A nation’s memory is rarely discussed in the language of markets, yet in Ghana today, the question of film preservation is no longer simply cultural. It is economic. Beneath the applause that greeted screenings of The Eyes of Ghana at the National Theatre of Ghana, the University of Media Arts and Communication- Institute of Film and Television (UniMAC-IFT) and the University of Ghana lies a deeper, more urgent reality. Ghana is sitting on a fragile archive that could become a powerful asset in a creative economy or dissolve into irreversible loss.
At the centre of this unfolding economic story is Rev. Dr. Chris Hesse, the 93-year-old cinematographer whose work documenting Dr. Kwame Nkrumah preserved over a thousand reels of Ghana’s political and social history. For decades, these materials have existed largely outside the formal economy, stored in formats vulnerable to decay. Now, as global demand for archival content surges, the value of what was once considered historical residue is being recalculated in financial terms.
Across the world, digitised archives have become lucrative intellectual property. According to global media industry estimates, archival footage licensing alone contributes billions of dollars annually to film, streaming, and educational industries. Countries with structured preservation systems such as the United States, the United Kingdom, and Canada have built institutions that treat archival content as both heritage and a revenue stream. In contrast, Ghana’s archival ecosystem remains underfunded and fragmented, leaving vast economic potential unrealised.
The documentary’s director, Ben Proudfoot, offered insight into both the creative and structural dimensions of the challenge during a post-screening question-and-answer session at UniMAC-IFT. “I think this particular story, if it were a journalist who had written about Kwame Nkrumah, I would have said, ‘ Let me buy three books and go about my life. But because it was a filmmaker, someone I understood, someone who was so charming and such a great storyteller as Reverend Hesse, that is what drew me to it.” His remarks reveal a key economic truth. Stories gain value not only from their content but from the medium and personalities that carry them into global markets.
Proudfoot also placed Ghana’s preservation gap within a broader global context. “This is not just a problem in Ghana. It is a problem all around the world. Are people paying attention to the preservation of films and photographs and documents from the past? They fall by the wayside unless you have so many resources that you can spend millions of dollars doing that, as they do in the United States, the UK or Canada. So it is just a matter of prioritisation.” His emphasis on prioritisation speaks directly to fiscal policy choices. Preservation is not a technical impossibility. It is a budgetary decision.
His experience working within Ghana’s training and production environment further illuminated an overlooked competitive advantage, a point he made during the screening session at UniMAC-IFT, where the film was shown at the ultra-modern studio facility. “I have visited many film schools around the world, and this is a special place you have here. This is unusual. The soundstage, the professors, the research services, it is a place to be proud of,” he said. The remark, delivered in admiration of the institute’s production infrastructure, suggests that Ghana already possesses foundational assets for a viable film economy. What remains is the alignment of policy, funding, and strategic vision to convert that potential into measurable returns.
The cost of inaction is steep. Film degradation is irreversible, and each year of delay reduces both the quality and usability of archival material. Yet the cost of action, while significant, is increasingly measurable. Digitisation infrastructure, including high-resolution film scanners, data storage systems, and skilled technicians, requires sustained investment. However, industry analysts note that the long-term returns from licensing, distribution, and educational use can outweigh initial costs, particularly when archives are integrated into global content markets.
Beyond revenue generation, there is an employment dimension. A fully developed archival economy would create demand for archivists, digital technicians, researchers, filmmakers, and legal experts in intellectual property. It would also strengthen Ghana’s position within the global creative value chain, shifting the country from a source of raw stories to a stakeholder in their monetisation.
The documentary itself offers a case study in international collaboration and the economic pathways it can unlock. In reconstructing Hesse’s story, the production team sourced archival materials from multiple countries, including France, the United Kingdom, Germany, and Russia. This process underscores another economic reality. When local archives are not systematically preserved and catalogued, value migrates outward, and foreign institutions become gatekeepers of a nation’s history.
This concern was echoed in international diplomatic circles. Speaking at a screening of The Eyes of Ghana on April 19, 2026, in London, Mr. Mawutor Alifo, Head of Chancery at the Ghana High Commission in London, underscored both the cultural and economic urgency of preservation while pointing to concrete policy movements. He indicated that the government has approved the digitalisation of Ghana’s film archives, a step that signals recognition at the highest levels of the state that the country’s visual history must be secured and repositioned for future use.
To this end, he revealed that the High Commission has provided administrative support for the digitalisation of old films in negative formats, a process that began decades ago but is now entering a decisive phase. The Commission, he said, has facilitated government approval for a comprehensive project that will involve the recovery, restoration, and digitisation of film material belonging to the Government of Ghana currently held in archival storage in London. As part of this effort, the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation and Iron Mountain have signed a contract to execute the project, which is expected to commence shortly. Beyond preservation, the initiative carries a strong economic and skills development dimension, with provisions to train a new generation of Ghanaian cinematographers in specialised digital technologies required to transform and safeguard archival content. Framing the issue with clarity, he noted that “culture is not simply inherited. It must be actively protected, nurtured, and passed forward.” In economic terms, this protection and nurturing translate into investment and policy frameworks that recognise cultural assets as drivers of growth, reinforcing the link between preservation and national development.
What emerges from these screenings is not merely admiration for a filmmaker or a documentary. It is a strategic question for Ghana’s economic future. In an era where streaming platforms, digital education, and global media markets are expanding rapidly, archival content is no longer passive history. It is active capital.
Rev. Hesse’s life’s work has already survived the most difficult test of time. The challenge now is whether Ghana can convert that survival into value. The decision to digitise, fund, and structure its archival systems will determine whether the country’s cinematic past becomes a cornerstone of its creative economy or a missed opportunity measured in both memory and money.
For Ghana, the reels are no longer just history. They are assets waiting to be unlocked.
