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Sierra Leone is a country challenged by social and economic underdevelopment. It is currently in the midst of recovering from the additional setbacks caused by a recent ten-year war that further added to civil strife and disruption.
Having recently emerged from this war, there has been a recognised need for the people of Sierra Leone to be able to acknowledge, appreciate, challenge and celebrate their shared experiences of their history, culture; their lives. Apart from contributing to the peace building process and helping to regain a sense of nationhood, it is vitally important that the lessons of recent social history and the people's rich and diverse cultural traditions are not forgotten or ignored. The desire to make films and programming for national viewing has caught the imagination, but unfortunately, the prohibitive costs of hiring suitable video equipment to create social documentaries or local dramas has created a massive obstacle to the growth of indigenous production of contemporary film and programme content.
Film/programme makers are hampered by the exorbitant costs currently being charged. This, it has to be said is due primarily to the presence of a significant number of international NGOs wielding large dollar budgets. Inevitably, this has encouraged those few centres with the appropriate equipment to create and maintain a pricing monopoly which effectively excludes indigenous low-budget productions from access to technical resources in particular and ultimately, the media in general.
For local people in Sierra Leone, the cost of one day's camera and editing hire, is equivalent to more than one month's salary for the average worker. Based on such a ratio of cost to earnings, even filmmaking in the UK or USA would not be viable. It is hardly surprising, therefore, that it has been nigh on impossible for Sierra Leoneans to create and develop indigenous, original productions of social and cultural expression for local (or international consumption) which are not reliant on foreign aid or investment. Instead a deluge of cheap imported films dominate the cinemas and television, highlighting the paucity of local productions. These films are a poor substitute for exploring the potential of real films - be they dramas, documentaries, art, or experimental - that relate to, or reflect the life and culture of, Sierra Leone.
Out of this financially difficult and creatively challenging background, the SL Film Workshop has been created to help overcome this serious failing by aiming to provide free access to equipment and support for local filmmakers. By encouraging production of local films about local interests and topics and issues, the workshop aims to make its own contribution to the nurturing of latent talent, the development of useful skills, and through creating a body of work, helping to build a valuable asset for the nation's archival, educational or cultural enjoyment. In short, giving Sierra Leone the opportunity to create a new industry and contributing to the building of social recognition and cultural respect around the world.
Having recently emerged from this war, there has been a recognised need for the people of Sierra Leone to be able to acknowledge, appreciate, challenge and celebrate their shared experiences of their history, culture; their lives. Apart from contributing to the peace building process and helping to regain a sense of nationhood, it is vitally important that the lessons of recent social history and the people's rich and diverse cultural traditions are not forgotten or ignored. The desire to make films and programming for national viewing has caught the imagination, but unfortunately, the prohibitive costs of hiring suitable video equipment to create social documentaries or local dramas has created a massive obstacle to the growth of indigenous production of contemporary film and programme content.
Film/programme makers are hampered by the exorbitant costs currently being charged. This, it has to be said is due primarily to the presence of a significant number of international NGOs wielding large dollar budgets. Inevitably, this has encouraged those few centres with the appropriate equipment to create and maintain a pricing monopoly which effectively excludes indigenous low-budget productions from access to technical resources in particular and ultimately, the media in general.
For local people in Sierra Leone, the cost of one day's camera and editing hire, is equivalent to more than one month's salary for the average worker. Based on such a ratio of cost to earnings, even filmmaking in the UK or USA would not be viable. It is hardly surprising, therefore, that it has been nigh on impossible for Sierra Leoneans to create and develop indigenous, original productions of social and cultural expression for local (or international consumption) which are not reliant on foreign aid or investment. Instead a deluge of cheap imported films dominate the cinemas and television, highlighting the paucity of local productions. These films are a poor substitute for exploring the potential of real films - be they dramas, documentaries, art, or experimental - that relate to, or reflect the life and culture of, Sierra Leone.
Out of this financially difficult and creatively challenging background, the SL Film Workshop has been created to help overcome this serious failing by aiming to provide free access to equipment and support for local filmmakers. By encouraging production of local films about local interests and topics and issues, the workshop aims to make its own contribution to the nurturing of latent talent, the development of useful skills, and through creating a body of work, helping to build a valuable asset for the nation's archival, educational or cultural enjoyment. In short, giving Sierra Leone the opportunity to create a new industry and contributing to the building of social recognition and cultural respect around the world.
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Latest page update: made by cottontree
, Oct 2 2008, 10:10 AM EDT
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