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The cinema of Nigeria is a developing industry that has become increasingly productive in recent years. Although Nigerian films have been produced since the 1960s, the rise of digital cinema has resulted in a growing video film industry. The Nigerian video feature film industry is sometimes colloquially known as Nollywood. The term is of uncertain date and origin, but is derived from Hollywood in the same manner as Bollywood. According to Hala Gorani and Jeff Koinange formerly of CNN, Nigeria has a multi-billion dollar movie industry, churning out some 200 "home videos" every month to become the third largest in the world after the United States and India [1]. Many foreign and local critics have criticized Nollywood for its trite plots, poor dialogue, terrible sound, and poor production values. Some worry that the prevalence of witchcraft and violence in the movies may encourage negative stereotypes about Africans. In just 13 years, Nollywood has grown from nothing into an industry that employs thousands of people. Image File history File links Question_book-3. ... The term African cinema usually refers to the film production in countries in Sub-Saharan Africa following formal independence, which for many countries happened in the 1960s. ... This article does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... The success of Imarat Yacoubian (The Yacoubian Building, 2006), starring Adel Emam, Youssra, and Nour El-Sherif, is a sign of the continuing vigor of the Egyptian film industry. ... Morocco knew cinema since 1897 through the filming of Le chevalier Marocain (The Moroccan knight) by Louis Lumière. ... Chopper scene from the Movie Rajo. ... Cinema of South Africa refers to the films and film industry of the nation of South Africa. ... The 1960s decade refers to the years from 1960 to 1969. ... This article is about digital presentation. ... ... Bollywood (Hindi: , Urdu: ) is the informal name given to the popular Mumbai-based Hindi-language film industry in India. ... The Cable News Network, commonly known as CNN, is a major cable television network founded in 1980 by Ted Turner. ... “Witch” redirects here. ...

History

The first Nigerian films were made by filmmakers such as Ola Balogun and Hubert Ogunde in the 1960s, but they were frustrated by the high cost of film production. However, television broadcasting in Nigeria began in the 1960s and received much government support in its early years. By the mid-1980s every state had its own broadcasting station. Law limited foreign television content so producers in Lagos began televising local popular theater productions. Many of these were circulated on video as well, and a small scale informal video movie trade developed. Nigerian film is thus a video movie industry; Nigerians call them 'home videos'. There is some debate concerning what caused this small local market in videos to explode into a booming industry that has pushed foreign media off the shelves in much of Africa and is now marketed all over the world. Use of English rather than local languages served to expand the market. Aggressive marketing using posters, trailers, and television advertising also played a role in Nollywood's success. Many point to the 1992 release of Living in Bondage, a film about a businessman whose dealings with a money cult result in the death of his wife, as the industry's first blockbuster. Since then, thousands of movies have been released. One of the first Nigerian movie to reach international fame was the 2003 release Osuofia In London, starring Nkem Owoh, the famous Nigerian comedic actor. Modern Nigerian cinema’s most prolific auteur is Chico Ejiro, who directed over 80 films in a 5-year period and brags that he can complete production on a movie in as little as three days. Ejiro’s brother Zeb is the best-known director of these videos outside of the country. Chief Hubert Ogunde (1916 - 1990) is a Nigerian playwright, actor, theatre manager, and musician who founded the Ogunde Concert Party in (1945), the first professional theatrical company in Nigeria. ... The 1960s decade refers to the years from 1960 to 1969. ... Nigeria is currently divided into 36 states and one federal capital territory. ... Year 1992 (MCMXCII) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display full 1992 Gregorian calendar). ... Nkem Owoh is a Nigerian comedian and movie actor. ... The term auteur (French for author) is used to describe film directors (or, more rarely, producers or writers) who are considered to have a distinctive, recognizable vision, because they (a) repeatedly return to the same subject matter, (b) habitually address a particular psychological or moral theme, (c) employ a recurring... Chico Ejiro (born Chico Maziakpono in Isoko, Delta, Nigeria) is a Nigerian movie auteur. ...

The first Nollywood films were produced with traditional analog video, such as Betacam SP, but today all Nollywood movies are produced using digital video technology. Only recently, Time magazine published an article rating the industry as the third-largest after Hollywood and Bollywood. Betacam is a family of half-inch professional videotape formats developed by Sony from 1982 onwards. ... Digital video is a type of video recording system that works by using a digital, rather than analog, of the video signal. ...

Production

Nollywood has one studio, Studio Tinapa in Tinapa, Calabar. Most movies, however, are not produced in studios in the Hollywood style. Video movies are shot on location all over Nigeria with distinct regional variations between the northern movies (made primarily in the Hausa language), the western Yoruba-language movies, the Igbo movies shot in the southeast,(Benin City) Edo Language shot in Benin city and the popular English-language productions, also shot primarily in the southeast. Many of the big producers have offices in Surulere, Lagos. Shooting films in Nigeria is difficult. Studio Tinapa Studio Tinapa is a movie studio located in the Tinapa Resort, Calabar, Cross River State, Nigeria. ... Hausa is the Chadic language with the largest number of speakers, spoken as a first language by about 24 million people, and as a second language by about 15 million more. ... Yoruba (native name èdè Yorùbá, the Yoruba language) is a dialect continuum of West Africa with over 22 million speakers. ... The Ibo are a group of people living in what is now Nigeria. ... The English language is a West Germanic language that originates in England. ... Surulere is a residential and commercial area located on Lagos mainland in Lagos State of Nigeria. ... For other uses, see Lagos (disambiguation). ...

Nigerian directors adopt new technologies as soon as they become affordable. Bulky videotape cameras gave way to their digital descendents, which are now being replaced by HD cameras. Editing, music, and other post-production work is done with common computer-based systems.

Distribution

The primary distribution centers are Idumota Market on Lagos Island, and Onitsha in Anambra State. Currently, Nigerian films outsell Hollywood films in Nigeria and many other African countries. Some 300 producers churn out movies at an astonishing rate—somewhere between 1,000 and 2,000 a year. The films go straight to DVD and VCD discs. Thirty new titles are delivered to Nigerian shops and market stalls every week, where an average film sells 50,000 copies. A hit may sell several hundred thousand. Discs sell for two dollars each, making them affordable for most Nigerians and providing astounding returns for the producers. Lagos Island is the principal island of the city of Lagos in Nigeria. ... Onitsha (pop 7 million 2005 est. ... Anambra is a state in south-eastern Nigeria. ...

Nigerian video movies are available in even the most remote areas of the continent. The last few years have seen the growing popularity of Nollywood films among African diaspora in both Europe and North America.

The British board said the Nigeria movies imported into the UK are illegal because they didn't go through the British Censor Board, so all stores selling African movies are doing this illegally can be charged under the British law.

Nigerian films are currently receiving wider distribution as Nigerian producers and directors are attending more internationally acclaimed film festivals.

Themes

Many Nollywood movies have themes that deal with the moral dilemmas facing modern Africans. Some movies promote the Christian or Islamic faiths, and some movies are overtly evangelical. Others, however, address questions of religious diversity, such as the popular film Not Without My Daughter, about a Muslim man and a Christian woman who want to marry but go through many obstacles. For other uses, see Christian (disambiguation). ... Islam (Arabic: ; ( ▶ (help· info)), the submission to God) is a monotheistic faith, one of the Abrahamic religions and the worlds second-largest religion. ...

In the documentary film This Is Nollywood by Franco Sacchi and Robert Caputo, Nollywood filmmakers are shown to be conscious of the responsibility they have toward their society. Acclaimed director Bond Emeruwa says they feel an obligation to “put a message in there.” Many of Nollywood films deal with AIDS, corruption, women’s rights, and other topics of concern to ordinary Africans. Nollywood directors know they have struck a lucrative and long-neglected market — movies that offer audiences characters they can identify with in stories that relate to their everyday lives.^{[citation needed]} This Is Nollywood is a documentary film by Franco Sacchi and Robert Caputo. ...

Portrayal in the Media

Nollywood was profiled in the 2007 documentary Welcome to Nollywood by by director Jamie Meltzer. The film gives an overview of the industry, paying particular attention to directors Izu Ojukwu and Chico Ejiro, and acknowledging both the unusual, rapid and enterprising way that most Nollywood films are created as well as its significance and contribution to the greater society.^[1] Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... Documentary film is a broad category of visual expression that is based on the attempt, in one fashion or another, to document reality. ... Welcome to Nollywood is a 2007 documentary film, directed by Jamie Meltzer, which premiered at the Full Frame Documentary Film Festival,[1] and also played at the Avignon Film Festival[2] and the Melbourne International Film Festival in the summer of 2007. ... now. ... Chico Ejiro (born Chico Maziakpono in Isoko, Delta, Nigeria) is a Nigerian movie auteur. ...

Nigerian films

Main article: List of Nigerian films

Cinema of Nigeria This is an A-Z list of films produced in Nigeria: A Price To Pay African Queen African Queen 2 After Dawn After Dawn 2 American Visa American Visa 2 Angel of Darkness Angel of Darkness 2 Arrows Arrows 2 Ass on Fire Ass on Fire 2...

Notable Nollywood actors

Hassanat Taiwo Akinwande, stage name Wunmi, is a well-known[1] Nigerian film and television actress. ... A former beauty competition winner (Ms Unilag), Regina is a successful Nollywood Actress. ... Elizabeth Benson (1966-) is a Nollywood Actress whose rise started from the soap opera Fortunes in 1993. ... Chioma Chukwuka (b. ... Stella Damasus-Aboderin is a Nigerian actress. ... Richard Mofe Damijo, known as RMD is a Nollywood actor. ... Ini Edo is one of the most talented and sought after actresses in Nollywood. ... Omotola Jalade Ekeinde is a Nollywood actress. ... Oby Kechere is a Nigerian actress and film director. ... Jide Kosọkọ is a Nigerian actor. ... Genevieve Nnaji is a Nollywood actress and singer. ... Ramsey Tokunbo Nouah Jr, known professionally as Ramsey Noah (born on 16 July 1973 in Edo, Nigeria) is a popular Nollywood actor. ... Zachee Ama Orji, Nigerian actor, director, producer and filmmaker was born in Libreville, Gabon in the 1960s. ... Nkem Owoh is a Nigerian comedian and movie actor. ...

External links

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• The site of documentary Welcome to Nollywood
• MercatorNet: Nollywood's challenge to Hollywood
• Daniel Künzler, The Nigerian video industry as an example of import substitution
• New Nigerian Cinema: An Interview with Akin Adesokan, January, 2006
• The Nollywood Project
• Nollywood, What's in a Name?, The Guardian
• Juju and Justice at the Movies: Vigilantes in Nigerian Popular Videos, African Studies Review
• Africa Update: Special Issue on the Nigerian Film Industry
• Nigerian home video: a worthwhile project?
• Africans, Camera, Action: Nollywood Catches World's Eye
• Nollywood, in a Starring Role, Washington Post
• Nigerian film lights Zambia's screens, BBC
• Nollywood becomes the third-biggest movie industry
• African Media Program