Veteran Ghanaian actor Kofi Adjorlolo has pushed back against claims that Nigeria’s Nollywood is responsible for the rise of Ghanaian movie stars, insisting that Ghana’s film industry laid the groundwork for its own talent.
Speaking on The Real Talk Podcast with Elizabeth Essuman, Adjorlolo emphasised that while Ghana’s film industry faces challenges, it continues to produce content consistently—what’s lacking, he says, is proper marketing and promotion.
“Ghana movie is not down; actors are acting daily, producers are producing daily, work is ongoing daily. Rather, it is the promotion and marketing that is lacking – and we’ve got to fix that area,” he stressed.
Addressing claims that Nollywood gave Ghanaian actors their fame, Adjorlolo was unequivocal.
“Though the Ghana movie industry may be having its own problems, it does not mean Nigerians made us.
“Ghana Films made Ghanaian actors,” he declared. “The Ghana movie industry and the movies we produced made us popular before Nigerian producers noticed and called us.”
Adjorlolo pointed to the era of “Ghallywood,” when Ghanaian cinema held a strong presence across Africa. He highlighted actors such as Majid Michel, Van Vicker, Jackie Appiah, John Dumelo, Juliet Ibrahim, Nadia Buari, and Yvonne Nelson as talents who built solid careers in Ghana before crossing into Nigerian productions.
“Ghanaian actors earned their fame in their home country first,” he reminded listeners, underscoring Ghana’s ability to nurture and spotlight its own stars.
While acknowledging Nigeria’s strength in film marketing and business development, Adjorlolo firmly asserted that Ghana deserves full credit for cultivating the talent that later found success across borders.
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