One of Ghana’s finest and upcoming Movie Directors, Romeo David Amoateng, is set to thrill movie lovers to his maiden movie titled: “The 80s,” soon to be premiered.
Romeo David Amoateng who is also a Producer has been working behind the scenes with other outstanding producers like Dr. Daniel Dickson Boateng from USA and Jessica Ackwonu Aikins have concluded work on ‘The 80S’, with a promise to movie lovers of bringing them an amazing and touching piece of work.
The 80s which brings together the finest Actors and Actresses is a film that depicts the virtues and vices inherent in the cocoa industry in Ghana.
Romeo David Amoateng revealed in an interview that the piece traces the origins of the crop from Tetteh Quarshie, who first brought the cocoa seeds from Fernando Po, Equatorial Guinea, to Ghana over a century and half ago.
He explained that, “The Golden Pod, the agricultural contemporary of Ghana’s mineral resources was divinely gifted to Tetteh Quarshie to salvage the then Gold Coast from poverty, deprivation and squalor. The cocoa industry is one of the few sectors that have served as the economic backbone of the nation for well over one-and-a half centuries.”
It is indeed interesting to note that the impact of the industry has sustained the agriculture sector and given the nation the pride of place in the external market of the product.
With the product, Ghana immediately rose to the pinnacle in the production of cocoa; captured the commanding heights in the agricultural sector in West Africa, and thus catapulted the country into prominence as its iconic product aside gold (mineral).
The 80s elaborates the question of smuggling in the cocoa industry; whether the cocoa farmer can be justifiable charged with the offence for appropriating the end product of his toil and labour, and recounting the hard work of the Ghanaian farmer through the nursing of the precious seedlings; transplanting and painstakingly weeding to ensure its healthy growth; fighting attendant diseases -swollen shoots and the likes, as well as the occasional ravages of fire and perilous floods.
The shows much analysis and brings the question as to what the cocoa farmer; his family and relations benefit from all their toils and fights against sleepless nights, prickly thorns and thistles that antagonize their Labour.
Romeo David Amoateng said the idea of the 80s was hatched some seven years ago, and shooting was done in tourists locations across Ghana: Kaakum Forest, Aidoo Suazo, Nzulenzo, Elubo and Takoradi harbor, and in the Cote d’ Ivoire.
About five languages have been deployed by the characters which include English, French, Akan and Hausa.
Stars featured in the film include Andrew Mensah (Scorpion), Stephen Yao (Biggie Oteele), Queen Serbia Deboa and Richmond Boakye, with Samuel Adjei (Longface) as the Make-up Artist. Dr. D. D. Boateng (USA) and Anthony A. Aidoo supervised the scripts.
Rasta, played by Andrew Mensah, and his group of young cocoa farmers are arrested after a failed attempt to smuggle cocoa out of the country resulted in the drowning and death of some of the hired carriers.
Movie lovers must not miss the opportunity to watch The 80s and get answers to the tony issues that persist in the Cocoa sector.
Click To Watch The 80s Trailer
By: PROSPER AGBENYEGA