Socrate Safo Blasts Media: “Negative Talk Crippled Ghana’s Movie Industry”
Veteran filmmaker Socrate Safo has blamed years of persistent negative publicity for eroding public confidence in Ghana’s movie industry, arguing that media criticism—not just market forces—played a decisive role in the sector’s decline.
Speaking on Okay FM on Wednesday, Safo said the media once served as a powerful engine for the growth of local films, driving sales through promotions, reviews and heavy advertising. That partnership, he noted, created real business opportunities for both filmmakers and media houses.
“There was a time the film industry helped the media make so much money in terms of adverts and promotions. I remember the number of friends in the media whom I was personally sorting out for writing promotional content and ad libs,” he recalled.
But according to him, the relationship soured when some media personalities began openly rubbishing Ghanaian movies on air—discouraging audiences and scaring away investors.
“It was all good until the same media started running the films down by talking bad against the movies they were supposed to be promoting. They were saying things like, ‘It’s not nice, it’s boring,’ pushing away potential viewers and investors,” he said.
Socrate Safo recounted confronting a TV presenter in Accra who planned to compare Ghanaian films with Nigerian productions live on air, insisting such comparisons were damaging and unfair.
“I had to go to them after the show to tell them that what they were doing was not good. They were damaging the industry,” he said.
He maintained that the constant negative perception surrounding Ghanaian movies contributed significantly to the industry’s collapse, leaving both filmmakers and media practitioners worse off.
“If they were actually promoting the movies, they would have gotten more money, and it circulates. That is how industries grow,” he added.