Season's Greetings From The Entire IBC Team

Season's Greetings From The Entire IBC Team

"CATFISH Christmas" Starring The Young and the Restless Star Leigh Ann Rose in Cinemas in Nigeria

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"CATFISH Christmas" starring The Young and the Restless star, Leigh-Ann Rose 🌹is pulling crowds of moviegoers to the cinemas in Nigeria and Ghana.

Catfish Christmas

Romance/Comedy ‧ 1h 30m
Release Date: Friday December 16, 2022.
Actors: Angelo Kern, Anthony Riggins, Charlotte Evelyn Williams, Ciarah Amaani, Devin Laster, Ella Joyce, Grover McCants, Leigh-Ann Rose, Tony Todd
Director: Victoria Rowell
Producer: Dara Harper
Genre: Comedy, Coming Soon, Drama, Romance
Release: December 16, 2022
Language: English

SYNOPSIS

A heart-broken young woman returns home for the holidays and feels the family pressure of being single. Her loving and nosy sister hatches a plan to set her up on an online date with a handsome professional athlete. But things take an unexpected turn when he turns out not to be her “prince in shining armor”, and her childhood best friend shows her that true love may be much closer to home.

CATFISH Christmas is the Christmas Movie in Silverbird Cinemas in Nigeria and Ghana

CATFISH Christmas is the only Christmas romantic comedy showing at the Silverbird Cinemas in Nigeria and Ghana.

SHOWTIMES 

Silverbird Cinemas, SEC Abuja

FRI-SUN: 10:25am, 10:25am(VIP), 6:50pm, 6:50pm(VIP)
MON-THUR: 10:25am, 10:25am(VIP), 6:50pm, 6:50pm(VIP)

IBOM TROPICANA ENT. CENTRE, UYO

FRI-SUN: 10:40am, 12:40pm, 2:20pm, 4:50pm, 6:30pm
MON-THUR: 10:40am, 12:40pm, 2:20pm, 4:50pm, 6:30pm

WEST HILLS, GHANA

FRI-SUN: 10:00AM, 2:00PM
MON-THUR: 10:00AM, 2:00PM

ACCRA MALL, GHANA

SAT: 10:00AM, 12:00PM, 2:10PM
SUN: 10:00AM, 2:00PM
MON-TUE: 4:00PM
WED: 1:00PM
THUR: 4:00PM, 6:30PM

Catfish Christmas

Romance/Comedy ‧ 1h 30m

Release Date: Friday December 16, 2022.

Actors: Angelo Kern, Anthony Riggins, Charlotte Evelyn Williams, Ciarah Amaani, Devin Laster, Ella Joyce, Grover McCants, Leigh-Ann Rose, Tony Todd

Director: Victoria Rowell

Genre: Comedy, Coming Soon, Drama, Romance

Release: December 16, 2022

Language: English

SYNOPSIS

A heart-broken young woman returns home for the holidays and feels the family pressure of being single. Her loving and nosy sister hatches a plan to set her up on an online date with a handsome professional athlete. But things take an unexpected turn when he turns out not to be her “prince in shining armor”, and her childhood best friend shows her that true love may be much closer to home.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lYhdF-whG6s

#Christmas
#CatfishChristmas
#Catfish
#love
#lovers
#romantic
#romanticcomedy
#romance
#dating
#hookup
#relationship
#leighannrose
#holidays
#ChristmasSunday
#Hollywood

Hosanna in the Highest! Merry Christmas and Happy New Year 2023!

HALLELUJAH!!!

I wish you and your family Merry Christmas and Happy New Year 2023 with all the thanksgivings to Almighty God for giving us the reason for the season of the annual celebration of His heavenly gift of His only begotten and beloved Son in whom He is well pleased, JESUS Christ, the same yesterday, today and forever.

AMEN!

Be safe!

"CATFISH Christmas" the Romantic Comedy for Christmas

 

This holiday, "CATFISH Christmas" and a few glasses of eggnog are just the perfect pairings for lovers and lovers at heart.

November 23, 2022 | Rating: 7/10 |
Critic Alan Ng

Catfish Christmas
Romance/Comedy ‧ 1h 30m
Release Date: Friday December 16, 2022.
Actors: Angelo Kern, Anthony Riggins, Charlotte Evelyn Williams, Ciarah Amaani, Devin Laster, Ella Joyce, Grover McCants, Leigh-Ann Rose, Tony Todd
Director: Victoria Rowell
Genre: Comedy, Coming Soon, Drama, Romance
Release: December 16, 2022
Language: English

At Blue Pictures Cinemas, City Mall  in Onikan, Lagos Island

Silverbird Cinemas nationwide

Genesis Deluxe Cinemas nationwide

Kada Cinemas in Benin, Edo State

SYNOPSIS

A heart-broken young woman returns home for the holidays and feels the family pressure of being single. Her loving and nosy sister hatches a plan to set her up on an online date with a handsome professional athlete. But things take an unexpected turn when he turns out not to be her “prince in shining armor”, and her childhood best friend shows her that true love may be much closer to home.

#catfish #Christmas #Christmas2022 #love #romance #comedy #drama #lovers #family #girlfriend #boyfriend #dating #holidays #Nigeria #Ghana #Hollywood #entertainment #sex

20 Years Since The New York Times Named "Nollywood" in 2002

20 Years Since The New York Times Named #Nollywood

Norimitsu Onishi was the Chief of The New York Times’s southern Africa bureau, based in Johannesburg when he discovered the phenomenon of the first indie film industry in Africa in 2002 in the hustle and bustle of Lagos city, the heart and soul of the guerilla filmmakers of Nigeria.

How The Times Named ‘Nollywood’ in 2002

"It’s like Hollywood or Bollywood but in Nigeria — Nollywood!I told my editor."

- Norimitsu Onishi.

https://www.nytimes.com/2016/02/11/insider/how-the-times-named-nollywood.html

The name of Nollywood has become the identity of the Nigerian film industry even though the making of the genre started in the 1980s which I have chronicled in my widely read and shared article, 
The Nollywood Phenomenon: From Analog to Digital - SHADOW & ACT
https://shadowandact.com/the-nollywood-phenomenon-from-analog-to-digital-2

The article shows the evolution of Nollywood over the years and how the digital cinema revolution has made a critical impact in the advancement of Nollywood since 2002.

It is now 30 years since the production of the first Nollywood blockbuster, "Living in Bondage" by Chris Obi Rapu in 1992 written and produced by Kenneth Nnebue and Okechukwu Ogunjiofor. And as we say in Lagos, many waters have passed under the Eko Bridge from 1992 to 2022.

Traditional filmmakers of the old school of filmmaking on celluloid still say Nollywood is video and not cinema. But top people in the global film industry said: Every region has unique stories to tell. And we should encourage them to tell their stories first and not be hindered by the technical requirements for professional film production. That the first thing is to supply on demand, because it was the overwhelming quantity of Nollywood home videos in the 1990s that attracted the rest of the world before the improvements in the quality. 

There have been significant improvements in the quality of the movies as Nollywood filmmakers have been adapting to current developments in filmmaking by using the same digital cinema cameras used by their counterparts in Bollywood and Hollywood following international standards in film and TV productions.

The improvement in the quality of the content has attracted the leading International acquisition and distribution companies, major studios and OTT video streaming services from America and Europe. Netflix, Disney and Amazon are now demanding for the best content in Nollywood and well produced movies have been acquired. 

There have been international productions of Nigerian movies featuring top Hollywood actors such as "The Amazing Grace" of 2006 directed by Jeta Amata, written by Jeta Amata and Nick Moran and produced by Jeta Amata and Alicia Arce with top roles by Joke Silva, Nick Moran and Scott Cleverdon; "Black November" directed by Jeta Amata in 2012, starring Hakeem Kae-Kazim, Mickey Rourke, Kim Basinger, Fred Amata, Sarah Wayne Callies, Nse Ikpe Etim, OC Ukeje, Vivica Fox, Anne Heche, Persia White, Akon, Wyclef Jean and Mbong Amata; "30 Days in Atlanta" directed by Robert O' Peters and produced by AY Makun in 2014 starring Starring AY Makun, Ramsey Nouah, Richard Mofe Damijo (RMD),Desmond Elliot, Vivica A. Fox, Lynn Whitfield, Karlie Redd, Majid Michel, Omoni Oboli, Racheal Oniga, Yemi Blaq and Juliet Ibrahim; "A Trip To Jamaica" directed by Robert O' Peters and produced by AY Makun in 2016 starring AY Makun,Funke Akindele, Nse Ikpe Etim, Dan Davies, Eric Roberts and others; "Esohe" directed by Charles Uwagbai and Robert O' Peters in 2018 starring Jimmy Jean Louis, Misty Lockheart, Desmond Elliot, Chris Attoh, Bimbo Manuel, Ufuoma McDermott, Toyin Aimakhu, Jemima Osunde and Monica Omorodion Swaida; "A Soldier's Story 2" of 2020 directed by Frankie Ogar and produced by Martin Gbados, starring  Eric Roberts, John J Vogel Jr, Alex Usifo, Akin Lewis, Segun Arinze, Linda Ejiofor, Somkele Idhalama, Michelle Dede, Daniel K. Daniel, Tope Tedela, Baaj Adebule, Samabasa Nzeribe and others; "Christmas in Miami" of 2021 directed by Robert O'Peters and produced by AY Makun starring Ayo Makun, Osita Iheme, Richard Mofe-Damijo, IK Ogbonna, Kent Morita, Raquel Lamanna, Manoj Chandra, Malcolm Burtchett, Nadya Marie, Tanya Price, Barry Piacente and Catherine Olsen and Adah Obekpa's "The American King" of 2021 starring Enyinna Nwigwe, Nse Ikpe-Etim, Andrew Howard and Nick Moran who has been playing prominent roles in the international productions of Nollywood movies since the 2000s to date. 
"The American King" is currently showing in movie theaters in America and coming up next month in cinemas across Nigeria, Ghana and Liberia from February 25, 2022.

It is importan we document the new developments in Nollywood since 2002 to date for film history and film studies. That is why I working on a documentary film on "Nollywood Rising: The New Generation".

- By Ekenyerengozi Michael Chima,
Publisher/Editor,
NOLLYWOOD MIRROR® Series,
The first book series on Nollywood and the Nigerian film industry published since 2013.

https://www.amazon.com/author/ekenyerengozimichaelchima

Special hardcover editions are available for purchase from Raleigh, North Carolina, USA.

 

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year 2022!

We thank Almighty God for protecting and saving our lives in spite of the frightening challenges of 2021. 

We are more than conquerors and triumpant overcomers and victorious champions through our MESSIAH JESUS Christ, the same yesterday, today and forever.

Romans 8:37- 39-

37 Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.

38 For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come,

39 Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Over 1, 426 Nigerian Movies Produced in 2021 and None Selected for the 94th Annual Academy Awards

Over 1, 426 Nigerian Movies Produced in 2021 and None Selected for the 94th Annual Academy Awards

The Nigerian Official Selection Committee (NOSC) for the Academy of Motion Pictures, Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) said entries submitted by Nigerian filmmakers did not meet the eligibility rules.

 "After a series of deliberations by the Committee members, we regret to announce that there won’t be submission of film to represent the country for the 94th Academy Awards. This is due to the fact that the films received so far for screening failed the eligibility rule test set by the Academy,” said the NOSC.

Once again, Nigerian filmmakers have disappointed Nigeria. From disqualification for failing to meet the eligibility criteria in 2019 to failing to make the short list for the nominations in 2020; Nigerian filmmakers continue lagging behind other African countries in competition for the most coveted awards for the best films in the world with Somalia and six other African countries on the final list of the official submissions for the Best International Feature Film of the 94th annual Academy Awards.

The following is the official final list.

ALBANIA – Two Lions Heading to Venice / Dy Luanë drejt Venecias (Jonid Jorgji)

ALGERIA – Héliopolis / (هليوبوليس) / (Haliyūbūlīs) (Djafar Gacem)

ARGENTINA – The Intruder / El Prófugo (Natalia Meta)

ARMENIA – Should the Wind Drop / Երբ որ քամին հանդարտվի / Si le vent tombe (Nora Martirosyan)

AUSTRALIA – When Pomegranates Howl (Granaz Moussavi)

AUSTRIA – Great Freedom / Große Freiheit (Sebastian Meise)

BANGLADESH – Rehana / রেহানা মরিয়ম নূর / Rehana Maryam Noor (Abdullah Mohammad Saad)

BELGIUM – Playground / Un monde (Laura Wandel)

BOLIVIA – The Great Movement / El Gran Movimiento (Kiro Russo)

BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA – The White Fortress / Tabija (Igor Drljaca)

BRAZIL – Private Desert / Deserto Particular (Aly Muritiba)

BULGARIA – Fear / Страх (Milko Lazarov)

CAMBODIA – White Building / ប៊ូឌីញ ស (Ivaylo Hristov)

CANADA – Drunken Birds / Les oiseaux ivres (Ivan Grbovic)

CHILE – White on White / Blanco en blanco (Theo Court)

COLOMBIA – Memoria (Apichatpong Weerasethakul)

COSTA RICA – Clara Sola (Nathalie Álvarez Mesén)

CROATIA – Tereza37 (Danilo Šerbedžija)

CZECH REPUBLIC – Zátopek (David Ondříček)

DENMARK – Flee / Flugt (Jonas Poher Rasmussen)

ECUADOR – Sumergible (Alfredo León León)

EGYPT – Souad / سعاد (Ayten Amin)

ESTONIA – On the Water / Vee peal (Peeter Simm)

FINLAND – Compartment No. 6 / Hytti nro 6 (Juho Kuosmanen)

FRANCE – Titane (Julia Ducournau)

GEORGIA – Brighton 4th / მეოთხე ბრაიტონი (Levan Koguashvili)

GERMANY – I’m Your Man / Ich bin dein Mensch (Maria Schrader)

GREECE – Digger (Georgis Grigorakis)

HONG KONG – Zero to Hero / 媽媽的神奇小子 (Jimmy Wan)

HUNGARY – Post Mortem (Péter Bergendy)

ICELAND – Lamb / Dýrið (Valdimar Jóhannsson)

INDIA – Pebbles / கூழாங்கல் / Koozhangal (P.S. Vinothraj)

INDONESIA – Yuni (Kamila Andini)

IRAN – A Hero / قهرمان (Asghar Farhadi)

IRELAND – Foscadh (Seán Breathnach)

ISRAEL – Let It Be Morning / ויהי בוקר, ليكن صباحا (Eran Kolirin)

ITALY – The Hand of God / È stata la mano di Dio (Paolo Sorrentino)

JAPAN – Drive My Car /ドライブ・マイ・カー / Doraibu mai kā (Ryusuke Hamaguchi)

KENYA – Mission to Rescue (Gilbert Lukalia)

KOSOVO – Hive / Zgjoi (Blerta Basholli)

KYRGYZSTAN – Shambala / Шамбала (Artykpai Suyundukov)

LATVIA – The Pit / Bedre (Dace Pūce)

LEBANON – Costa Brava, Lebanon / كوستابرافا (Mounia Akl)

LITHUANIA – The Jump / Šuolis (Giedrė Žickytė)

LUXEMBOURG – Io sto bene (Donato Rotunno)

MALAWI – Fatsani: A Tale of Survival (Gift Sukez Sukali)

MALAYSIA – Hail, Driver! / Prebet Sapu (Muzzamer Rahman)

MALTA – Luzzu (Alex Camilleri)

MEXICO – Prayers for the Stolen / Noche de fuego (Tatiana Huezo)

MONTENEGRO – After the Winter / Poslije zime (Ivan Bakrač)

MOROCCO – Casablanca Beats / علّي صوتك (Nabil Ayouch)

NETHERLANDS – Do Not Hesitate (Shariff Korver)

NORTH MACEDONIA – Sisterhood / Сестри (Sestri) (Dina Duma)

NORWAY – The Worst Person in the World / Verdens verste menneske (Joachim Trier)

PALESTINE – The Stranger / الغريب / Al Garib (Ameer Fakher Eldin)

PANAMA – Plaza Catedral (Abner Benaim)

PERU – Powerful Chief / Manco Cápac (Henry Vallejo)

POLAND – Leave No Traces / Żeby nie było śladów (Jan P. Matuszyński)

PORTUGAL – The Metamorphisis of Birds / A Metamorfose dos Pássaros (Catarina Vasconcelos)

ROMANIA – Bad Luck Banging or Loony Porn / Babardeală cu bucluc sau porno balamuc (Radu Jude)

RUSSIA – Unclenching the Fists / Разжимая кулаки / Razzhimaya kulaki (Kira Kovalenko)

SERBIA – Oasis / Оаза (Ivan Ikić)

SINGAPORE – Precious Is The Night / 今宵多珍重 (Wayne Peng)

SLOVAKIA – 107 Mothers / Cenzorka (Péter Kerekes)

SLOVENIA – Sanremo (Miroslav Mandić)

SOMALIA – The Gravedigger’s Wife (Khadar Ayderus Ahmed)

SOUTH KOREA – Escape from Mogadishu / 모가디슈 / Mogadisyu (Ryoo Seung-wan)

SPAIN – The Good Boss / El buen patrón (Fernando León de Aranoa)

SWEDEN – Tigers / Tigrar (Ronnie Sandahl)

SWITZERLAND – Olga (Elie Grappe)

TAIWAN – The Falls / 瀑布 (Chung Mong-hong)

THAILAND – The Medium / ร่างทรง / Rang Song (Banjong Pisanthanakun)

TUNISIA – Golden Butterfly / فرططو الذهب / Papillon d’Or (Abdelhamid Bouchnak)

TURKEY – Commitment Hasan / Bağlılık Hasan (Semih Kaplanoğlu)

UKRAINE – Bad Roads / Погані дороги / Plokhiye dorogi (Nataliia Vorozhbyt)

URUGUAY – The Broken Glass Theory / La teoría de los vidrios rotos (Diego Fernández)

VENEZUELA – The Inner Glow / Un destello interior (Andrés Eduardo Rodríguez, Luis Alejandro Rodríguez)

The most likely Nigerian film that would have been eligible is the historical epic, "Amina" by Izu Ojukwu, but it is in English and not in the Hausa language of the original story.

The fact that the great opportunity to produce "Queen Amina" in the Hausa language was missed by the producers is a big disappointment, because the film directed by Izu Ojukwu would have fulfilled the criteria for the eligibility and most likely make the short list of the nominations for the Best International Feature Film category. But the producers were more interested in fulfilling the eligibility for Netflix than the eligibility for the Academy Awards.

Having a movie on Netflix is now the most coveted thing for majority of Nigerian filmmakers and not the qualifications for the Academy Awards, Cannes Film Festival, Venice Film Festival, Toronto International Film Festival and Berlin Film Festival.

They celebrate making it to Netflix like winning a million dollar lottery.

But Netflix pays more for the movies of South African, American, European, Asian and Arabian filmmakers than Nigerian filmmakers, because they know that there is a surplus of Nigerian movies selling cheap with their lower budgets and lower standards of filmmaking.

The producers of "Amina" were grinning excitedly like children who have been given Christmas presents in November before the Christmas day comes up in December while their fellow African filmmakers were competing and winning highly esteemed awards at the 27th biennial FESPACO in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso and fulfilling the eligibility criteria for the Best International Feature Film category of the 94th annual Academy Awards.

I congratulated the producers of "Amina", to commend their efforts, but majority of the critics said the film on the legendary Warrior,  Queen Amina of Zazzau in northern Nigeria should have been in Hausa language and subtitled in English. Yes. And that means the real historical film on Queen Amina has not been done.

I prefer that the film should feature the best actors in Kannywood, the Hausa language sector of the Nigerian film industry. And it should be a national film project of the Nigerian Film Corporation (NFC) which is part of the statutory functions and should be in the priorities of the Steering Committee for the Reform and Commercialisation of the Corporation.

The 94th annual Academy Awards of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), will honor the best films released since March 1, 2021, and is scheduled to take place at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California on March 27, 2022.

- By EKENYERENGOZI Michael Chima,

Publisher/Editor,

NOLLYWOOD MIRROR®Series 

247 Nigeria (@247nigeria) / Twitter https://mobile.twitter.com/247nigeria

https://www.amazon.com/author/ekenyerengozimichaelchima,

https://angel.co/u/michael-chima-ekenyerengozi 

https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelchimaeyerengozi

Gift Guide for Book Lovers

Gifts Ideas

Still looking for holiday gifts? Look no further—a book is always a perfect gift, and we know just the right ones!

As always, we encourage you to check with your favorite local bookstore how best to support them this holiday season, whether it be curbside pickup, ordering via their website, or on Bookshop.

—The Bookshop team

P.S. If ordering a holiday gift via Bookshop, we strongly encourage you to choose PRIORITY SHIPPING at checkout and no later than next Wednesday, the 16th. Or get them a gift card!

Changing Faces set for the Christmas and New Year Holidays

The much awaited Nigerian film at the cinemas Changing Faces will open to the public at the Silverbird Cinemas and other cinemas in Nigeria and Ghana from December 23, 2011. It is the Silverbird Cinemas Nigerian Movie for the Christmas and New Year holidays. It is the first Nigerian movie on the supernatural experience of the transference of evil spirits through sex. Changing Faces is the first major Nigerian movie to be dubbed in French for commercial distribution in France and francophone countries.

The gripping romantic thriller has an international cast of Nigerian and British stars led by Marc Baylis, Keppy Ekpenyong-Bassey, Alex Lopez, Rachael Young, Ayo Mogaji and Adebowale Adesanya.

Marc Baylis


Keppy Ekpenyong

The young filmmaker Faruk Lasaki is an international award winning director and one of the best graduates of the famous New York Film Academy (NYFA) where his short film Six Feet Below won the best short film prize for graduating students.

See "Not a normal Nigerian movie industry product!" Interview with Faruk Afolabi Lasaki on Changing Faces by Olivier Barlet on http://www.africultures.com/php/index.php?nav=article&no=7694 and http://www.changingfacesmovie.com/interview.htm.

Changing Faces is a 92 minutes metaphysical romantic thriller on the transference of evil spirits through sex as ‘Two unlikely bedfellows share a night of passion’ and their lives were never the same again.

Changing Faces was premiered at the Pavilion les Cinema Du Sud of the 61st Cannes Film Festival, Black Diaspora International Film Festival of New York in 2008, featured in competition at the Panafrican Film and Television Festival of Ouagadougou (FESPACO) in 2009, Cairo International Film Festival in 2009, and a Special Official Selection and opening film of the 2011 Eko International Film Festival in Lagos, Nigeria. And it is the first Nigerian film to be dubbed into French and screened at FESPACO and Ecrans Noirs in 2009. And on the 3rd and 6th of August 2009, Canal France International (CFI) presented it as the first Nigerian feature film on its network and interviewed the director Faruk Lasaki.

Alex Lopez


Rachael Young

SYNOPSIS:
Young reporter, Lola and Architecture whiz kid Dale, are the antithesis of each other; she is fun loving, free spirited and lively while Dale is conservative and a reserved workaholic. However, their paths still manage to cross at an Architectural conference in a beautiful hill top hotel. From the minute the bored Lola sets her eyes on him, she decides she's going to have him, and she goes to all lengths to get him into her bed. Dale doesn't make this easy for her at all as he is not only married but a born again Christian who holds a high premium on fidelity. But Lola is determined and after a lot of scheming and manipulations, she finally gets Dale into her bed on the last night of the conference. The next morning they both return to their normal lives, only to discover that things have changed and they have exchanged personalities. Lola finds herself saddled with scruples and morals... Written by Becky Muikia.

CAST:
Marc Baylis as Dale
Alex Lopez as Franca
Rachael Young as Lola
Keppy Ekpenyong-Bassey as Bade Cole
Adebowale Adesanya as Dale's Androgynous Man Black
Ngozi Elumelu as Kaisha
Victor Eze as Shaman
Emmanuel Fagbure as Lola's Androgynous Man Black
Izebuno as Devil / Androgynous Female Angel
Elizabeth Rainbow as Penny

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