LASG PARTNERS CREATIVE FIRMS TO TRAIN 1,480 PRACTITIONERS

The Lagos State Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture has entered into a partnership with two creative firms – EbonyLife Creative Academy and Del-York Creative Academy – to enhance the skills and exposure of about 1,500 practitioners in the State’s creative industry through the Lagos State Creative Industry Initiative (LACI), . 

The Honourable Commissioner for Tourism, Arts and Culture, Mrs. Uzamat Akinbile-Yussuf, who disclosed recently in Ikeja, said that the gesture by the State Government is in continuation of the support already provided by the Lagos State Government for practitioners in the entertainment and creative industry. 

She explained that while EbonyLife will undertake the physical classroom training for the beneficiaries, Del-York has been engaged by the government to provide a hybrid version of the online and physical aspects of the training for members of the creative industry. 

According to her, Governor Sanwo-Olu has approved the training of 480 practitioners, who are desirous of gaining world-class skills and career advancement by EbonyLife from February 2021, stressing that the online version of the training by Del-York Creative Academy will produce 1,000 beneficiaries making a total of 1,480 expected participants. 

While noting that the 480 beneficiaries would be trained in four different batches of 120 participants in each quarter of Y2021, the Commissioner revealed that LACI will serve as a training platform for practitioners in the creative sector on the use of modern technology to enhance the content and quality of Nigeria’s entertainment, and project the practitioners as some of the best production crews in Africa and the World.

Akinbile-Yusuf also added that the State Government decided to go into the partnership with the creative firms because the initiative is in line with two of the development pillars of Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu’s T.H.E.M.E.S agenda, which are Education & Technology as well as Entertainment & Tourism. 

In her words: “As we begin to emerge from the shadow of a global pandemic, it is heartwarming that we can look forward to an increase in activity in the movie industry, which provides so many jobs and supports so many small businesses. The Lagos State Creative Industry Initiative will be a catalyst for growth in this sector”.

She urged interested persons in the creative industry to apply for participation in the training under the Lagos State Creative Industry Initiative through its official website: www.EbonyLifecreativeacademy.com which was specifically created for the purpose or through the link from Del York: http://creativelagos.ng

Speaking on the initiative, the Chief Executive Officer of EbonyLife Creative Academy, Mrs. Mo Abudu said that her firm, Ebony Life Limited, will be providing eight different courses for a duration of three months, adding that certificates will be given to the trainees in addition to internship opportunity upon completion.

The trainees, she said, would comprise of practitioners that are interested in practical short courses covering all aspects of filmmaking and media content production including acting, directing, producing, editing, sound and lighting with a focus on helping film professionals improve their skills and making them globally competitive, while also equipping beginners with the skills they need to launch their careers on a sound footing.

She informed that the initiative was conceived in response to the growing shortage of industry professionals, as Nollywood continues to expand, saying “We have so much talent in Nigeria and our people are ready to work. But, unfortunately, very little training is available locally and most people cannot afford to go abroad for training”.

The President and Founder of Del-York Creative Academy, Dr. Linus Idahosa, commended Governor Sanwo-Olu’s willingness to help citizens realise their full potentials by charting a new and different path for the Nigerian creative industry and collective African narrative. 

He revealed that the training initiative will help synergise talent, technology and career to ensure that all participants remain at the cutting-edge of innovation not only for the short-term but for years to come.

According to him, the training tagged “the Creative Lagos Project” will be executed as a hybrid of both virtual and physical classes and will cover six major courses namely, Digital Filmmaking, Fashion, Art & Crafts, Documentary Filmmaking, Digital Marketing for Content Creators, Producing/Business of Film and Television Post-Production. 

It should be noted that the registration of interested participants is already ongoing and the first intakes are expected to commence classes in the first quarter of 2021, while the next intake follows afterwards. At the end of each ten-week course, groups of students from different disciplines will merge into teams to produce a short film or television show for the exhibition.