American filmmaker plans Biafran War epic

American filmmaker plans Biafran War epic

An American-based filmmaker, Odera Ozoka, has commenced work on a war epic titled ‘Biafra:

 A Forgotten

Place.’

The African Movie Academy Award-winning director, who arrived Nigeria for the production of the film, 

said

 he was excited to begin pre-production work on the piece.“It is a big project and nothing of this

 magnitude

 has been done before, so there is a certain pressure. But a sweet one,” Ozoka said.

Asked if it is similar to Biyi Bandele’s ‘Half of a yellow sun’ which starred British Nigerian actor

 Chiwetel Ejiofor, Thandie Newton, and Genevieve Nnaji, Ozoka said: “Firstly any movie on

 Biafra is welcome because

 our stories should always be told and retold. It is how we learn from the mistakes of past.

 ‘Half of a yellow sun’ is different from my movie. While that one is a love story,

 mine is that of survival.

Biafran restoration movement have been energised by increasing hatred and 

maltreatment of Biafrans

 by Nigerian government. Freedom from Nigeria and restoration of an independen

t Biafran state

 is seen as the only chance of survival of Biafrans.