The Ghana Film Authority has issued a statement against claims by American movie producer, Spike Lee that no one from the film authority approached him during his visit.

Spike Lee arrived in Ghana on Sunday, March 27 ahead of US Vice President Kamala Harris’ three-day visit to Ghana and in an interview on Asaase Radio stated that although his arrival in the country was publicised, no one from the film industry in Ghana reached out to him.

“I did not know that there is a thriving film industry in Ghana, I know about Nigeria. And I made the point that it was publicised that I was coming and no one approached me from the film office. I would have loved to meet the people in the film industry here [in Ghana],” he said in the interview.

Read also: No one from the Film Industry in Ghana connected with me during my visit- Spike Lee

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Reacting to Lee’s claims, the Ghana Film Authority has revealed that efforts were made to connect with Spike Lee, however, they all proved futile.

“We have become aware of a circular on the visit of Mr. Spike Lee. As excited as we were to hear this news after he landed on air, the Authority’s CEO was on her way to meet Mr. Lee to reiterate the positioning when the Authority was informed that his schedule was busy for the evening,” the Film Authority revealed in a statement.

Read the full statement below:

The National film authority has for the past 3 years worked assiduously to position Ghana as a film and content destination and called on the world to shoot in Ghana.

The CEO of the Authority recently returned from a round table during the recent Oscar week to meet Industry to explore this very positioning…

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We have become aware of a circular on the visit of Mr. Spike Lee. As excited as we were to hear this news after he landed on air, the Authority’s CEO was on her way to meet Mr. Lee to reiterate the positioning when the Authority was informed that his schedule was busy for the evening…

Given the circumstances, the Authority relayed a good will message from the CEO reiterating Ghana’s welcome and particularly the film industry and expressed our desire to commence a conversation.

We use the opportunity to call on all organizers of such trips to inform the necessary agencies to ensure that Ghana takes full advantage of all opportunities for the benefit of all.