The making of the second largest movie industry in the world
How it started
Constant power cuts, traffic jams, humidity and heat, nonetheless the Nollywood film industry is booming. Based in Lagos, it is a gross mass of tens of thousands of movies that are made in Nigeria. Remarkably produced using (at the beginning) a single video camera, sometimes in harsh weather conditions, which inspired the New York Times Journalist Norimitsu Onishi, in 2002 to call it ‘nothing wood’ (Nollywood). The low budgeted movies meant that actors had no time for rehearsing and repetition. One can describe Nollywood as an unlicensed Pilot flying with a plane that never crashes but unanimously acknowledged today.
Why is Nollywood unique?
Nigerian movies are mainly known to theme about love, power, money, religion, betrayal and conflict. These stories resonate with the public because they reflect what goes on in the people’s daily lives. The films are often shot in offices and houses and are produced within a few days. Today an average of 1000 movies are produced weekly, which puts Nollywood second behind Bollywood (India) and ahead of Hollywood (USA).
This is a remarkable feat because not only are they ahead of Hollywood but they produce these movies on a budget between $8,000-13,000 compared to Hollywood’s $6.7 million budget.
Film production in Nigeria
Nigeria’s economy has been booming thanks in part to the growth of the film industry. The movies are positively infectious with many people now speaking with a Nigerian accent. Nigerians have succeeded through Nollywood, to export who they are, their culture, and their lifestyle. As of 2016, the industry was worth US $5.1 billion making 5% of Nigeria’s GDP.
Today Nollywood films are available through Netflix, Amazon and Irokotv. Not only does it feature prominently in African film festivals, it has its own annual festival every summer in Paris called “Nollywood week”.
Since the 2015 Oscars, the Academy of Motion Pictures and Science has approved Nollywood for the selection of Foreign Language Film. This is incredible considering that the first movies were made using a single camera.
Nollywood as a whole has already reached a new plateau of visibility, accessibility and quality, making it likely that we will see a lot more great cinema coming from Nigeria in the future.
Sources
Adewope, A. (2005, Dec.). Nigerian film industry grows. 25.7, Article 1. Retrieved January 24, 2005, from http://find.galegroup.com/itx/infomark.do/$contentSet
African Movie Channel (2006). Retrieved on July 7, 2006 from http:/www.afrol.com/articles/19229
Bormann, E. (1972). Fantasy and rhetorical vision: The rhetorical criticism of social reality. Quarterly Journal of Speech, 58,396-407.
Bormann, E. (1982a) “Colloquy: Fantasy and rhetorical vision: Ten years later.” Quarterly Journal of speech, 68,288-305.
Bormann, E. (1982b). A fantasy theme analysis of the television coverage of the hostage release and the Reagan inaugural. Quarterly Journal of Speech, 68, 133-145.
Author: Stan McWest
Hi readers, I am Stan Teyingo, McWest. I was born in Togo/Lome, grew up in Kenya/ Nairobi where i spent over 18 years before moving to the U.S for higher education and work. I’m extremely passionate about the African culture. Having traveled to over 15 countries in Africa, I’m proud to say that I have experienced different values and cultures that I now use in my everyday life skills. Today I’m am extremely grateful to be given the opportunity to write positive articles on Africa, so guys have a scroll
