB, Mrs. Assumpta Akujobi, Director Imo State Art and Culture Council, some staffers of NTA, Sarah Chineyere Okwewulonu, Lolo Angela Chikezie, GM Don Nkems Investment Ltd, members of Actors Guild of Nigeria, AGN, members of Association of Nigeria Movie Directors ANMD, as well as Nollywood greats like: Chikodi Nwafor, Lambert Nnorom, Amayo Uzo Philips, Zion Onyeka Nwaigwe , Chukwu Bright, Chijioke Eluchie, and Blessed Nwagu, and host of others. Others are: Gershon Lazarus, D Anyanwu and Chuks Raphael Isaac.
