Do you remember actor Omanza Shaw? See what he looks like now!

So veteran accra-based Liberian actor, Omanza Eugene Shaw was spotted at the launch of Cultural Crossings in Accra recently. To test if Ghanaians still remembered him, I posted a photo of him on Facebook to see the response. Although most people could not recollect his full name, it seems his great performances on screen had been etched in the minds of many – as the bad guy!

From his recent picture, it appears that the actor has taken to Rastafarianism and other forms artistic expressions – besides acting. Some people even suggested on Facebook that he had relocated to Jamaica, hence the long hiatus. Anywhere here is what we do know about Omanza Shaw.

Omanza was forced by the Liberian civil war which broke out in 1989  to relocate to Ghana in 1992. His acting career blossomed significantly since relocating to Ghana, with appearances in several local movies and TV productions ( I cant event remember some of them haha). He made his international debut in ‘Dying of the Light’, a story based on the true-life experience of a United Nations employee on assignment in Africa. It was a docudrama produced by Yorkshire Television and filmed in Ghana, Kenya and England.

His second appearance in a big budget film was in ‘Deadly Voyage’ a feature produced by HBO (America) and the BBC. Omanza was one of five local actors to be cast in that tragic true-life story of young Kingsley Ofosu from Takoradi.  The others were Henry Nartey, Oscar Provencal, Wakefield Ackuaku and David Dontoh.

Omanza also  won the commendation of South African film director, Jason Xenopoulos and was cast in the full-length adventure-action feature film  ‘Critical Assignment’ commissioned by Guinness and starring Michael Power.The film was shot on locations in South Africa, Nigeria, Kenya, Cameroun and Ghana. Omanza played the role of Harry Mogaji, a former bureaucrat who gets fed up with city life and sets out to help some villages to bring clean, potable water to their community.

So there you have it, a throwback feature on Omanza Shaw. If you still have info on what he does now do share.