In Ghana, dozens of artists have made their mark creating hand-painted movie posters that blend exaggerated horror with slapstick comedy. This unique art form began in the 1980s during Ghana's mobile cinema boom, giving artists freedom to reimagine blockbuster films in their own style.
With the radio on and a paintbrush in hand, Nana Agyq methodically works on a 1.5 metre by 1 metre flour sack canvas.
In his small studio with blue walls in Teshie, a neighbourhood in Accra, he brings to life a terrifying creature: a giant wasp-woman devouring humans, inspired by the 1950s Roger Corman horror film The Wasp Woman.
"Some of my neighbours come to me and say: 'Why do you only paint scary things? Because of you, I’m having nightmares.' But I really enjoy painting horror films, that’s what works best," Nana Agyq said.
Collectors, mostly American, are willing to pay between €430 and €1,000 per piece for these bold and humorous posters.
An artform kept alive
Robert Kof is the co-founder of Deadly Prey, an American-Ghanaian gallery where about 10 artists, including Nana Agyq, keep this art alive.
"What makes our posters so unique is the imagination we put into them", he explains.
"If a film, for example, is too boring, we add more action to it. Every day, something different must be represented... that’s what creates this hilarious love for our movie posters."
From just four posters sold in the early 2010s, the Deadly Prey gallery now receives much more.
Interest is growing in an art form that emerged in the 1980s, when mobile cinema operators used posters to draw crowds and boost profits.
"The operators of mobile cinemas were looking to double their profits," says Joseph Oduro-Frimpong, an anthropologist at Ashesi University, explaining its origins.
"And one way to do that was to invest in artists to create posters to promote the films. The extravagant nature of the posters partly comes from the competition, which eventually became part of the art."
However, with the rise of standardised reproduction in the 1990s, hand-painted posters began to disappear.
Today, Oduro-Frimpong is working to restore this cultural heritage, which has been largely forgotten by Ghanaians themselves.
► This report was produced by Victor Cariou for the RFI podcast Reportage Afrique.
