LAKE VICTORIA BASIN FILM MAKERS GUILD (KENYA).

THE SPEECH BY THE CHAIRMAN.

The Lake Victoria Basin Film Makers Guild (Kenya) an umbrella movement of local film makers based in Western Kenya.

The Film Guild hopes to inspire the local film makers to dream more of film making, learn new tricks in film making and therefore producing more interesting and memorable films.

The FILM GUILD”S vision is to make the Lake Basin region a centre of excellence in film making and the mission is to produce competent professionals capable of producing films that notch international standards. Its only through quality supporting and film making that we can become the new beacon of film making nationally.

It’s our intension as the FILM GUILD to seek ways and means of moving away from the commercialization of film making to a people’s film industry. A new industry that is not associated with professional mediocrity. Our films should be original and creative. We should not compromise creativity and originality at the alter of greed and short cuts. In the recent past, the region has been to the hub of low quality film productions and a place of cheap film labour force, local arstistes have complained of being manipulated and short changed in the industry by outside forces. This trend should be reversed. This should be our agenda as film makers in the region in 2011.

The Lake Victoria Basin Film Makers Guild (Kenya), hopes to create an indelible mark in the film industry through hard work, quality, creative and original scripting. This calls for a concerted effort by all stakeholders:- The region should accept to be spanner boys in the film industry. We should belong at the centre of film making. We need to market film industry to local establishment in the new counties.

The film industry has brought us together so that we can dream together. Tell our stories without fear in our uniquely way and with passion for posterity. We have a choice, to choice between profiteering and creativity. We have everything at our disposal. Lets not be divided to achieve the selfish ends. Some individuals would want to reap where they did not sow, for they see a lucrative market in the region.

As the former President of U.S.A. JF Kennedy stated in 1962 in Ottawa in Canada in poetic speech.

Geography has made us neighbours.

History made us friends.

We have shared common aspirations.

For the future

Our future and

The future of all mankind.

As the JFK stated, Geography has made us brothers and sisters. History has made us film makers and we have shared common aspirations because of our cultural backgrounds. As local film makers, let’s strive for quality film making. It’s a truism, that good scripting is the spine of good film making. World renown film script writers namely: Leighton Grist and David Lusted, once stated that “Writing, like all representation, is never innocent. To write about anything is explicitly or implicitly, to delimit, expand or challenge how it is perceived and constituted, neither is writing ever neutral. We write from a particular position, in habit a particular discourse, which the very act of writing seeks to validate”. From what perspective are we going to tell our untold stories? Are we going for short cuts and borrow heavily from Nigeria as most us have done before? This is Kenya and not Nollywood.

The 1st Regional Film/Theatre/Gospel/Radio and Fine Arts Awards seeks to invigorate cultural and film enterprise in the region by increasing the public’s consciousness of arts and film industry by providing organizational framework that will “market” the local artistes and film makers and their products effectively.

The main of objective of organizing the regional Awards is basically to expose, popularize and support the local film industry.

The Awards ceremony was founded this year to appreciate and recognize the local film makers, gospel artists for their exemplary and unique artistic contributions in the development of local film industry. The local film makers have expanded the space and the dimension of the emergence of local film industry.

THE JUSTIFICATION FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF LOCAL FILM INDUSTRY.

The history of Kenya’s cultural, creative expressions, film industry and sporting activities is decorated by some of great talents from the Western region. The region, so to speak, has produced some of the most interesting and memorable creative writers, artistes and sports people. In the world of creative expression, the region boasts of Mrs. Grace Ogot, Mrs. Asenath Odaga, Dr. Margaret Ogolla and Prof. Francis Imbuga. Kenya’s film luminaries like Athumani Kapanga, Joseph Olita and Oliver Litondo. In the world of sports, soccer wizards like Shem Chimoto, Peter Oronge, James Sianga, Ouma Chege. Athletics, Charles Asati, Alice Adala, Kipchoge Keino. In visual arts, we have unique sculptors like Elkana Ongesa and John Diang’a.

A great Japanese philosopher made an observation about artistes and this is what he said “The creative mind do wonderful things but unless the public attaches value to what has been created, they will always be reduced to Toys and Jokes. It is important for those who create ideas, products and unique services to ensure that people see value in their creation. This calls for marketing and publicity. We need therefore, to cultivate a good working relations with the Media Houses to support the local film industry in Western Kenya. What strategies are we going to put in place to market and publicizes our unique services and creation in the region and beyond?

Brothers and sisters, it is a truism, that the various arts in Western Kenya are in the process of decline because they have been relegated to the position of unprofitable enterprises. Unfortunately, such great talents have emerged spontaneously and without organized local or national support consequently, some of the best talents in the region have been “forced” to retire early into oblivion, this has led to the falling cultural and film standards. This has moreover increased reliance on the imported cultural products and film productions. Some of the cultural products have actually borrowed from this region’s cultural potential.

REGIONAL TOURISM DEVELOPMENT

The Lake Victoria Basin Film Makers Guild (Kenya) realizes that tourism has and continues to play a critical role in the Kenya’s economic development. It has also contributed significantly to foreign and employment creation. The local film making will also go along way in the development of both domestic and foreign tourism. We believe that in future, film making will be a profession and not only a hobby. Film making is a big cake for all of us. Through film making, we will celebrate our cultural diversity in style.

The Awards ceremony will be an annual event in the region. We will also expect the participation of other players from the Lake Basin Region particularly, in Uganda and Tanzania (Lake Victoria Basin Film Guild chapters) in 2011. The future is bright if we don’t allow “foreign” meddlers to play Russian Roulette with our film industry. Let’s work as a team.

Film is a powerful social tool for transformative change, for film transcends time and space. It reveals what the eye cannot see. Let us not compromise arts for the sake of sheer profiteering,

Let’s protect the region from film exploitation, greed and manipulative forces. The region should not be reduced to a centre of mediocrity and cheap acting labour force.

APPRECIATION

The FILM GUILD is greatly indebted to the American Embassy for continued support and facilitations of the international film workshops. That has seen great American Film Makers facilitating workshops in Kisumu and Maseno University.

We are grateful to the American film makers like Prof. M.K. Asante, Mr. Scott Galloway, Madam Erin Persley, Mr. Giancalos Esposito, Madam Micks Dickoff, Madam Sandra Ruff. We also would like to acknowledge the Kenya International Film Festival for the organization of the 1st Kenya International Film Festival in Kisumu in 2010 at the Silver Bird Cinema at the Mega City (Nakumatt) and the Kenya Film Commission.

In conclusion, we as local film makers must strive and strategize on moving away from the commercialization of film making to a people’s film industry in Western Kenya.

We wish you a Happy Christmas and a Prosperous New year.

May God Bless you abundantly.

Thank you. End.

AKECH OBAT MASIRA

CHAIRMAN: LAKE VICTORIA BASIN FILM MAKERS GUILD (KENYA)

PRESENTED DURING THE 1ST REGIONAL FILM/THEATRES/RADIO/GOSPEL AND FINE ARTS AWARDS 2010 – HELD AT THE KISUMU AREA LIBRARY ON THE

1ST, DECEMBER, 2010.

Website:http/misangoarts.blagspot.com.

googlesearch: obat masira

Tel: +254 726 164 954. Email: obatmasira@yahoo.com.