black titanic 93Cameron, became a famous figure of success. Masoyiyata may be read as
Ashu-Brown’s attempt to tie in with this achievement by imitating what
Titanic’s success was founded on. This can been seen in the very title of
the Hausa video. Masoyiyata/Titanic literally ties the two films together
by placing them side by side. Furthermore, Sadiya Abdu Rano, who played
Binta, is nicknamed “Céline Dion” on the official poster advertising the
video (see figure 3.1). And as if directing wasn’t enough to accomplish the
“assimilation of a great master,” Farouk Ashu-Brown played the role of
Zay yad, thus associating himself—and his own real-life girlfriend, Sadiya
Abdu Rano, who played Rose—with the Holly wood blockbuster in front
of the camera as well.
Associating himself and his debut so closely with the quintessential
Holly wood film of the era must be understood as a self-confident new-
comer’s attempt to make his presence felt on the local video-film scene in
a big-time way and to make a name for himself right from the start. “This
film makes a difference,” declares Ashu-Brown proudly in the “Making
figure 3.1
Advertisement for Masoyiyata/Titanic (2003) from Fim magazine.