The Manager of Provation, Eli Perile, who handles PR for award-winning US screenwriter and director, Darryl Wharton-Rigby – who revealed his intentions of doing a movie about Ghana’s $ 3million World Cup saga, has told GHbase.com that they have started scripting as well as scouting for investors.
Ghana’s President, John Dramani Mahama, was forced to send a plane containing $3m to Brasília for the nation’s team – Black Star players to share after a row over their appearance fees. The national team, refused to train due to lack of remuneration ahead of Ghana’s match with the Portugal team.
Unfortunately, though the money reached the players to their gusto, they subsequently lost their final group match 2-1 to Portugal and exited the competition.
After Ghana’s exit from the World Cup, no Ghanaian screenwriter or filmmaker thought it expedient to tell our own story – instead, a foreigner did. The Wrap – an online media, reported that an award-winning US writer is planning a Hollywood thriller spun off the true and bizarre story of Ghana‘s World Cup cash.
According to The Wrap: “Darryl Wharton-Rigby’s screenplay will centre on a courier tasked with bringing $3m (£1.76m) across the Atlantic to Brazil in an effort to stop the Ghanaian football team quitting the competition in protest at lack of pay. It is based on a real-life impasse which affected the West African team prior to their exit at the group stage.
Fictional elements will be incorporated to further spice up the proposed movie. The plot sees the $3m stolen after the courier is ambushed. He then has fewer than 12 hours to recover the money or face the wrath of his employers (and presumably the Ghanaian footballers).
In an exclusive interview with PR officer of Darryl Wharton – to find out whether the latter actually rode on the back of Ghana’s World Cup saga to publicize himself, he said no, but admitted that “the reaction in the press was global, with stories appearing everywhere from Hollywood itself, to the UK, Ghana, India, China, Brazil, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Malaysia, Australia and all points in between.
“The project is moving forward very nicely so far. The current status is that the guys; writer/director Darryl Wharton-Rigby, and producers Dan Mirvish and Barry Hennessey are working on the script right now and taking meetings with a number of production companies and studios in Hollywood.
“Whether the film winds up being a smaller independent film or a big budget Hollywood film in the end is too early to say. The project is moving ahead as quickly as everyone can. But yes; let’s definitely stay in touch about the project and I’ll forward your information to the guys.”
The big question we at GHbase.com ask: Couldn’t Ghanaian filmmakers have told our own story- instead of a foreigner doing so? And again, shouldn’t Ghana, as a sovereign nation have a stake in this movie to ensure that the filmmaker does not tell a tale that mocks our national integrity and pride?
We wait earnestly to see when this movie will come out and how the story will be told in reflection to the real story that occurred. Until then…MOTWUM!!