In preparation to host the second edition of social impact in the filmmaker industry, the Rivers International Film Festival (RIFF): Desgol Entertainment Worldwide plans to execute key initiatives in the state.
The second edition aims to foster creativity, diversity, and cultural exchange within the film industry.
In a press briefing held today at the Presidential Hotel in Port Harcourt, the Founder and Festival Director of RIFF, Kate Ezeigbo, announced that the four-day programme is scheduled to hold from October 24 to 27.
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Explaining further, the founder of the first indigenous film festival in Rivers State disclosed that the idea was established in October 2023, stating it was a platform for filmmakers to display compelling stories around the globe.
In her disclosure, Ezeigbo highlighted their achievement since the inception of the initiative in 2023, noting that they received 582 films from 82 countries.
Then, in 2024, the founder revealed the industry has received over 2,230 submissions from 172 countries, marking the United States and India as the highest numbers of entries received.
Among the initiatives to be observed during the programme will be RIFF free medicals, RIFF empowers, Pitch Your Project, Tour Rivers initiative, and Rivers Film Project.
Emphasising that the RIFF-free medicals will help filmmaker practitioners to keep fit.
“We intend to use this platform to reach out to all the necessary parastatals and agencies involved to have a structured health scheme plan for Nollywood practitioners.
“In this second edition, we will be having thirty free minor surgeries. Drugs for malaria, antibiotics, hypertensive, diabetes, ulcer, diarrhoea, cough, allergies, and multivitamins will be dispensed. Tests for malaria, typhoid fever, STD, HBV, HBsAG, and HCV will be carried out, and free eye checks will be done all through these four days of the film festival.”
Among the other varieties in the programme titled “The Shift,” the festival will experience changing landscapes of filmmaking, especially towards the narratives in Nigerian and international films.
Other supplements to be withnes are masterclasses and panel sessions with words of knowledge and skill development among filmmakers.
Praising the State Governor, Siminalayi Fubara, for his leadership style and being a top supporter of the festival towards promoting the creativity industry, Nollywood, and its practitioners.
Meanwhile, as the program date draws closer, the selection criteria focus on gender inequality, social justice, and indigenous cultures, with the aim to position the “Treasure Base of the Nation” as a hub for creative and cultural exchange on the international stage.
Ezeigbo explained that the programme aims to target film makers, industry professionals, film enthusiasts, students and educators, and local.
Other targeted audiences include international visitors, heads of industries and organisations, the state government, and their partners and sponsors.
