LAGOS — The Lagos State Commissioner for Tourism Arts and Culture, Mrs. Uzamat Akinbile-Yussuf, on Monday says the construction of the Lagos Film City will commence before the end of 2021. Akinbile-Yussuf made this known during the 2021 Ministerial news conference in commemoration of the second year in office of Gov. Babajide Sanwo-Olu at Ikeja. She said that the idea behind the film city was to provide a place for filmmakers where film production could...
LOS ANGELES — Director Spike Lee’s Vietnam War drama “Da 5 Bloods” roared back into the Hollywood awards race on Thursday when it was nominated for the top prize at the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) awards, while presumed Oscar contender “Mank” got just one nod. “Da 5 Bloods”, from Netflix Inc, scored three nominations, tying with independent Korean-language drama “Minari,” and two other Netflix films: jazz period movie “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom” and 1960s protest...
LOS ANGELES — Pray for movie theatres, since there don’t seem to be any respite from the ravages of the COVID-19 pandemic. “The Marksman,” a Liam Neeson thriller from Open Road, held onto first place for the second weekend in a row, grossing just over $2 million. The film has grossed $61 million after 10 days of release. That performance allows the movie to retain its box office crown, but that kind of distinction isn’t...
The Cinema Exhibitors Association of Nigeria (CEAN) on Friday said it had lost over N6billion in the course of the lockdown caused by the ravaging COVID-19 pandemic. Mr. Patrick Lee, the Chairman of the Association, disclosed this during an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos. He said that since the lockdown in March, the industry kept losing N1billion on a monthly basis rendering most of the staff jobless. “We are appealing...
Two women lay in bed in a tight embrace, one is stroking the other’s hair and whispers that she is in love with her. These intimate scenes wouldn’t be out of place in a Hollywood movie, but in Nigeria’s film industry, Nollywood, they are near taboo. But Nigerian filmmaker Uyaiedu Ikpe-Etim says she is tackling the subject head-on in her new film titled “Ife,” to create space for queer characters in the country’s prolific movie industry....
Cineworld (CINE.L) on Tuesday delayed the reopening of its cinemas in the U.S. and Britain until the end of July, citing changes to the release schedules for some of the big summer movies. The UK-based company had previously expected to start reopening theatres, which include Regal Cinemas in the U.S. on July 10 but a number of important markets, such as Los Angeles and New York, have not yet given the go-ahead. Hollywood studios have...
Twenty-twenty A.D. (Anno Domini: The year of our Lord) has already left its mark as the one year that would live notoriously in disrepute following the cascading effects of every imaginable horribleness. The seen and unseen magnets woke up one dreary day and huddled together, mano e mano (head-to-head) for a one-two punch against humanity. While humans are still reeling, trying to catch their collective breaths…all pun intended, the flame-throwers are in a two-way partner...
The African nation which became the basis for the Hollywood blockbuster Black Panther is in a miraculous position during the COVID-19 pandemic as the rest of the continent battles the virus. The Kingdom of Lesotho is a small country within the borders of South Africa, with a population of more than 2 million people. As the rest of Africa faces the prospect of the coronavirus pandemic getting worse before it gets any better, Lesotho has...
Whitney Houston is headed back to the big screen in a feature film about the singer’s life that took her to the heights of fame but ended in drug addiction and tragedy. Taking its title from one of Houston’s biggest hits – “I Wanna Dance with Somebody” – the film has the backing of the singer’s estate and her longtime record producer and mentor Clive Davis, producers said. They described the film as a “joyous,...
The National Film Corporation (NFC) has signed an agreement to partner the French National Centre for Cinema on film making and training of lecturers. The Director General of the corporation, Dr Chidia Maduekwe, while receiving the Regional Audiovisual Attache, Embassy of France in Nigeria, Mr Yoann Talhourne, said the partnership would revamp the NFC into a reference university in the country and the world at large. The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the...
