The Quartet moves for national film development fund

The Nigerian Film Corporation (NFC), Nigerian Copyright Commission (NCC), Nigerian Film & Video Censors Board (NFVCB) and the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) which forms the quartet for the Nigerian film industry have jointly endorsed the establishment the National Film Development Fund (NFDF) to enable the nation deal, urgently with the dearth of funding for film production activities, and investment opportunities yet untapped in the Nigerian film industry.

According to the four federal government agencies whose mandates and activities directly and remotely rob on the Nigerian creative economy, the nation’s film industry was in dire need of access to funding, support and assistance to enable it up its contribution to the GDP of Nigerian from just over 1.5% to between 10% - 15% within the five two years. To achieve this feat, the industry which has thrived on the resilience and private windows of funding would require the institutionalisation of a funding regime for the country.

The agencies, which met under the aegis of The Quartet, are desirous in pulling their resources through strategic partnerships to ensure that the development of the Nigerian film industry is sustainably pursued. The fight against piracy, intellectual property theft, effective distribution, sustainable marketing framework, digitisation and content development also topped discussions at the meeting which was held in Abuja last week.

The Quartet, established in 2006, also decided to develop a robust plan of action that will promote the training of filmmakers and other stakeholders in both the art and business of film making. Professionalism, diligent adherence to ethics and compliances, were also discussed with a commitment to ensure that Nigeria’s creative economy is fully integrated into the diversification agenda of the Federal Government.

In a remarks at the meeting, NFC’s Managing Director, Dr. Chidia Maduekwe commended other members of The Quartet for their resolve to push for the realisation of it objectives. He said that more than before, the nation requires the commitment of government agencies to deliver on their mandates, through attractive programmes and projects with positive impacts.

The Nigerian film industry, he further said has the obvious trappings to provide job opportunities for Nigerians. The resilience and investment of those in the business of film making, Maduekwe said should be protected always to guarantee return on investment as well as incentives for new entrants.

The Director General of NFVCB, Alhaji. Adedayo Thomas with Cornel Agim, Director of Operations (NFVCB), Bunmi Cole, Director Broadcast Monitoring (NBC), Bitrus Dauda, Deputy Controller (PRS) of NCC, Ahaji Sanusi Sambo, Director Finance & Accounts (NFC), Mrs. Halima Oyelade Zonal Head, NFC Abuja, attended the meeting.