Press release
Former S.G and Presidential Affairs Minister Momodou Sabally is set to officially launch a movie “Jangi Jollof”, recently produced by Gambian upstart G-Empire Films. The event is set to be held, June 30, 2018.
The movie is inspired by the book “Jangi Jollof: a Memoir on The Gambia’s First University Programme” authored by Momodou Sabally and published in 2005.
Like the book that inspired it, this movie chronicles the life story of Momodou Sabally, who was one of the pioneering students that started university education in The Gambia.
“Jangi Jollof” has the potential to inspire thousands of young Gambians to have the self-confidence and determination to stay at home and build their lives for effective participation in national development. With the backdrop of illegal migration and other deviant attitudes challenging the young generation, this movie could not have been produced at a better time.
Directed by a young Gambian Bakary Sonko and supported by a cast of almost all actors and actresses in the country’s domestic movie scene, the production of this movie was a transformational experience for the cast itself as an elderly member of the team decided to enroll and start a university degree; and another senior actor Sheikh Tijan Sonko, came out of retirement to join the cast because of the inspiring nature of the story.
Prolific author, motivational speaker, economist and Youth Empowerment expert, Momodou Sabally is also founder and president of the Sabally Leadership Academy (SLA).
Having studied at The Gambia’s first ever University Programme called University Extension Programme (UEP) back in the late nineties, Sabally graduated as Valedictorian and later worked as Economist at the Central Bank of The Gambia before becoming the Director of Budget at the Ministry of Finance and then later S.G and Head of the Civil Service under former President Yahya Jammeh.
He has written several books and published articles in major international publications like New African Magazine but this is Sabally’s first foray into the movie world as Executive Producer and inspirer of a full motion picture, likely to be a trailblazer since a movie of such nature (a biopic) is yet to be produced in The Gambia.
