
By Olu Victor
The much anticipated Africa Movie Academy Awards (AMAA) will take place at the newly refurbished Dr. Gabriel Okara Cultural Centre, the Bayelsa State Tourism Development Agency has announced.
It would be recalled that all previous editions of the Africa’s leading award show, were held at the Gloryland Cultural Center, Yenagoa. The new venue is expected to be more classy, and befitting of the 10th anniversary of the AMAAs.
The show which is scheduled for May 24, 2014 will as usual, attract a galaxy of celebrities and stars in the African movie industry. Organizers say the show will “definitely be a night of glitz, glamour and razzmatazz as the entire city of Yenagoa will come alive as we roll out the drums to celebrate excellence in the African movie world.”
Director General of the Bayelsa State Tourism Development Agency, Mrs. Ebizi Ndiomu Brown, in an interview with reporters in Yenagoa said: “AMAA awards this year is going to be unique and special in several ways because we intend to use the occasion of the event to showcase our rich cultural heritage and to promote the tourism and investment opportunities in the state.”
According to Brown, “the government of Bayelsa will go the extra mile to ensure that we put together a grand ceremony which will remain a reference point in the entertainment industry in Nigeria.”
She reiterated the fact that this year’s event is being bank-rolled by the public sector and some public-spirited individuals who share in the vision of Governor Henry Seriake Dickson in transforming Bayelsa State into a preferred tourism destination in Africa.
She stated further that “AMAA has provided a veritable platform to train our youths in various departments of movie making in line with the capacity building and empowerment programme of governor Dickson. This year, about 500 youths will again be trained as cinematographers, producers, camera men, vision mixers, make-up artists, script writers, directors, actors and many more”.
The essence of the training aspect of AMAA, Brown noted, is to provide Bayelsa youths the opportunity to participate in the production of movies in Nigeria thereby reducing the burden on government as the sole employer of labour in the state.
She admonished Bayelsans to troop out in their numbers to welcome the galaxy of stars and also be part of the award ceremony.