Restoration or destruction? Independent film productions and the Ghanaian video-film industry

Independent Ghanaian cineastes, who are often classified as “amateurs,” have come under a barrage of criticism from film critics, scholars, and audiences for stunting the growth of the Ghana film industry with their productions. These critiques are mainly directed at the dominant thematic concerns such as witchcraft and occultism, as well as their technicalities and expressions, which also include poor storylines, issues of misrepresentation, and others. This article interrogates how independent filmmakers and their respective productions have shaped the video-film industry in Ghana. Though there have been a considerable number of scholarly works on independent film productions in Ghana, the literatue in this area has commonly overlooked or dismissed the contributions of individual film production to the Ghana film industry. Relevant historical documents and critical conversations with industry stakeholders and scholars have engaged with significant secondary literature in this area. Whilst this paper does not lay claim to any exhaustive treatment of the subject of individual film productions and the Ghanaian film industry, it offers critical and initial inroads into that unexplored field. Within this framework, this scholarship elicits critical reflections, debates, and new interests rather than uncritical conclusions within the field of individual film productions in Ghana. Despite the narrative and technical deficits of video-films, independent film producers may have sustained the Ghana film industry from a near collapse since the 1980s. It is crucial to recommend that effective cultural policies and professional training are significant in guiding and shaping the production of films in Ghana.