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.

Oju Orun : Eye of Heaven

Oju Ọrun

Eye of Heaven

By Ekenyerengozi MichaeI Chima

Oju Ọrun is the title of my Yoruba epic film project I have in my creative projects file.

Ǹjẹ́ ohun kan wà lórí ilẹ̀ ayé tí ojú ọ̀run kò lè rí?

Is there anything on Earth that the eye of heaven cannot see?

 

The artwork on art canvas, digital art and NFT are available for private and public art collection and exhibition.

Artwork:

By Ekenyerengozi MichaeI Chima

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

 Title and text:

By Ekenyerengozi MichaeI Chima

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

How Many NOLLYWOOD Movies Have Been Shot on Canon?

How Many NOLLYWOOD Movies Have Been Shot on Canon?

How many Nollywood movies have been shot on Canon?

This is a very important question both for Nollywood and Canon.

Knowing how many people are using your products is critical to the growth of your company in Research and Development (R&D); Marketing and Sales Analysis of the products and services.

Nollywood is the largest film industry in Africa in the productions of movies and should be the largest market for cameras for both cinematography and photography. 

The Nigerian Film Corporation (NFC), Directors Guild of Nigeria (DGN) , Producers Guild of Nigeria (PGN) and Cinematographers Guild of Nigeria (CGN) or Association of Cinematographers in Nigeria (ACN) should know and have the data on the cameras and accessories used for film and TV productions in the Nigerian film industry.

These facts are included in the indices for the development and growth of the film industry.

What are models and specifications of the Canon cameras used for film and TV productions in the Nigerian film industry?

When did Canon cameras become the most popular cameras in the Nigerian film industry?

Does Canon know the film and TV productions shot with Canon cameras?

The most popular and the best Canon cameras used in Nollywood and Kannywood?

The best movies, documentaries and music videos shot on Canon?

The award winning film and TV productions shot with Canon cameras?

By the way, the third part of my on going documentary film, "Lagos in Motion" was shot on Canon.

- Ekenyerengozi Michael Chima,
Publisher/ Editor,
NOLLYWOOD MIRROR® Series,
Executive Director, Screen Naija YouTube Channel.

In Her Eyes Through Her Eyes Filmmaking Workshop For Women in Nigeria

For 100 women who want to become outstanding filmmakers in the Nigerian film industry.

Contact by WhatsApp:

Tel: +234 706 637 9246

Why Netflix is the First Choice of Filmmakers in Nigeria

Why Netflix is the First Choice of Filmmakers in Nigeria

At a meeting with one of the biggest film companies in Africa in February, they told me that Netflix is the first choice of Nigerian Filmmakers, because Netflix pays more for their content than Amazon Prime Video and other major competitors in the  streaming industry.

To be on Netflix is the dream of every Nigerian filmmaker for more money, more prestige and more privilege in the global film industry.

I was told that the filmmakers are willing to wait for even a year to be acquired by Netflix instead of being acquired by other streaming platforms within six months.

Netflix has over 230 million subscribers worldwide, including 74.3 million in the United States and Canada; 76.7 million in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, 41.7 million in Latin America and 38 million in the Asia-Pacific region.

Filmmakers in Nigeria have improved the quality of their film and TV productions to meet the international criteria for Netflix, Amazon Prime Video and other leading foreign streaming services.

Nigeria produces over 1, 000 movies annually, but only few of them are acquired by Netflix. 

The Nigerian film industry popularly known as Nollywood has been a sociocultural and economic phenomenon in filmmaking in Africa and according to UNESCO, the  "Nollywood Model' could help unlock 20 million African film jobs.

News in Pictures: Naked Beauty

 News in Pictures: Naked Beauty

News in Pictures 

New Nigeria

is the most popular Nigerian news in pictures blog on Pinterest with an audience of 280, 000 viewers monthly.

www.pinterest.com/nigeriansreport

"Naked Beauty" is the first Nigerian screenplay to be published and sold as a book. 

The recce for the film production was completed on Bonny Island, Rivers State in 2008, but production has been delayed by the political violence in the Niger Delta. The screenplay is based on crude oil thieves and militancy before the Amnesty for Niger Delta militants, co-written by Ekenyerengozi Michael Chima, aka "Orikinla Osinachi" and Dr. Chika Christian Onu, one of the founding fathers of Nollywood after four years research on Bonny Island, in Rivers State.

Why Bollywood and Nollywood Have Not Won the Oscar for the Best International Feature Film

Why #Bollywood and #Nollywood Have Not Won the #Oscar for the Best International Feature Film

#Oscars 
 #academyawards
#movies

In nearly 75 years, the Oscar for best international film has only gone to an African production three times and a Bollywood production has never won. Europe dominates the category. Why?

Bollywood also snubbed by Hollywood

Half of the Asian-winning films are Japanese productions. Despite the size of Bollywood's film industry, India has never won the best international film award.

Another reason is the lack of financial means to promote Indian films to the Academy, says Namrata Joshi, an Indian film critic and author who has served on international film festivals juries in Toronto, Moscow and Cluj.

Even though Nigeria's internationally renowned Nollywood industry produces around 2,500 films a year, it hasn't won a single foreign film Academy Award.

Nollywood productions often do not meet the technical requirements of a cinema film since the focus is on home television. According to Ayorinde, streaming services like Netflix could change the situation significantly. Netflix is raising the bar, he says, by requiring cinematic standards even for films made for home viewing.

Read the report on 

https://amp.dw.com/en/oscars-where-are-the-african-films/a-61187154

Highly recommended: Nigerians Report Online: Why Nollywood Filmmakers Have Failed To Qualify for the Oscars and Cannes

Film, Television Industry Booming in Xiamen

PRESS RELEASE

Film, Television Industry Thrives in Xiamen

Statistics show that in 2020, the operating revenue of Xiamen’s cultural industry totaled 116.36 billion yuan ($18.26 billion), growing by 7.3 percent year on year

Access Multimedia Content

XIAMEN, China, December 29, 2021/ -- The three-day 34th China Film Golden Rooster Awards is being held in Xiamen, East China's Fujian province from Dec 28 to 30, drawing a number of A-list stars and industry insiders. The Golden Rooster Awards, which was launched in 1981 (the Year of the Rooster), is a national film awards event sponsored by the China Federation of Literary and Art Circles and the China Film Association. It has developed into China's most prestigious film awards event and has contributed significantly to the development of China's film industry. As the host city of the Golden Rooster Awards, Xiamen has seen rapid development in the film and TV industry in recent years. Statistics show that in 2020, the operating revenue of Xiamen’s cultural industry totaled 116.36 billion yuan ($18.26 billion), growing by 7.3 percent year on year. Xiamen, a coastal city with enchanting natural scenery and a pleasant climate, has been hailed as "a garden on the ocean,” and it also bears elements of Minnan (southern Fujian province) and Western cultures, both of which help the city win the reputation of "a natural studio" and is favored by many filmmakers and directors. The city’s government has designated the film and TV industry as one of the engines to promote economic growth and has aimed to turn the city into a “film and TV capital” in China. The city’s continuous efforts have proved successful. Official data show that as of the end of November, Xiamen had gathered 2,046 film and TV enterprises, of which 350 were newly established this year. More and more industry leaders are choosing Xiamen as their investment destination due to its healthy business environment for the film and TV industry. Xiamen has become a hotbed for film and TV production such as the hit TV series “Minning Town,” which was released earlier this year. At the same time, the rapid development of the film and TV industry has in turn helped enhance the city’s cultural soft power and urban competitiveness, and the beautiful garden city continues to create perfect harmony between man and nature and has become a calling card for both tourists and investors. Distributed by APO Group on behalf of 34th China Film Golden Rooster Awards.   Contact: Lorraine Yuan Email: lorraine@hehutech.cn Tel: +86139 1113 0781 SOURCE 34th China Film Golden Rooster Awards

CASTING CALL For new film productions in Lagos

CASTING CALL

For new film productions in Lagos.

Preproductions for the part two of two new movies are in progress and this is an open casting call for actors and others who want to act in the movies and want a successful career in Nollywood.

We have been active in Nollywood and the Nigerian film industry since 1996 and now working with top filmmakers such as Leo Uche, Africa's leading action actor, stuntsman and director of  "Spiritual Revelation", the first Nollywood movie on Metempsychosis.

View the trailer on  https://youtu.be/u_dQ1EkGADs

View the new trailer of the first African Avatar film, "The Legend of Gatuso" on

http://totnaija.blogspot.com/2021/08/michaella-rosman-youngest-canadian.html?m=1

"The Legend of Gatuso" is a new movie by Leo Uche completed in 2021.

For invitation to the auditions on September 10, 2021, the Registration Fee is N10, 000 (ten thousand naira).

Registration Fee should be paid to the GTBank current account number 0016426297

Account name of Ekeyerengozi Michael Chima.

Those outside Lagos will have their auditions by Google Meet.

Best regards,

EKENYERENGOZI Michael Chima,

Publisher/Editor, 

NOLLYWOOD MIRROR®Series 

Vuulr Program Partner,

Ambassador of Drylab R&D AS of Norway,

247 Nigeria (@247nigeria) / Twitter

https://mobile.twitter.com/247nigeria

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

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

Tel: +234 706 637 9246

Drylab's Set Report 3 App - Pro Filmmaker Apps

Drylab's Set Report 3 App - Pro Filmmaker Apps

DEVELOPER'S DESCRIPTION

Drylab Set Report 3 complements traditional set and camera reports on paper for professional digital movie and TV drama productions. User-friendly and powerful metadata capturing and management ensure consistency and quality throughout the production process. We’ve built it in collaboration with International Script Supervisors, but it’s also very suitable for other Heads of Departments, including Costume, MakeUp, VFX, Camera etc., where our unique data model can merge all inputs to one database.

Set Report 3 is a replacement for Set Report 2 (already in use on feature films and TV-series worldwide), and adds support for the latest version of our Drylab Creator™ and Viewer™. If you have SR2 already, it will install alongside it, and it can import your old reports as needed.

One of the things we realized when working with experienced Script Supervisors, is how some of the job is still very convenient to do on paper. Therefore, we haven't digitized script lines and other stuff you prefer to keep in a binder, but instead focused on making a compact digital assistant you can use on both your iPad and iPhone.

With Set Report 3, we’ve changed to a subscription model, to ensure continuous improvements, updates and integrations. We have many plans for Set Report 3 now, and we hope you will support our endeavors! We hope you that you’ll love our new app almost as much as we do!

https://www.drylab.io/productions/

Features:

* Logical and automatic numbering of days, shots and takes

* Integrated stopwatch to time takes, mark where the action starts, and connect clips to metadata

* Automatic file naming for RED, Canon, Sony and ARRI cameras (short and long)

* Filters, reel, clip number, file name, T-stop

* GPS positioning

* Take pictures on-set or bring in from iPhoto for reference

* Production data accessible by day, shot and take

* Extensive database of lenses and filters (and add your own)

* Tags library (and add your own)

* Circle takes, add grading notes, colour temperature, ISO speed, audio

* Silverstack integration, for direct, instant reporting

* Intuitive reporting: review, print and share using email, AirDrop or any sharing method offered by iPadOS/iOS

* And maybe your favorite feature: Customize your workspace, and choose exactly the fields you want

Morocco's Oasis Studios Venture Looks to Fuel Pan-African Production - Variety

Khadija Alami 

                            Chioma Ude

#Nigeria

#africa

#morocco

#Nolllywood

#oasis

#studio

#Movies

Morocco's Oasis Studios Venture Looks to Fuel Pan-African Production - Variety

Moroccan producer Khadija Alami and Nigerian producer and Africa Intl. Film Festival founder Chioma Ude have announced a 50-50 partnership in Morocco’s Oasis Studios, a thriving production hub that they aim to use as a launching pad for the next generation of African filmmakers.

Read the report on 

https://variety.com/2021/film/global/morocco-oasis-studios-khadija-alami-1235010676

The Scarcity of Film Curators and Hairstylists in Nollywood

Elizabeth Banks (left, as Effie Trinket) and Ve Neill (right, makeup artist) on the set of The Hunger Games. Photo by Murray Close. Courtesy of Lionsgate.http://academyartunews.com/newspaper/2016/06/celebrity_makeupart.html.

"The study of film criticism comes before the study of film curation."

- Ekenyerengozi Michael Chima.

You cannot be a film curator without the knowledge, experience or expertise in film criticism. 

Film schools in Nigeria must teach film curation or programming, because of the scarcity of professional film curators or programmers in the Nigerian film industry.

The lack of this can be seen in the substandard selections of movies and TV series on cable TV channels and public TV channels in Nigeria, especially in the selection of Yoruba movies and series of low quality and the most annoying subtitles by half-educated translators or subtitlers whose poor knowledge of English grammar either makes you laugh or upsets you. 

Another widespread common erroneous practice in #Nolllywood and #Kannywood is the fact that many of the filmmakers don't know that a makeup artist is different from an hairstylist. And there must be an hairstylist as there must be a makeup artist for every film or TV production. There is a hairstyle for every character in a drama or comedy.

There is Film Hairstyling for Storytelling and should be included in the top courses in film schools in Nigeria.

 

- Ekenyerengozi Michael Chima,

Publisher/Editor,

NOLLYWOOD MIRROR®Series,

247 Nigeria @247nigeria on  #Twitter

"Naked Beauty" Screenplay for Sale

"Naked Beauty" screenplay by Ekenyerengozi Michael Chima and Dr. Chika Christian Onu (Living in Bondage 2, Glamour Girls, Karashika, Peacemaker) is available for film production.

The film production must have a budget of not less than US$2m and the résumé (including filmography) of the director matters to us.
"Naked Beauty" is a romantic drama set in Agaja fishing village on Bonny Island in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria.

Naked Beauty

I saw you in the twilight
Disrobed in the state of nature
And I gaped and gasped in awesome delight
Spellbound and elated in rapture
As I beheld your voluptuous features
As I gazed upon your priceless treasures
From peak of the mountain
I went down to the fountain
In the valley of your mons veneris
And holding on to your alluring pillars
I have been transfixed at the altar of your estuary
The estuary of your conjugal sanctuary.

I saw the falconer trading his falcon
With the bounty hunter for his gun
Lost in their lust for your connubial offerings
Spellbound by the allures of your charms
And I came in the fleeting mist of the fleeing night
To behold you even before the Aurora Borealis
And saw you embracing the heavenly light
As Father Heaven kissed Mother Earth
And you were enchanted in heavenly mirth
Oblivious of my winking mortal eyes
Hypnotized in the ether of celestial bliss.
At the unveiling of the beloved daughter of Eve
Made perfect in the bowels of boundless love.

Let the fire be kindled in my heart
The eternal flame of my spirit
The breath of eternity
The ether of life formed in purity
Born bare and born free
As my enchanted eyes can now see
Freed from the chains of pains
The pains of natal travails
Oh! Woman! Thou art the vessel of motherhood.
And in thy mammary gourds abound our first food
How much every man is bound to thy loins
For from the canal every man is born
Through the third eye of Eve where love flows
From the seed sown the fruit is grown
The sweetest fruit of love is found in the virgin
To behold your naked beauty is not a sin.

~~ Orikinla Oosinachi, 2006.

Jen Brister To Host makers & shakers Awards Inaugural Ceremony

Jen Brister To Host makers & shakers Awards Inaugural Ceremony 

"We are excited to announce that comedian Jen Brister will be hosting the makers & shakers Awards inaugural ceremony on December 14th 2020.

The makers & shakers Awards supported by EQUALS, a brand new event to celebrate excellence in global production.

The makers & shakers Awards – which were officially launched at a special event at BAFTA in December – honour ground-breaking ideas and initiatives from the world’s commercial, TV, film, animation and gaming sectors.

makers & shakers  Virtual Awards Ceremony 

###

I was recommended for the inaugural makers & shakers Awards, but the heartbreaking catastrophe of the COVID-19 pandemic left me  totally distracted and disinterested in celebrations and events in the entertainment industry. I retreated into self-isolation even before the compulsory lockdown started and till date I have not been to any physical event or had a physical appointment. 

Without making noise about it, I have been promoting film locations in Nigeria for international TV and film productions and film tourism which attracted the global film industry since 2016 to date.  Film tourism can generate more revenues for Nigeria than the revenues from Nigerian movies. Movie merchandising makes more money than the box office and subscriptions to OTT platforms combined.

The #Nollywood box office hit comedy, "The Wedding Party" would have made more money from movie merchandising than the box office.