Nollywood
There is a piece on Nollywood on WorldChanging today, following up on something on Black Looks' site. Its refreshing to hear some critical voices. For all that Nollywood is touted as the third biggest film industry in the world, I've always maintained that on present form, Nollywood does more harm than good. For one, it perpetuates the kind of pre-modern medieval superstitious juju claptrap that swirls around in many people's heads. Dodgy aviation industry plus 419 emails plus Nollywood equals BAD reputation.
But the problem of Nollywood is not one of a lack of creativity or technical know-how; it is rather than it is currently run on the wrong business model. The for-video market distribution system means that the budget often dictates that the film is made in four or five days. With the new multiplex cinemas opening up this year and next, and the classification board enforcing a degree of local content, AND the merged banks looking to offer returns on shareholder investment, the time is ripe for much bigger budget films.
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2 comments:
There's a new movie that premiered in the U.S. last month- The Widow. It is a real breath of fresh air as it talks about social issues (the problems faced by widows in Nigeria). It is also probably the first nigerian movie I have seen where someone who bucks the trend or rejects the status quo (the widow in this case) is rewarded in the end!!! The Director's name is Kingsley something and Stella Damascus is the lead actor.
With this new movie, and hopefully more stuff by this guy, we may see more films which incorporate strands of social critique and promote dialogue in Nigeria, yet are entertaining at the same time, and maybe even feature in international film festivals. Hopefully we'll eventually have our own Monsoon Wedding or Lagaan.
Hey Jeremy, thats a good info about new movie theatre opening. Lets hope Nollywood producer will finally take the advantage and take their to new level
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