The film industry in Nigeria has a long history going back to 1903 when the first movie was shown in a hall called The Glover Hall in Lagos. What has emerged since then is a fast-growing vibrant film and television market that is now known as Nollywood, which many say is Nigeria’s answer to America’s Hollywood. Previously, the enormous cost of producing movies on film has made it quite difficult for Nigerians to tell their stories. But thanks to video technology, those stories are coming to life, now.
Lagos is the commercial capital of Nigeria. The city is a constant hub of creativity and commercial activity. This vibrant, never sleeping city is also known as Nollywood, the movie capital of Africa’s most populous nation, Nigeria.
All across Africa, the Caribbean, and many parts of Europe and America, Nigerian movies are capturing the minds and imagination of millions with stories that provide a distinct African perspective. An industry analyst Kehinde says, "The stories we do are based on what really happens in our country."
Kingsley Ogoro, is one of Nigeria’s most successful movie producers. His 2004 hit movie, "Osuofia in London," sold more than a half-million copies, while his 2005 release, "Across the Niger," has also received critical acclaim. He explains how one can break into the Nollywood market, "If you have a good idea, and you have the money and the guts, then you go for it. You just have to know and believe in what you are doing, you have to tell yourself, "I want to make a statement, I want to achieve something and even if I don’t succeed, I’ll tell myself that I did my best." That is the very first step to succeed, don’t think about what you are going to profit from it."
Producers and marketers in Nollywood have barely a few weeks to recoup their investment; pirated copies flood the streets just days after a new movie is released. Piracy is a big problem in Nollywood, and the more popular a film is, the more it is pirated. Ironically, as big a problem as piracy is in Nollywood, it has not been able to adequately remove profitability from the industry. The movie makers manage to remain in business, selling between 100,000 to 500,000 copies per movie depending on its popularity. The cost of producing an average movie in Nollywood costs a little over 20,000 U.S. dollars. Video CDs sell for just $2.50, posing quite a challenge for this fast-growing movie industry.
Kingsley Ogoro blames the video clubs who buy just one copy of a movie and mass duplicate them and for further sale or rentals. The video clubs end up actually making the money the producers are supposed to be making.
Adebambo Adewopo is the Director General of the Nigerian Copyrights Council. He believes that Nollywood has the capacity to produce block-buster movies that can compete with movies from any other part of the world, but, piracy, issues of distribution and production are a major hindrance to realizing that capacity.
What millions of Africans find fascinating about Nigerian movies are the real-life situations they portray. Ironically, the very same reality is brewing controversy in the industry; critics say a lot of Nigerian movies fail to deal with serious issues, Instead, they sensationalize witchcraft and ritual murders. Nollywood actor, Basorge Tariah, disagrees with that impression, he says, "I think art is all about imitating life, drama has always been a mirror of society so there must be some iota of truth in what is being shown on TV, or in the story plot."
Whatever the theme, if you have not seen a Nigerian TV Movie yet, chances are you will, sometime soon. That is because Nollywood just keeps getting better and you can either love or hate Nigerian movies but you simply cannot ignore it. Nollywood is not anywhere near the movies that come out of Hollywood, but is more comparable to Bollywood, the Indian film industry during its formative years, which is a giant a step in the right direction for Nigeria and Africa as a whole.
