In the late 1980s, some entrepreneurs in Ghana founded the first video clubs and developed the concept of mobile cinema. Armed with VCRs, televisions, several copies of VHS movies, and the indispensable portable generator, they set out across the country, popularizing many genres while hunting for new customers. At that point, the need for advertising arose, leading us to hand-painted posters.
Mobile cinemas and video clubs multiplied, creating a more competitive environment, and that raised the challenge of promoting titles with greater dedication. The main problem was none other than cost: printing platforms proved prohibitive for this rising market, so as an alternative, local artists of varying skill levels were brought in. Using flour sacks as canvas, some of those artists limited themselves to reproducing (to a certain extent) the content of the original poster, but in most cases they let their imagination run wild.
Hand-painted Ghanaian movie posters gallery
