Praise Masvosva, Entertainment Reporter
Village Secrets producer Leonard Chibamu says he is eying recognition from National Arts Merit Awards organisers slated for Harare International Conference Centre on Saturday.
Chibamu, who is vying for the People’s Choice Award, believes recognition will be a major endorsement for him.
Speaking to H-Metro ahead of the awards ceremony, Chibamu said he is keeping fingers crossed as they await for announcement.
“As a producer obviously l expect to win.
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“Winning NAMA is a major endorsement in a life of an artist and being the highest awarding level you expect to win it.
“It’s difficult to get nomination particularly, that is you have to shrug off stiff competition,” he said.
He added:
“NACZ is doing good to keep the award in existence. It motivates the arts industry to work extremely hard.
“Thus contributing to high artistic standards. They should keep promoting art the way they are doing.
“I am particularly happy on encouragement of all artists to mobilize for the People’s choice Award.
“It really create a sense that as an artist, our works should appeal to audiences who are voters in the category.”
Chibamu, who recently engaged the services of Zambians in the new project titled “The River Between”, believes it forges unity as it has both Zimbabwean and Zambian scenes.
“As part of growth, LeoChi Media Consultancy in partnership with Manyene Chivhu Arts Association, we seek to expand our brand beyond boarders of Zimbabwe forming synergies or cooperation with artists in other countries in Africa as spelt out in our vision for 2020 and beyond.
“Village Secrets, our community film project currently showing on ZBC TV, from inception was our dream project that saw us producing for ZBC TV, the national broadcaster and this new project will see us spreading our wings within SADC and beyond.
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“This has been in response to current dynamics in the film sector where the issue of Globalisation did not spare us,” he said.
He added:
“The impact of Global convergence has seen a lot of changes in the landscape of cinema.
“Literally film consumption is more of a game of numbers and being present beyond Zimbabwean territory will help shape up our opportunities.
“Equally the project will help us in exchanging knowledge, skills and talents. Of late in Zimbabwe, opportunities in form of funding have been limited largely to the factors such as the non-paying population, low investor participation equally little filmmaking incentives. Therefore seeking global cooperation is the immediate solution to us as film practitioners.”
– HMETRO
