Ghanaian actress Akofa Edjeani has laid out some of the challenges women face in the showbiz industry.
Although she admits that sexual harassment occurs in every sphere of life, she revealed that the behavior is prevalent in the entertainment industry.
According to her, she lost a movie role when she declined to have a sexual relationship with a Film Director.
“I remember we were shooting somewhere after Kumasi, I think. Unfortunately, the Director was a Nigerian. We were going to shoot two movies back to back. So based on that, the Executive Producer had begged me to bring my rates down, because we were doing two movies that he would pay a certain amount, which reluctantly I agreed to,” she revealed.
“Now here is the Director who asked me to come to his room. I said ‘Come to your room and do what?’. He said ‘to watch a movie’. I said ‘Watch what movie? I mean come on, whatever you want to tell me, I don’t need to come to your room’. Apparently, he wanted something else. I said ‘Like seriously?’ Are you serious?”, she quizzed.
Akofa explained that she was not cast for the second movie because she did not consent to the Director’s sexual demands.
“I didn’t go to his room and guess what, that caused me the next movie. When I asked the Executive Producer, he said it was the director who was casting but I said ‘You were paying me this amount because it’s two movies we were going to shoot’. And he said there was nothing he could do about it because it was the Director who did the casting. So I didn’t get to play the second movie,” Akofa stated.
She noted that throughout her career, she has always believed in her talent, a reason she has never given in to any sexual demands for movie roles.
Therefore, Akofa advised young women who want to get into the creative industry to believe in their abilities and not fall for the tricks of such men.
Discrimination Faced Due To Gender
Comedian Jacinta Ocansey revealed facing discrimination in the creative arts industry due to her gender.
The stand-up comedian and actress disclosed instances where she received lower pay compared to her male counterparts solely because she is a woman.
Jacinta recounted turning down roles in the past after discovering that her male colleagues were offered significantly higher compensation for the same project.
“I mean our industry is so small such that I could pick up my phone and call my colleagues and say ‘Guy how far these people are calling have they called you? There’s a gig on ground and everyone is alert. So what figures are we playing with so that all appear to be on the same page? And then I realized that okay I’m being offered GH¢5 and they’re offering other people GH¢10,” she noted.
“I’ve turned out offers before because I know that you’re paying others way more. I am aware that you’re paying others way more and I’ll just humbly decline,” Jacinta said.
She emphasized that she declined offers when she felt undervalued, adding that it is up to her to bargain for bigger pay in these situations and quietly turn down offers should they not meet her requirements.
Jacinta highlighted some unfair treatment including being denied opportunities with one event organizer citing women as “difficult to manage.”
“Honestly, I’ve not been put on shows before because I am a woman. An event organizer has told me before, ‘You know you people are difficult to manage’,” she revealed.
She stated that it is unfair that women in the industry are being measured not based on their qualifications and abilities but on their gender.
“I think it’s funny when people say that ‘because you are a woman is easier for you in the industry’. No, it’s tougher when you’re a woman. How many people want to sleep with a man before they help him?” she said.
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