The Arik Air wing at the local airport in Lagos, witnessed a sparse gathering of curious passengers and airport workers, who appeared thrilled by the influx of local and foreign movie stars on ground to catch a chartered flight to Calabar, host of the ongoing Africa International Film Festival (FRIFF).
The buzz at the Calabar airport swelled with more participants arriving enroute the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport for the journey to the popular Tinapa Business Resort, where the 224 rooms at the Lakeside Hotel were overrun by guests, with a heavy spill to other hotels in the city centre.
Between Tinapa and The Marina, another resort centre in town, which houses the popular Filmhouse, the busy traffic of film enthusiasts portrays what many described as a visible success of a festival, which started three years ago.
Wife of the governor of Cross River Mrs. Obioma Imoke, who welcomed the delegates after a dazzling red carpet show kick-starting the week-long event on Sunday night, could not curtail her excitement: “I’m excited to be here and we are most honoured to host this event,” said Mrs Imoke, who apologised for her husband’s absence.
Governor Liyel Imoke, she noted, had led the victorious Golden Eaglets to a national reception in Abuja.
“You haven’t been to Nigeria if you haven’t been to Calabar,” an elated Mrs Imoke told her guests during the cocktail reception that preceded the screening of the festival’s opening movie; Of a Good Report.
“Here is the place to be really”, she stated with emphasis, beaming with smiles. “Please get something to eat because we are known for our cuisine and I want to assure you we are going to have a blast. Cross River is the home of Tinapa, Obudu, and the 32-day long festival, which climaxes with our famous Carnival Calabar. Please have fun.”
With such unusual brief remark by a government functionary, and bankroller of a huge budget event, such as AFRIFF 2013, the mood was set for the real business of filmmaking devoid of the usual show-off activities by government-sponsored events.
If there was any best way to start a film festival, the choice of an opening film is a factor. AFRIFF appeared to have chosen right by screening the controversial Of a Good Report, which was banned initially in its country of origin, for what the censorship board described as its marks of child pornography. Thus, the debate started among filmmakers at the event on where to draw the line between classification and an outright ban of a work of art.
The movie, which has been to the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF), among others sharply divided opinion because of its theme, graphic nature and sexually explicit scenes. Of a Good Report revolves round a teacher, who has an immoral relationship with his 16-year-old female student, puts her in the family way and procures an illegal abortion for her to cover his tracks.
The event, which also focuses on panel discussions, workshops and master classes, has over 40 actors, directors and producers from other countries, including the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Rome, South Africa, Kenya, Ghana and Cameroun.
The foreign artistes are joined by a flurry of Nollywood stars in adding verve to the event, which has Rita Dominic and Lynn Withfield as ambassadors. Others are Desmond Elliot, Kunle Afolayan, Omoni Oboli, Chinedu Ikedieze (Aki), Uche Jombo, Chioma Chukwuka-Akpotha, Bharia Mcwizu, Kemi Lala-Akindoju and OC Ukeje.
There are also Nigerian actors and producers based in the Diaspora at the event. They include Jude Idada, Gbenga Akinnagbe and the model and actor, Ngoli Ngor Onyeka Okafor.
AFRIFF, as its counterparts in Pan African Film Festival (FESPACO), Ouagadougou and Durban International Film Festival (DIFF), South Africa, records a remarkable celebration of the African cinema as a number of outstanding movies are being screened at Filmhouse Cinemas. There is an abundance of feature films, documentaries, short films and student short films in the festival, perhaps the largest collection so far, in a Nigerian domicilled film festival.
Some of the films in competition at the festival include I number number, Hoodrush, Daughters of the Niger Delta, Clouds over Conakry, B for Boy, Hillside Crowd, Drama Consult, Thousand Suns and The Man Who Wanted to Move a Mountain. There is also A Mile from Home, The Virgin, the Copts and Me, Africa Shafted, The Flower Girl, Durban Poison and Creation in Exile.
If there is a remarkable recreation that filmmakers have shared in recent times, the daily AFRIFF after-event party will be a moment to remember. The AFRIFF Village Hangout at dusk offers free drinks and finger foods amid trendy music from an in-house Disc Jockey. The level of grooving by the artistes can simply be described as wow!
The festival will round off this Sunday; with a glamorous award ceremony where prizes will be given in 11 categories. The closing event is expected to be attended by Governor Imoke, among other government officials of Cross River.
