Filmmakers in at least 47 African countries say they face restrictions on what topics they are allowed to cover in their work, according to a report published by Unesco.
Subjects like LGBTQ rights, sex, religion, politics, conflict and ethnicity “are often better avoided when not completely banned” the report says.
It says such limits have an impact on the quality of work film creators produce.
“These rules, whether justified or not, explicit or self-imposed, act as powerful psychological constraints curbing the creativity of many African filmmakers.”
The report also highlighted gender inequality in the film and audio-visual industries on the continent, with the largest disparity seen in central Africa where “98% of practitioners estimate that the percentage of women in the sector is less than 10%”.
The African Film Industry report says North African countries like Morocco and Tunisia lead the way when it comes to female representation on camera and behind it.
It also cited Nigeria as a country where the sector is “dominated by female producers”.
BBC
