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FOLLOWING the successful premiere of Black Gold, the new movie which deals with the problem of crude oil in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria at the National Theatre, indications are that the movie produced by Eddie Ugboma’s Edifosa Production Company will be specially premiered in Asaba and Port Harcourt before an audience featuring Rivers and Delta State governors namely Dr. Peter Odili and Chief James Ibori at a not too distant date.

Sources close to the Aboh chief reveal that these governors who were expected as special guests at the Lagos premeire couldn't make it due to the LGA election due for the next day, 27th March, while the occasion was set for the 26th of March, 2004.

<p>The source confirmed that these governors who were touched by the thrust of the movie Black Gold apologised to the veteran actor and producer with a string of celluloid production before the coming of the Home Video era, for not making it to the event and specifically requested for their own special premiere in their respective states.

Inside sources further reveal that of all the Niger Delta and oil producing state governors of Rivers, Delta, Cross River, Akwa Ibom, Bayelsa, Edo, only Delta and Rivers showed this great interest by putting up a direct call and letter to the Aboh chief for not being there and specifically requesting that the movie be specially presented to them in their respective states.

<p> Governor Odili on his part has interest in the Home Video Industry. He donated N1m to the best director of the best film at last year’s 1st Nigeria Movie Awards held at the Nicon Noga Hilton, Abuja.<br />
According to Chief Ugbomah who confirmed the reports, he is only expecting the premiere date for Black Gold in the Niger Delta states of Rivers and Delta now that the LGA elections are done with.</p>
<p>He says the premiere at the National Theatre opened my eyes to the huge potentials of Black Gold in the market but I must complete my programme of private and exclusive audience showings before it goes into the market. Moreover, I don’t expect to go to Europe and the Americas to show the movie yet, because I have not shown the movie to enough Africans who need to see the cause of the deprivation they face because of their God- given resources. It is only after Africans have seen the movie that I should be thinking of a 30 days non stop shows abroad to pout at the problem which oil producing communities face in Nigeria and Africa.

Present at the Lagos premiere were captains of industries, representatives of the governments, lovers of home video film in Nigeria, fans, friends and wellwishers of the producer who kept yelling for a part two, three or more as the case maybe for the movie which parades an admixture of new and veteran actors like Enebeli Elebuwa, Charles Warram, Eddie Ugboma himself in a spectacular performance directed by Tarila Thompson.

Black Gold is the story of how some elders of a little community in the Niger Delta region connive with the white oil explorationist and the military might of the government to deal shows of underdevelopment on the people. The few privileged ones share the booty amongst themselves to the detriment of the community.


Meanwhile, the plans for the movie makers Hall of Fame to hold seminars, workshops and symposia where stakeholders and the governing parastatals as Nigeria Film Corporation, National Film and Video Censor’s Board, Copyright Commission and the National Broadcasting Commission movie makers and distributers is still on. A date is not chosen yet but many believe that if such a gathering is organised, the misgivings, misunderstanding of film makers and these parastatals will be reduced to the barest minimum.

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Property of Ozara debuts


By Sam Eyoboka
Saturday, May 15, 2004


TODAY in the city of Lagos, The Property of Ozara (A Glorious Intervention), an epic evangelical film aimed at strengthening the faith of every Christian, will be introduced to the Nigerian market which is gradually but systematically moving away from traditional occultic movies, a development that is making Nigerian artistic works competitive internationally.

A production of the Bible Life Drama Ministry, the movie is a lucid story of a spiritual deliverance from the stranglehold of satanic forces, acted by a mixed grill of professional actors and upcoming stars some of whom are making their maiden public appearance though they had acted in many church dramas.

The movie was shot in numerous locations in the country and was handled by experts in the industry. According to Bishop Leonard Umunna, the General Overseer of the Bible Life Church, sponsors of the movie, the effort may be the first attempt at movie making but it is not new to the church which has been the first to use drama as part of every worship service.

�We are the masters of the art because we have continually dramatized every aspect of our messages to the extent some feel that our coming out now is even too late, yet those who will watch the movie will know that we have exposed what others have not been able to do,� he said.

He revealed that the movie was set out to expose what happens in the spiritual realm when somebody is being delivered, how you can receive a breakthrough via spiritual deliverance and it will endure.

Asked to speak on the storyline, Bishop Umunna said the story is woven around a particular tribe which had a grave problem and in their bold bid to solve the nagging problem they went to consult a high priest thinking that he had a solution to their problem only to contract another problem.

�The chief priest had instructed the community to bring a young virgin who will be dedicated to the god, Ozara, in atonement for the sins of the community,� he said, adding �and they found one in the household of a couple that has only one child.� Narrating further, the bishop said like Hannah in the Bible, this couple had prayed and fasted many years before God answered their prayers in the form of a female child, an only child of the family.

Despite the resistance of the couple, henchmen from the community came and took the child, Ujunwa, away for dedication to Ozara, the community great deity who now issued all manners of commandments that the child must not eat this or that �and the worst part of it is that the child must never marry.�

Continuing, Umunna said Ujunwa grew up to become a very angelic and beautiful girl and because of the beauty many suitors started coming for hand in marriage but each of them ended up with one misfortune or the other. After many such disappointments, the young girl mustered the courage to make spiritual enquiries to find out the root of the protracted predicaments.

The parents were not forthcoming as they were too afraid of the repercussion of telling the young lad the truth of her problem, but when Ujunwa, too disillusioned about the whole thing, threatened to take her life, the parents had to break the news to her that she had actually been dedicated to Ozara.

And quite naturally, the news further demoralized the girl, compounding her problem and instead of succumbing to the several promptings of several Christian brethren to cast her cares onto the Lord and the invitations to come over she would not, rather they sought other traditional means of solving the spiritual problem.

But when, she had exhausted all available means of sorting herself out, she finally yielded to God�s invitation but that was when the Devil came again for his final onslaught with all manner of threats and reenforcements.

According to the bishop, the Bible says; �Weeping may endure for a night but joy cometh in the morning,� and as expected, God intervened just at the right time to save the life of the young Ujunwa from the shackles of the Devil thereby concluding the deliverance process.

Though the bishop was not forthcoming on the process of the deliverance and the ministers of God who were involved, he maintained that such was the edge the Bible Life Drama Ministry has over all other evangelical ministries.

Whosoever buys the film will know how somebody is delivered from such mysterious circumstances and how a great breakthrough is realised and how the family came together again,� he said, adding �no man has ventured into such deliverance means as shown in The Property of Ozara, The Glorious Intervention. �We have interpreted to the world what deliverance means and what takes place in the spiritual realm when a soul is being delivered,� he said, adding �The Property of Ozara inspires and motivates for victory over the forces of darkness.�
According to him, the purpose of the film, as expected, is to win souls for the Lord and make people to be spiritually minded, turn around from their sinful ways, experience breakthroughs and turn to the Lord.

�All is geared towards making the Christian have in mind, from beginning, all the trials that will come his way and all the things that make people not to come to Christ and the answers to such problems,� he said, stressing that the drama started with a mind-boggling dream but climaxed with a wonderful deliverance.

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