An Empire of Their Own: How the Jews Invented Hollywood

Winner of the Los Angeles Times Book Award for history, this "wonderful history of the golden age of the movie moguls" (Chicago Tribune ) is a provocative, original, and richly entertaining group biography of the Jewish immigrants who were the moving forces behind the creation of America's motion picture industry.

Read it on Amazon Books

An Empire of Their Own: How the Jews Invented Hollywood

The Global Target Audience For Nollywood Movies and Series in Igbo and other African Content

The Global Target Audience For Nollywood Movies and Series in Igbo and other African Content in International Film Acquisition and Distribution

Using Culture and Strategy:

My market survey for a new Nigerian Igbo movie, "Infant at Heart" directed by Aguyi Ikeobi ND, a graduate of the London Film School and produced by Vera Kanu, a seasoned producer in Nollywood with famous Nollywood actor, Nkem Owoh and one of the most beautiful Nollywood divas, Monalisa Chinda in the leading roles has an estimated target audience of more than 100, 000 Igbos who will like to watch Igbo movies and can afford to pay for the tickets at the cinemas in Nigeria. 

There are also thousands of Igbos in Ghana, Cameroon and Gabon who are fans of Nkem Owoh who will be excited to watch it.

The Cultural Web 

There are more than 45 million Igbos in Africa and the Diaspora.
Nollywood movies still command hundreds and thousands of fans in West Africa and Central Africa.
The first Nollywood videos were actually videos of the popular Igbo TV series, "Masquerade" on the Nigeria Television Authority (NTA) in the 1980s recorded on VHS tapes and watched on TV in Cameroon and Gabon.

See also Nigerian Home Videos - Festival des 3 Continents
https://www.3continents.com/en/programme/2003/home-videos-nigerianes/

The significance of cultural web is important for marketing strategy in the distribution of products and services, especially movies and TV series. 
Audiences first and foremost prefer content they can identify with and then are anxious and curious about content of other cultures.

Majority of the over 11 million viewers of "The Black Book", the 2023 Nollywood crime thriller film by Editi Effiong on Netflix were South Koreans who were anxious and curious to know what is "The Black Book".

The largest market for African movies and series are the Afro-Latinos: comprising some 150 million in the Americas.
https://www.everycrsreport.com/reports/RL32713.html#:~:text=Afro%2DLatinos%20comprise%20some%20150,marginalized%20groups%20in%20the%20region.

Unknown to Canal Plus and other multinational entertainment providers, FRANCE 24 Español has already unlocked the market, but yet to provide the African movies and series they (Afro-Latinos) will be excited to see.

The Igbo were dispersed to colonies such as Jamaica, Cuba, Saint-Domingue, Barbados, Colonial America, Belize and Trinidad and Tobago, among others.
The Igbo language is still spoken in Cuba, along with the Efik language, but in a creolized version. In ceremonies of the Abakuá culture, you can see traces of the Igbo Culture.
These are populations waiting for  Igbo movies and series and other African content.

- By Ekenyerengozi Michael Chima,

Publisher/Editor,

NOLLYWOOD MIRROR® Series,

The first book series on Nollywood and the Nigerian film industry.

The books have been printed in Raleigh, North Carolina, United States of America and distributed by Amazon, Barnes and Noble and other booksellers.

They are the highest priced book series by an African author and publisher. 

Don't View Nollywood with the Rose-Tinted Glasses of Hollywood

 

Don't View Nollywood with the Rose-Tinted Glasses of Hollywood

I have previewed a new Nigerian drama on the psychological consequences of rape in the life of a teenage girl sexually violated by a Roman Catholic priest at a convent in south- eastern Nigeria.
If you replace the leading roles with the famous Hollywood icons, Nicole Kidman and John Travolta and have the location in America, the crime thriller will be nominated in the next Oscars for Best Picture, Best Directing, Best Original Screenplay and Best Actress in a leading role, because of the accomplishments of the cast and crew in the production of the movie. But many Nigerian and other African movies have been viewed with the rose-tinted glasses of the American film industry, popularly called, Hollywood and in most cases, viewed by White Americans who did not understand the nuances of the peculiarities of Black Africans in dialogues and mannerisms.

Are there racial biases in international film acquisition and distribution with the superiority complex of white curators who esteem white filmmakers highly in comparison to black African filmmakers without comprehensive analysis of the content and context of subject and without the broad-minded considerations for diversity and inclusion in the existential dramas of life on earth?
"Our films are good enough for you, but your movies are not good enough for us. "
Is Hollywood the global standard for the best storytelling on motion picture?
The Economist published a selection called, "The Best Films So Far in 2024" without any consideration for the best movies so far in Bollywood and Nollywood on Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Showmax and other streaming platforms, cable TV networks and cinemas.

I have seen many crappy Hollywood movies repeatedly shown on M-NET Movies Channels without any consideration for the viewers who paid for the subscriptions.

Netflix and Amazon Prime Video have paid over 200 percent more for the acquisitions of American and Korean films than what they paid for African films.
Showmax of the MultiChoice Group pays more for South African productions than Nigerian productions.
Are these differences in the valuations based on the quality of the movies or racial bias against black African filmmakers by Western standards? But the French are an exception to the stereotypical views of Africa by Hollywood, because the French have a better understanding of African Cinema than Hollywood and the British which can be seen in their broad-minded Official Selections of the annual Cannes Film Festival where several African filmmakers have won coveted awards, including the most coveted, the Palme d'Or.

Can a white curator of films understand the interpretations of the soundtracks of the Talking Drum in different scenarios of the scenes in the Yoruba political drama of "Saworoide", produced and directed by Tunde Kelani in 1999? 

Can the curator understand the soundtracks of the great Ikoro drum of Igbo people in a film adaptation of Chinua Achebe's all time classic novel, "Things Fall Apart"?

What of the different lighting techniques in Nollywood and Hollywood?

Do you know that the sunlight is brighter in Africa than in America?

The sunlight is the same everywhere on earth?

The colour of the moonlight is more romantic on Bonny Island in the Niger Delta than on Long Island in southeastern New York State.

There are different hues and shades of the colours of the rainbow and the narratives of the movies should be viewed in the different perspectives of the origins of the filmmakers to see the big picture of the different stories of life on motion picture.

"The Black Book", the 2023 Nigerian crime thriller of Editi Effiong, starring Richard Mofe-Damijo, Sam Dede, Shaffy Bello, Femi Branch, Alex Usifo, Ade Laoye and Ireti Doyle, released to Netflix on September 22 was the number one on the global rankings and "Òlòtūré", the 2019 Nigerian crime drama on human trafficking by Kenneth Gyang starring Sharon Ooja, Beverly Osu, Ada Ameh and Blossom Chukwujekwu was on the top rankings in several countries and were better than several American and Korean films in accomplishments in filmmaking, but Netflix paid less for the acquisition.

I have always insisted that a great movie is a great movie no matter the location or race of the filmmaker. The quality of the content should determine the price for the acquisition and not the location or race of the producer.

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

Six Successful Women in Nollywood I Have Written About- Ekenyerengozi Michael Chima

Adaugo of Nollywood, Mo Abudu.

Founder/CEO of EbonyLife Entertainment Group.

Six Successful Women in Nollywood I Have Written About- Ekenyerengozi Michael Chima 

Adaora of Nollywood, Mrs. Stephanie Linus.

I have written about several notable personalities in Nigeria; especially those in Nollywood and Kannywood of the Nigerian film industry published on my popular Nigerians Report Online, TALK OF THE TOWN By Orikinla and Kisses & Roses and on the Black Filmmaker of the UK, Face2Face, Shadow and ACT on Indiewire and Yahoo Voices of America, Nigeria Films, Modern Ghana and other publications. 

Queen of Islamic TV in Nigeria, Hajia Shareefah Abiola-Andu, Founder/CEO of Arabel Nigeria, Arabel Films and Aleef TV.

Adaeze of Nigerian Cinemas, Mrs. Joy Odiete, Founder/CEO of Blue Pictures Entertainment Group.

Eze Nwayi of Nollywood, Ms. Chioma Ude, Founder and Executive Director of Africa International Film Festival (AFRIFF).

I have been writing about six successful leading ladies in the Nigerian film industry, including Mrs. Stephanie Linus, who has been included in the 34 Beauty Queens of Nollywood and Kannywood in the second edition of the NOLLYWOOD MIRROR® Series printed in Raleigh, North Carolina, United States of America and circulated by Amazon, Barnes and Noble and other booksellers.

I have 100% success record of everyone of the six women of substance I have promoted becoming more celebrated and elevated in success and my best wishes for them coming to pass.

1. Mo Abudu since 2012

2. Chioma Ude since 2010

3. Mrs. Stephanie Linus since 2009

4. Linda Ikeji since 2005

5. Mrs. Joy Odiete since 2015

6. Hajia Shareefah Abiola Andu since 2019

The proofs are available online

Just put by Ekenyerengozi Michael Chima after their names and see all my reports on them.

To Almighty God be all the glory.

- By Ekenyerengozi Michael Chima,

The Publisher/Editor,

NOLLYWOOD MIRROR®  Series

The first book series on Nollywood and the Nigerian film industry

One Village, One Cinema To Generate N29 Billion Annually To Boost Creative Economy of Nigeria

 

The One Village, One Cinema initiative of the International Digital Post Network Limited, an  affiliate partner of Cinewav of Singapore will generate an estimated annual revenue of N29 billion for both the Christian Cinema in Nigeria (CCN) programme and SMEs in the entertainment Industry in all the 774 local government areas in Nigeria, famous for the phenomenal Nollywood, the largest indie film industry in Africa. 

With only an investment of N10, 000, 000 (ten million naira) that is currently less than US$10, 000 (ten thousand dollars) you can have a low budget cinema that can be installed within an hour indoors or outdoors and it can generate an average monthly revenue of N200, 000 - N400, 000 from the sales of the tickets from one location in a village in Africa's most populous nation with an estimated population of more than 200 million people.

The Christian Cinema in Nigeria (CCN) alone has an estimated target audience of 21 million Christians.

The N10 million investment includes the cinema equipment and all expenses paid one week training course at Cinewav in Singapore for one person who will be the operator of the cinema and can train others to become operators in Nigeria.

The cinema equipment can be taken from one location to another location from village to village. Tickets will be sold from N500 per person which is about one quarter of the amount paid for a ticket at the standard cinemas located in the upscale shopping malls in towns and cities. The urban cinemas are not enough for the increasing population of moviegoers with regular disposable incomes. There are less than 400 screens in the country in few cities with most of them in Lagos, the commercial capital of Africa's largest economy. 

The increasing demands for more cinemas compelled the International Digital Post Network Limited to start the One Village One Cinema initiative for both entertainment and public enlightenment and to boost the entertainment industry and accelerate the creative economy of Nigeria.

The initiative will be launched in 2024.

The cinemas will show approved movies, documentary films, series, sports and adverts. 

Public announcements for government programmes and other events are allowed.

The charges for public announcements and adverts are negotiable from N10, 000 - N100, 000 per location.

Revenues from public announcements and adverts are estimated to be N500, 000 - N1, 000, 000 monthly.

During outdoor screenings, only those who paid for tickets can hear the audio with the Cinewav  audio app.

International Digital Post Network Limited plans for more than 12, 000 cinemas in Nigeria, including  solar powered Cinewav Cineplex.

Potential investors, partners and  sponsors are the local, state and federal governments; private sector of local and foreign companies and organizations; especially telecoms, banks, fintechs and other businesses in Nigeria.

"What is the future of big screen?

"Most of the world is without a cinema hall. That will all change! One village, one cinema. Why not?"
~Anthony Tate, Virgina, U.S.A.

We would be happier to use cinemas to break social class barriers and build bridges of unity among communities for the common benefit of all.

Cinema has never been an elitist medium of communication.
Cinema is a tool for public entertainment and enlightenment and has been very effective and imperative in mass literacy campaigns in developed and developing countries for decades. Cinemas made Hollywood the film capital of the world buoyed by over 38,605 indoor screens in 5,561 sites and 628 Drive-In screens in 381 sites in the US, the largest in the world".

Screen Naija One Village, One Cinema Project: The Revival of Outdoor Cinema in Nigeria | Screen Outdoor Open Air Cinema

https://screennaija.wordpress.com/2013/12/04/screen-naija-one-village-one-cinema-project-the-revival-of-outdoor-cinema-in-nigeria/

NOLLYWOOD FILM CITY is Coming Soon

The location for the buildings of the NOLLYWOOD FILM CITY has been found in Akwa Ibom State in the south-south region of Nigeria. The land to be called Dakkada is available for my proposed development of the film city on the model of 21st century smart city with IoT and the following:

 Nollywood Plaza with Cineplex.

 Nollywood Centre with AI film and TV studio, Dolby Atmos and Vision Studio and Drylab Set Reports. 

A film commission Nollywood Estate of 500 apartments.

Artificial lake

Helipad

Regular power and water supply. The pictures are sample of the de,s,velopment plan for the layout and the types of buildings of our NOLLYWOOD CITY.

The Cinematographer

In the beginning The Cinematographer came to us in the cloak of black and white and we gazed spellbound in awe of the cinematic universe.

The Cinematographer 

- by  Ekenyerengozi Michael Chima, an NFT art to be up for exhibition and auction on Opensea and Artprice before Christmas.

This is the final part of The Cinematographer in total abstract of the same image.

The Cinematographer is going to attract many bidders when it is up for exhibition and auction. Because, it really an awesome of genius. A unique masterpiece of artwork in celebration of the cinematographer that has never been done before in such magnificence in the history of Fine Arts and NFTs. 

Please, if you have seen a better artwork celebrating the cinematographer before this one, let me know.

To me, it is priceless like my "Signature of God" on. the Algorand blockchain.

This is a special artwork in honour of cinematographers in film and TV productions. 

They are the painters on whose painters on whose palette the art of storytelling in motion picture is made. 

You cannot capture any image in motion picture without a cinematographer. 

Imagine a painting without colours.

Imagine a cart moving without a donkey or horse.

Imagine car without an engine.

Imagine a life without a soul.

Then imagine a film or TV production without the  cinematographer.

There is no creation without the creator. 

The Cinematographer is the painter of the painting on the canvas.

A director without a cinematographer is like driver driving a car without engine.

- By EKENYERENGOZI Michael Chima.

© All rights reserved. No copying, duplication and reproduction of any part of this content in any format of media without the authorization and permission of Ekenyerengozi Michael Chima and International Digital Post Network Limited.

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#algorand

ZENITH International Film Festival's Merchandise for Fashion and Lifestyle

Film festivals are established for the promotion of the film industry which includes film tourism and movie merchandise and so much more in show business.

I have written on the huge film tourism and movie merchandise industry which have been very successful from Hollywood to Bollywood generating billions of dollars. And I have completed my feasibility studies for film tourism and movie merchandise for Ñollywood and the Nigerian film industry. The articles were published on Indiewire and Shadow and ACT since 2016. The articles have also been published on my Nigerians Report Online with the feature on the best film locations in Nigeria having over 5, 000 pageviews so far.

ZENITH International Film Festival will generate revenues from international film acquisition and distribution; film tourism, movie merchandise and from the hotels and guest houses for the participants and tourists.

The following selections of the merchandise which I have designed will create jobs and boost the creative economy of Nigeria.

My duly incorporated International Digital Post Network Limited, one of the most valuable digital media companies in Nigeria has international partnerships with Vuulr and Cinewav of Singapore for global film acquisition and distribution and for cinemas. And has international news media partnerships with PR Newswire, APO Group and a pending partnership with one of the biggest and largest broadcasting companies in the world which will be of immense benefit to our ZENITH International Film Festival in the world.

 

The merchandise of the ZENITH International Film Festival will be distributed locally by distributors in Nigeria and globally by Amazon.

The first designs of the T-shirts are already available on Instagram and Selar made to order on premium fabrics with or without the name of ZENITH International Film Festival with the beautiful logo. The logo is the symbol of the brand of ZENITH International Film Festival.

Only the best is good enough for us.

- By Ekenyerengozi Michael Chima,

The CEO,

International Digital Post Network Limited,

The Founder/President,

ZENITH International Film Festival