By Hussein Kiganda
On Friday, June 3, there was shock when filmmakers led by actor Patrick Nkakalukanyi protested during the ninth Uganda Film Festival Awards Gala, demanding that the Uganda Communications Commission (UCC) improves their pay and welfare.
The awards, organised by UCC, under the theme Creative Sector As A Solution To Unemployment, took place at the Uganda Institute of Information and Communications Technology in Nakawa, Kampala.
Nkakalukanyi, who had won the Best Actor in Feature Film for his leading role in Tembele, revealed that despite looking glamourous at the awards event, their pockets are slim and their welfare is lacking.
“We are grateful for this opportunity, but we need more. We need a more professional industry, where filmmakers are paid well, can access the services of the Uganda National Social Security Fund, and can be insured,” he said as other filmmakers cheered him on.
In an interview with New Vision, the actor gave reasons for his outburst.
Nkakalukanyi revealed it was out of the pain he had had for ages.
He blamed the media and film guilds, too, for the slow development of the industry.
“The Ugandan media and our own guilds have not done enough. The media has refused to air our movies and host us on shows to let the audience know us and our movies and our guilds have not been of help. They are not doing enough of what we expect from them,” Nkakalukanyi said.
