Eeeeeeeeekkk!! it's here! Well... not officially and everyone who knows will know that it has been on the books for years now. But with the casting of Thandie Newton as Olanna, the Nigerian hype around this book risked dying out - afterall it's one of the most successful Nigerian-written books, it's about the darkest days in Nigeria's history and for once, it stars leading characters who are Nigerian and through whose perspective we experience the Biafran war - yet Thandie Newton is not Nigerian and will probably flop (much like Morgan Freeman's Mandela impersonation) trying to do a Nigerian accent - which is not your average African accent.
As a Brit, I have all faith in Thandie. As a Brit I agree with many that we must now start casting and filming movies with commercial viability in mind and the current line up: Thandie Newton (Olanna), Chiwetel Ejiofor (Odenigbo) and Dominic Cooper (Richard) have Hollywood written all over them. [And those of you who watched My Murder on BBC3 will love that John Boyega is playing Ugwu] At the end of the day, you will sooner find a million people spending £5 a head to see a film, in the USA than you will in Nigeria - this is a fact of life in the continent's present situation. And if £5 a head in the USA means that perhaps we can let Nigerian's watch their story for just a dollar, then I'm in support.
Of course as a Nigerian I am more than excited to see Genevieve Nnaji starring. I don't think the film would have gotten away with not having at least one Nollywood heavyweight in it. BUT, and feel free to correct me if I am wrong, we all know Genevieve's strengths, we've seen her in dozens of movies, we know the type of characters we like her to play. Those of you who have read the book can then tell me, do you think Genevieve is better suited to the role of Ms Adebayo or to Kainene, Olanna's twin sister? I don't want to type-cast Genevieve as a stern character, not looking for love but finding it anyway. Of course, if she were the part of Kainene, some may argue that she was being typecast. I don't know I think it would have done much more for her portfolio to be Kainene than Ms Adebayo, who I dislike just as much as Ugwu seems to in the book. And I am fearful of rumours that Thandie will play both sisters, it's seems highly unnecessary. Yes they are twins, but we are told they are nothing alike in appearance and personality.
Hmmmm. To be honest, none of this is about being a Brit or being Nigerian I'm so excited for this film to come out, I will make my entire family watch it and support African stories. I only write this post to say how I might do something different - the lads are spot on, I had them in mind too (when I was reading the book), if not Chiwetel then David Harewood he's got something Odenigbo-esque about him. Thandie is a good selection and to be honest I would rather her than Rita Dominic - this is a serious project. Kudos to everyone involved.
Sunday, 29 April 2012
Saturday, 28 April 2012
Africa's International Image
I have so many similar posts sitting in my drafts but I felt this topic needed its own quick and fresh response in light of the BBC Africa Debate that took place yesterday in Kampala, Uganda.
Is Africa's international image unjust? Yes.
Should Africa care about their international image? No.
Should Africa rebrand its international image? No.
Why?
Well, Africa has an unjust image because the image is not complete. For instance, HIV/AIDS is a terrible disease, it understandably therefore has alot of stigma around it. This stigma is caused by the perpetuation of the notion that HIV/AIDS is a death sentence. HIV/AIDS agencies are always campaigning to remind people that HIV/AIDS will not hinder a normal life.
So you see despite the negatives, positive messages are peddled too in order to allow sufferers of HIV to develop like every other person in the world. But when we apply Africa's international image, we find there's alot of stigma caused by the perpetuation of the notion that Africa is a death sentence either to war, famine or disease. And there are no agencies trying to convince anyone otherwise, in order to allow Africa to develop like every other continent. (by "like every other continent" I don't mean to imply that there is one path for us all to follow).
Should Africa care about their international image? Read Neo-Colonialism by Kwame Nkrumah, please and don't think you know what the argument will be, based on the title.
I was talking to a friend the other day about Africa and its future according to my eyes. I would say the International image doesn't matter because the domestic image is not yet mature. The only people who matter in terms of Africa's image are the African people, especially those still living on the continent but also to an extent those who left in post-independence and their children who are now part of a returning generation.
Remember, when we say Africa's image what is the narrative that we are conforming to? When we try to promote Ghana as a democratic country, what value do we hold for democracy. George Ayittey has always said that our form of accountable government, is governance of consensus - so I ask again what value do we hold for democracy? Is it not a narrative that we promote for the pleasure of others?
When we say Africa is safe for multinationals to come and invest and mine and harvest, where in that narrative are we trying to create our own multinationals that go and invest elsewhere and bring capital back to the continent. Once again - pleasure for others.
I will always argue as I have in an earlier post that our leaders should adopt our culture in their leadership, that includes wearing our attire rather than "international business standard". When we say the African image, we must mean an AFRICAN image not Africa's best simulation of a foreign image. And there is no point trying to convince outsiders when we can't even convince ourselves who experience Africa first hand everyday. Another example - Ghana's oil (or Nigeria's or Angola's) - when the revenues go to the national coffers the IMF/World Bank/ someone says the country has earned/grown 10% from the year prior. But until the money is spent on the people, on domestic infrastructure etc, Ghanaians, Nigerians or Angolans will forever believe their country to be poor. Ghana, Nigeria or Angola could have the most impressive embassies abroad, but will that change the narrative that the people on the ground relay to BBC, CNN or AlJazeera.. no. So it's pointless.
And to end on the media - one man said in the debate yesterday, the international broadcasters will become irrelevant on the continent in 5-7 years. I totally agree, who best to tell our story than ourselves?
Is Africa's international image unjust? Yes.
Should Africa care about their international image? No.
Should Africa rebrand its international image? No.
Why?
Well, Africa has an unjust image because the image is not complete. For instance, HIV/AIDS is a terrible disease, it understandably therefore has alot of stigma around it. This stigma is caused by the perpetuation of the notion that HIV/AIDS is a death sentence. HIV/AIDS agencies are always campaigning to remind people that HIV/AIDS will not hinder a normal life.
So you see despite the negatives, positive messages are peddled too in order to allow sufferers of HIV to develop like every other person in the world. But when we apply Africa's international image, we find there's alot of stigma caused by the perpetuation of the notion that Africa is a death sentence either to war, famine or disease. And there are no agencies trying to convince anyone otherwise, in order to allow Africa to develop like every other continent. (by "like every other continent" I don't mean to imply that there is one path for us all to follow).
Should Africa care about their international image? Read Neo-Colonialism by Kwame Nkrumah, please and don't think you know what the argument will be, based on the title.
I was talking to a friend the other day about Africa and its future according to my eyes. I would say the International image doesn't matter because the domestic image is not yet mature. The only people who matter in terms of Africa's image are the African people, especially those still living on the continent but also to an extent those who left in post-independence and their children who are now part of a returning generation.
Remember, when we say Africa's image what is the narrative that we are conforming to? When we try to promote Ghana as a democratic country, what value do we hold for democracy. George Ayittey has always said that our form of accountable government, is governance of consensus - so I ask again what value do we hold for democracy? Is it not a narrative that we promote for the pleasure of others?
When we say Africa is safe for multinationals to come and invest and mine and harvest, where in that narrative are we trying to create our own multinationals that go and invest elsewhere and bring capital back to the continent. Once again - pleasure for others.
I will always argue as I have in an earlier post that our leaders should adopt our culture in their leadership, that includes wearing our attire rather than "international business standard". When we say the African image, we must mean an AFRICAN image not Africa's best simulation of a foreign image. And there is no point trying to convince outsiders when we can't even convince ourselves who experience Africa first hand everyday. Another example - Ghana's oil (or Nigeria's or Angola's) - when the revenues go to the national coffers the IMF/World Bank/ someone says the country has earned/grown 10% from the year prior. But until the money is spent on the people, on domestic infrastructure etc, Ghanaians, Nigerians or Angolans will forever believe their country to be poor. Ghana, Nigeria or Angola could have the most impressive embassies abroad, but will that change the narrative that the people on the ground relay to BBC, CNN or AlJazeera.. no. So it's pointless.
And to end on the media - one man said in the debate yesterday, the international broadcasters will become irrelevant on the continent in 5-7 years. I totally agree, who best to tell our story than ourselves?
Sunday, 22 April 2012
the brand - you.
Nowadays it feels like I've gotta trade in 'Charlene Bello' harder than I had to trade in Pokemon cards! (and that was a difficult hustle at such a tender age).
I've spent every waking moment reading graduate programme descriptions, and job descriptions and post-grad course descriptions! anymore descriptions people want to throw at me put them in the comments I'm sure to read them! I mean all of that isn't really a problem, the act of reading has become second nature to me - I take a humanities course, there's no practical, just reading, and some more. The problem is that after all that reading takes place... just as I feel "yeh, that really spoke to me, this is want I want to do in life" I've gotta apply for it. Now I'm not saying I'm expecting them to find me, although, y'kno it wouldn't kill them to do a bit of the chasing now and again, I'm just saying the application process is so long and it doesn't begin or end with each individual application. You have to check your digital dirt, sweep it all up and febreze the place with as many martyr heroes and Churchill quotes you can think of. Suddenly you've begun trying to tone down the wild child image you've spent 21-odd years trying to create because you think it offsets the I-like-to-read nerd in you beautifully. Or you've gone from being the laid-back-but-still-smart student whose idea of a good time is a chinwag with mates on a couch watching some dying reality TV show whilst sipping on Earl Grey to Captain America climbing mountains, playing more sports that the IOC recognise and speaking more languages than UNESCO are aware of. You're idea of fun is a theory based discussion on the morals and evils of the fundamental philosophies behind the OCCUPY movement, rather than to sum it up as you normally would.. "a Duke Of Edinburgh expedition that got a bit lost."
And there's a one degree lee-way. That's it.swing too far social or too far studious and you're bound to find yourself in the barren lands of youth unemployment [now at a record high, thank you to all those who voted Tory or Lib Dem]
You're CV has always looked good, star pupil from nursery to uni.
No one can fault you.
But then suddenly you spend an hour running through all the fonts Microsoft Office have to offer because Times New Roman just won't do.
It's not enough to set you apart from everyone else.
You now need something that says I'm as reliable and as serious as Times New Roman, but fun and creative enough to not BE Times New Roman, because Times New Roman is the Average Joe, and this Joe is far from average.
And then you have companies who ask you to describe yourself, but they ask it in the dumbest of ways. Remember at school, your teacher would say "pick 3 words to describe you and give your reason" simple enough, we'd all choose the same so that we'd all like each other and sneer at the person who dared to be different. They wouldn't say they were chatty, they would claim they prefered playing with the insects in their garden or something. But now, NOW they ask you "if you were a brand how would you describe that brand?" we've gone from elevator pitching new products to elevator pitching ourselves as if we were products. It's tiring work.
I've spent every waking moment reading graduate programme descriptions, and job descriptions and post-grad course descriptions! anymore descriptions people want to throw at me put them in the comments I'm sure to read them! I mean all of that isn't really a problem, the act of reading has become second nature to me - I take a humanities course, there's no practical, just reading, and some more. The problem is that after all that reading takes place... just as I feel "yeh, that really spoke to me, this is want I want to do in life" I've gotta apply for it. Now I'm not saying I'm expecting them to find me, although, y'kno it wouldn't kill them to do a bit of the chasing now and again, I'm just saying the application process is so long and it doesn't begin or end with each individual application. You have to check your digital dirt, sweep it all up and febreze the place with as many martyr heroes and Churchill quotes you can think of. Suddenly you've begun trying to tone down the wild child image you've spent 21-odd years trying to create because you think it offsets the I-like-to-read nerd in you beautifully. Or you've gone from being the laid-back-but-still-smart student whose idea of a good time is a chinwag with mates on a couch watching some dying reality TV show whilst sipping on Earl Grey to Captain America climbing mountains, playing more sports that the IOC recognise and speaking more languages than UNESCO are aware of. You're idea of fun is a theory based discussion on the morals and evils of the fundamental philosophies behind the OCCUPY movement, rather than to sum it up as you normally would.. "a Duke Of Edinburgh expedition that got a bit lost."
And there's a one degree lee-way. That's it.swing too far social or too far studious and you're bound to find yourself in the barren lands of youth unemployment [now at a record high, thank you to all those who voted Tory or Lib Dem]
You're CV has always looked good, star pupil from nursery to uni.
No one can fault you.
But then suddenly you spend an hour running through all the fonts Microsoft Office have to offer because Times New Roman just won't do.
It's not enough to set you apart from everyone else.
You now need something that says I'm as reliable and as serious as Times New Roman, but fun and creative enough to not BE Times New Roman, because Times New Roman is the Average Joe, and this Joe is far from average.
And then you have companies who ask you to describe yourself, but they ask it in the dumbest of ways. Remember at school, your teacher would say "pick 3 words to describe you and give your reason" simple enough, we'd all choose the same so that we'd all like each other and sneer at the person who dared to be different. They wouldn't say they were chatty, they would claim they prefered playing with the insects in their garden or something. But now, NOW they ask you "if you were a brand how would you describe that brand?" we've gone from elevator pitching new products to elevator pitching ourselves as if we were products. It's tiring work.
Friday, 13 April 2012
Can we do more to save our elephants?
Panorama showed this investigation yesterday. It actually made me very sad. I won't make this a post about China in Africa. I just hope that somehow someday we can save the elephants and put an end to poaching indefinitely.
Elephants are matriarchal, they hold memory and have feelings and they mourn the dead collectively and even after a long time has passed. I see those same traits in my culture.
I used to read about how our ancestors used nature and wildlife as a guide to their own existence, if our traditional societal structures are built like that then surely the extinction of the elephant would have a tremendous effect on us, our identity and our connection with the land.
Thursday, 12 April 2012
the African Renaissance Monument, Dakar
Many of us would have heard about the African Renaissance monument in Dakar, Senegal. The brainchild of former President Abdoulaye Wade, it has been criticised by many for being a waste of money. He spent £16.6m on it. I for one wasn't particularly offended by the President's decision to create the monument, mainly because the arguments for it were sort of convincing - at the end of the day many people go to New York to see a woman holding a torch and a bible, why shouldn't they go to Dakar to see a man holding a child and a woman (which apparently embodies the Senegalese spirit) I had no objections until I saw this CNN video of the African Renaissance statue.
The architect explained the whole thinking behind it and then it just seemed confused, self-defeating and contradictory. I won't say that has made me completely against the monument, just the story behind it, and perhaps the Senegal should think up a more appropriate explanation for what it represents.
It just all has me thinking from the Dakar monument in the West and the AU building in the East it seems the narrative of Africa's leaders is "we want to prove that we can do everything we want to do if we emulate you and ask you to do it for us" still little child mentality, that isn't development.
The architect explained the whole thinking behind it and then it just seemed confused, self-defeating and contradictory. I won't say that has made me completely against the monument, just the story behind it, and perhaps the Senegal should think up a more appropriate explanation for what it represents.
It just all has me thinking from the Dakar monument in the West and the AU building in the East it seems the narrative of Africa's leaders is "we want to prove that we can do everything we want to do if we emulate you and ask you to do it for us" still little child mentality, that isn't development.
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