From a little or no interest in Boxing or Sports, Scilla Owusu who is the executive producer and doubles as the director finds herself wooed by a picture of a young boy wearing boxing gloves at the ‘This is Ghana’ photography exhibition by Danny Wonders to create the much-needed detailing boxing documentary, City of Bukom.
According to the dazzling director, the photo was the central focus that births the idea and research into the boxing industry in Ghana. Scilla Owusu spent over 12 months researching, including watching fights, reading articles, books from the 1950s till the present, and went on to spend approximately ten (10) months completing the film/documentary and this came from having scanty resources, a peanut budget, and an injury she suffered before production, she defied the odds and made an impactful documentary that is shaping the narrative and story of boxing in Ghana.
The documentary ‘City of Bukom’ runs with insightful conversations with some of Ghana’s greatest boxers including ‘The Professor’ Azumah nelson, Bukom Banku, Ike ‘Bazooka’ Quartey, Kwame Asante, Joshua Clottey, and other incredible prospects as the documentary also took turns in exploring gyms, the townships and the everyday life of town folks.
In a grand scheme of things, there have been quite a few documentaries of Bukom concerning Boxing, and surprisingly, none has been defiant enough to tackle issues faced by these very boxers who held the flag of the country high on their journey. These boxers were the brightest light and pride of the country at a point in time, yet political dictation has taken away their honour and pride.
Inasmuch as the ‘City of Bukom’ documentary might rarely rival some of the greatest documentaries, the impact of this documentary conforms to the purpose and aim of Scilla Owusu who states that her drive was to tell an authentic story to an audience with the hope of progress and recognition.
Scilla Owusu who was once featured in Forbes Africa 30 under 30 honouree has an impressive catalog and collaborations with acts like Sarkodie, Stonebwoy, Burna Boy, Fuse ODG and she believes this is just the beginning for her.
