American alt-pop singer and internet personality Oliver Tree was aboard one of the two helicopters that collided mid-air in Brazil, leaving six dead, a police source said.

The alternative singer and internet personality was listed as one of six people on the manifest of one aircraft shared by the source, who said the victims could not be formally identified yet as they were badly burned in the crash.

The helicopters collided mid-air on Sunday morning in the western suburb of Rio de Janeiro called Recreio dos Bandeirantes before plummeting into the parking lot of an electric car dealership, setting ablaze around 20 cars, firefighters said.

One of the helicopters was carrying five people, and the other only the pilot. There were no survivors.

The passengers on the same helicopter as Tree included a Brazilian music producer, Argentine video director and Argentine YouTuber Gaspar Prim, known online as “Gaspi”.

The 32-year-old Tree – with a distinctive bowl haircut and eccentric, meme-worthy internet persona – was known for hits such as “Life Goes On”, “Miss You”, and “Alien Boy”.

He has over 11 million monthly listeners on Spotify, with his top songs listened to over 700 million times.

In recent days his Instagram account featured videos of him in Brazil, where he performed in Sao Paulo on June 6 on his tour of over 30 countries.

His next show was due in Lisbon on July 1.

Rio de Janeiro Mayor Eduardo Cavaliere said earlier that there were “foreign nationals on board one of the aircraft”, without giving further details.

Source: France 24

The Cameroonian film industry is in mourning following the death of Bassek Ba Kobhio, a respected director and cultural promoter who played a key role in shaping modern African cinema.

A filmmaker, producer and cultural advocate, he was widely regarded as one of the architects of modern cinema in Central Africa. Over the years, he built a reputation not only through his films but also through his commitment to creating platforms for African voices.

His works, including Sango Malo and Le Grand Blanc de Lambaréné, tackled themes such as education, colonial legacy and African identity, earning him recognition beyond Cameroon.

Beyond directing, he played a major role in structuring the industry, notably through the creation of the Écrans Noirs festival, which became a key meeting point for filmmakers across Africa and beyond.

His passing has triggered tributes from across the continent, with many describing him as a pioneer who helped shape how African stories are told and distributed.

Bassek Ba Kobhio was born in Cameroon and developed an early passion for cinema and storytelling at a time when African film industries were still emerging.

He pursued formal training in filmmaking abroad, notably in Europe, where he studied cinema and audiovisual production. This exposure helped shape his narrative style, which blends African realities with strong cinematic structure.

He began his career in the 1980s, working first in television and audiovisual production before moving into feature filmmaking. His breakthrough came with Sango Malo (1991), an adaptation of a literary work that explored tensions within the education system and society. The film remains one of the most referenced works in Cameroonian cinema.

In 1995, he founded the Écrans Noirs festival in Yaoundé, at a time when African films had very limited visibility. The initiative grew into one of the most important film festivals in Central Africa, helping to launch and promote numerous African filmmakers.

His film Le Grand Blanc de Lambaréné (1995) revisited the life of Albert Schweitzer from an African perspective, sparking debate and international attention for its critical take on colonial narratives.

Throughout his career, he held several cultural and institutional roles, contributing to policy discussions around cinema and culture in Cameroon and Africa. He was also involved in training and mentoring young filmmakers, pushing for a stronger, more structured film industry.

Bassek Ba Kobhio is remembered not only for his films, but for his vision one that insisted Africa must tell its own stories, on its own terms.

His death leaves a significant void, but his influence continues through the institutions he built and the generations he inspired.

Source: Lebledparle.com

Cameroon’s Minister of Arts and Culture, Bidoung Mkpatt, has pledged to establish a new framework to secure dedicated State funding for the country’s film industry, responding to long-standing calls from filmmakers for more structured government support in production, infrastructure and distribution.

The commitment was made during a meeting in Yaounde with a delegation from the Cameroon International Film Festival (CAMIFF), shortly after the event concluded its 10th edition on 25 April in Buea, South West Region. The delegation was led by CAMIFF founder and chief executive Gilbert Agbor and included American actor Blair Underwood alongside other film industry figures.

The audience gave festival organisers an opportunity to present a report on the week-long event and highlight structural challenges facing Cameroon’s film and audiovisual sector, including the shortage of modern cinema halls, weak distribution networks and limited access to production financing.

Minister Bidoung Mkpatt said the main obstacle was not policy intent, but the lack of a clear operational framework enabling the State to dedicate funding to the sector. He said projects linked to film production, cinema infrastructure and distribution all fall within the ministry’s mandate.

“The State has a methodology for developing a budget to address the challenges facing the sector’s development. In the case of cinematography, for instance, it can provide credit facilities to help clear the path forward,” the minister said.

“The challenge now is to establish a working method that enables the State to allocate a specific budget for activities in the cinema sector,” he added.

The minister also announced plans to create a committee and a dedicated reflection group to examine concerns raised by filmmakers and develop both short- and long-term strategies for the sector. The process is expected to produce a formal strategy document aimed at structuring future interventions. He urged stakeholders to remain patient while the work progresses.

“Whatever the difficulties may be, they are temporary. You must not give up. Remain vigilant and exercise patience while the committee works to identify both short-term and long-term solutions,” he said.

The policy direction comes as creative industry stakeholders increasingly call for more predictable State support, arguing that the absence of dedicated financing continues to limit production capacity and discourage private investment in the sector.

Blair Underwood, who has traced his ancestry to Cameroon’s Babungo tribe in the North West Region, welcomed the government’s engagement. He described CAMIFF as an initiative that had demonstrated both “vision and execution” over the past decade and said progress in the film industry required collaboration between filmmakers and public authorities.

“It takes the collective effort of many people, and in this instance, the government as well, working in concert to advance to the next stage and reach the next level. So, it is exciting to see that in motion, and to witness such a positive reception from the Minister of Arts and Culture,” he said.

Cameroonian-Nigerian actress Prisma James also called for stronger government backing for the industry, describing show business in Cameroon as challenging despite signs of gradual progress.

“Cameroon is still developing, and show business here remains rather challenging. But we have people who are going to bring about change,” she said.

According to data from the UNESCO Institute for Statistics, Cameroon had fewer than 10 modern cinema halls in the early 2020s. The country’s film industry still operates largely through independent productions and informal distribution channels.

Source: Business in Cameroon