Showing posts with label movies. Show all posts
Showing posts with label movies. Show all posts
Friday, June 10, 2011
Viva Riva, Beyond the Nollywood Fever and Palaver
Viva Riva, Beyond the Nollywood Fever and Palaver
This weekend as the Congolese gangster thriller Viva Riva opens in theatres in Los Angeles, U.S.A, it should be a wakeup call to Nollywood that what matters most is not the quantity of your movies, but the quality in Art and craft of filmmaking beyond the get-rich-quick syndrome of churning out cheap home videos of Nigerian comedies and tragedies from Idumota to Onitsha.
When Djo Tunda Wa Munga’s "Viva Riva" beat the best Nollywood movies at the 2011 African Movie Academy Awards (AMAA), many of the Nigerian filmmakers were humbled. But how many of them learnt the real lessons of the event? They preferred to rush back to their business as usual in Nollywood and having premieres of their amateurish flicks at the Silverbird Cinemas where their posing and posturing on the local red carpet is the best they have been able to achieve so far, while the man from the war torn Democratic Republic of the Congo has gone ahead of them to make history with his "Viva Riva" as the first Congolese feature to find distribution in the U.S. I wonder if any Nollywood flick has achieved that. And Congo where French is the main official language, plus four official indigenous languages: Kikongo, Lingala, Swahili and Tshiluba from “400 different tribes with 400 different ways of thinking. And, there are more than 200 ‘living’ languages,” according to Munga, with no acting schools and no "Congowood". In fact for most members of the cast, it was their first film credit.
Chineze Anyaene
Is it not amazing that the best film from Nollywood is "IJÉ the Journey", a New York Film Academy thesis feature film by Chineze Anyaene who has won 12 awards, including the Golden Ace Award at Las Vegas International Film Festival and the Melvin Van Peeples Award at the San Francisco Black Film Festival. In fact she even claimed that "IJÉ the Journey is the first standard Nigerian made Hollywood film" and do you blame her when like most people Nollywood is being mistaken as the best we can boast of from the Nigerian film industry since majority of our youths and even journalists are ignorant of the history of filmmaking in Nigeria and never knew that "Palaver" was the first Nigerian film shot in Jos, Plateau State, in 1904. But "IJÉ the Journey" is just one of the best Hollywood standard features done by Nigerian filmmakers who were making fantastic world class films for the cinema in the 1970s and 1980s. From Dr. Ola Balogun to Afolabi Adesanya and other notable veterans of the Nigerian cinema now mistakenly erroneously and ambiguously dubbed “Nollywood”. And I have already addressed this in my previous articles on Nollywood, so there is no need to over flog it again.
The once popular cinema culture is gradually being revived by Ben Murray-Bruce through his expanding Silverbird Cinemas and others building new cinemas all over Nigeria. And the real filmmakers are now redefining Nollywood by taking up the challenge of making features that can compete with the best in the world.
Majority of them have gone through the New York Film Academy. Faruk Lasaki, Kunle Afolayan, Stephanie Okereke, Chineze Anyaene, Chika Anadu and others who are going to take Nigerian films to compete with the best at the Cannes, Oscars and other major centres of the film world. But we need to address the problem of intellectual ignorance and professional arrogance plaguing Nollywood.
Many of the stakeholders are doing more harm than good to Nollywood by engaging in activities questioning the dignity and leadership of the Nigerian film industry.
They have also dragged their associations into partisan politics and promoting cash-for-vote and cash-for-news coverage sharp practices with many of them rubbishing and tarnishing the public image of the Nigerian film industry.
Piracy is still rampant and counterfeiting is being practiced by notable Nollywood stars who have been accused of copyright infringements like the desperate but futile attempts by a faction of Nollywood producers to hijack the duly registered Eko International Film Festival with the unethical support of their accomplices in public office.
My personal experience is quite revealing in the case of the counterfeiting of Eko International Film Festival by the mercenaries in Nollywood who have been abusing and misusing their professional associations for their greed and ego trips. But I have dismissed them since they have been found wanting in facing the real business of filmmaking and raking up ethnic differences and tribalism in their primordial divide and rule tactics to cause north-south dichotomy and east-west dichotomy in Nollywood when what matters most is promoting what is best for the Nigerian film industry and giving the necessary cooperation and support to those with the best intentions for the advancement of Nollywood, no matter your state of origin, in fact no matter where the person comes from, even from the moon or mars.
Only backward and narrow-minded people would be banging their office desk and going round the bend over why an Igbo should be the owner of a film festival in Lagos with the Yoruba name of "Eko"?
Would they also go bananas that my popular pen name "Orikinla" is Yoruba, because I am Igbo or question why I created "Òmó Iya Osùn" the mystical girl in "Boy Adam Floats Headless In The Thames"? Of course they are ignorant of the fact that my father grew up among the Yoruba Ijebus of Ogun State in the western region of Nigeria, became a Babalawo versed in Ifa Divination, was also an Ogun priest with an Ogun shrine in Obalende on the Lagos Island and was a prominent member of the Ogboni society. And he brought me up with deep knowledge of the mythology and mysticism of the Yoruba culture and religion until he passed on. I knew enough to be the first Nigerian artist to mount an installation of Ogun shrine and Opon Ifa in an Art exhibition hosted by the Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung on the campus of the University of Lagos in 1992, based on my late father’s paraphernalia of Ogun worship and Prof. Wande Abimbola’s book on Ifa Divination.
The search for knowledge knows no boundaries.
Before Oduduwa there was Ifa. And before Adam, our lord Jesus Christ existed and still existing as explained in the book of John 1:1 of the Holy Bible.
Only ignorant, uneducated and uninformed people will question why two Igbo men should be the founder and owner of Eko International Film Festival in Lagos or anywhere else in the world. Anyone could have been the founder, owner or whatever. What matters is not who discovered or founded a property, but how beneficial it is to you and me, regardless of class, colour, creed, tribe or race.
In conclusion, may I advise all the stakeholders, aficionados and well wishers of the Nigerian film industry to look beyond their local competition in Nollywood, put aside their evil greed and foolish pride and let us do our best to support whatever will benefit Nigeria and the rest of the world.
~ By Ekenyerengozi Michael Chima
Wednesday, June 1, 2011
Taking Nollywood to the next level
The most famous Nollywood star Genevieve Nnaji
Taking Nollywood to the next level
Recently stakeholders in the Nigerian film industry met at the last quarterly stampede of the Committee for Relevant Art (CORA) to discuss “The New Trend in Nollywood”. The event was held on Sunday May 22, 2011, at the Freedom Park on Broad Street, Lagos. The forum was convened by CORA and Mr. Femi Odugbemi’s iRepresent International Documentary Film Festival (iREP).
It was well coordinated and well attended by most of the notable personalities in Nollywood and related fields. Celebrated actors Richard Mofe-Damijo, Joke Silva-Jacobs, Francis Onwochei and other Nollywood stars sat quietly without any sort of fanfare or glamour in the audience.
The invited filmmakers identified as leaders of the new trend had an interactive session on their movies. Mahmood Ali-Balogun discussed his matrimonial drama “Tango With Me”, Kunle Afolayan spoke on his horror thriller “The Figurine 'araromire'”, Stephanie Okerereke on her romantic comedy “Through the Glass”, Chidi Nwokobia on his family drama “Champions Of Our Time”, Emem Isong said she is excited about the successes she has made screening her videos in cinemas, Lilian Amah-Aluko had more to address than her “Jungle Ride”, Vivian Ejike talked about the challenges of making her “Private Storm”, appreciating the local talents and professionals she found worthy in making good movies, but Chineze Anyaene was absent and the young man Kelechi Ikata she sent to represent her could not say much on her outstanding thriller “IJE - The Journey”.
The filmmakers, journalists and other contributors had a common resolution that with the provision of adequate resources by all the stakeholders and a conducive environment the Nigerian film industry will make more impact in the world.
The moderator was the notable film critic and journalist Steve Ayorinde who is now the Managing Editor of The National Mirror Newspaper. The coordinators Shaibu Husseini and his senior colleague Jahman Anikulapo, Editor of The Guardian on Sunday Nespaper and Programme Chairman of CORA deserve commendation for making sure that the event went well and recognizing the presence of Mr. Hope Obioma Opara, the Publisher/Editor-in-Chief of Supple magazine and President of Eko International Film Festival and Chike Ibekwe whose movie “Eternal” was a co-winner of the Golden Screen Best Film award with “An Unusual Woman” by Burkinabe director Abdoulaye Dao at the 14th annual Ecrans noirs Film Festival in Yaounde, Cameroon, last year. And thanks to Toyin Akinosho, Secretary-General of CORA and Femi Odugbemi and their organizing committee for hosting the laudable forum.
~ By Ekenyerengozi Michael Chima
Monday, April 11, 2011
Infinity TV Encrypts, Expands Content
INFINITY TV ENCRYPTS, EXPANDS CONTENT
As part of their resolve to deliver world class satellite television services at affordable price to Nigerians, Infinity TV will from April 10, 2011 encrypt their satellite signals. What this means is that the honeymoon is over for free subscribers who had over the past months enjoyed free uninterrupted viewership.
Conscious of the economic situation in the country, Infinity TV is rolling out two pocket friendly bouquet to subscribers. The first bouquet comprising of 25 channels goes for N1, 500 monthly, while the second, comprising of 40 channels goes for N3, 000.
Outside these pocket friendly and rich contents, Infinity TV is adding to its already enriched bouquet 21 new channels that covers all strata of life. Infinity TV takes into cognizance the character and characteristics, the flora and fauna of its subscribers’ base hence, the need for the additional contents.
The new channels include BOLLYWOOD BY INFINITY, dedicated channel that brings you the best of classic Indian movies to the latest releases of 2010. The channel also features hot, intriguing Indian soaps and series as well as hilarious and compelling comedies. M GOLD Old school music channel. This channel thrills with the very best and unforgettable classic jams of the 70s, 80s and 90s. The world argues that this age remains the golden era of music. QUEST TV, Quest TV is Africa’s premier fashion, Beauty and style Television lifestyle channel. LIFTED is a Gospel Music and Lifestyle channel put together to inspire, inform and entertainment the Christian folks. The channel is focused on lifting body and soul; also promoting upcoming and new gospel music artistes, showcasing their talents as well as their lifestyles, it will highlight personality profile interviews featuring Ministers of the gospel; Singers, evangelist, Bishops, Social workers and Philanthropists; their personal experiences, spiritual encounters, life lessons, thought-provoking experience and their works. This includes local and foreign content. MOVIE EXPRESS, A 24 hour non stop, cutting edge family oriented movies in English. Movie Express makes your day with all the sizzling blockbuster action, racy romance, rib cracking comedy, expensive epics, curious crime and investigation, high octane drama, space age sci – fi and spicy series. DICE suspense filled dramas, soaps, tele-novelas, talk shows and reality show is what awaits you on this channel. Great entertainment with the popular South American soaps, American best sellers and from the rest of the world on hot demand. VIASAT DOCUMENTARY CHANNELS : NATURE,HISTORY,CRIME,EXPLORATION. ODENIBO (THE IGBO LANGUAGE CHANNEL) – sustaining the language, values and tradition of the Igbo speaking tribes of Eastern Nigeria Odenigbo takes you into the heartbeat of Igboland to discover what makes the people tick – their lifestyle, food, fashion, dance and more importantly the people and historic places. INFINITY SPORTS the passion of sports - the electrifying moments, the thrills, the frills and the fireworks. All the adrenalin pumping sporting action from major European Football Leagues, world best tennis action, athletics golf, cricket, and the nerve breaking extreme action sports, Infinity sports has got it all. Watch live EPL matches, the Spanish La Liga, French Championnat, the Italian Serie A, the German Bundesliga among others.
The UEFA champion’s League and the Europa Cup matches are also live with exciting live analysis. SETANTA AFRICA A foreign sports channel that brings you live football matches – EPL, Dutch League, Belgian League, the J League, the American MLS, the Scottish League and the German Bundesliga, European matches – Nations Cup matches etc, athletics, golf, wrestling (WWE), Basketball, Volleyball, Motorsport, Club TV shows – Manchester City TV, Arsenal TV, Tottenham Hotspur TV, Aston Villa TV, etc VIVE, lifestyle channel adding zest into your life.
Vive is designed to give your life meaning and bring out the personality in you. Learn how to cook international delicious finger licking delicacies from world class chefs. Get the scoop on how to turn your home into the cozy paradise you dream of. Vive helps you discover how to give your good old face a brand new appealing look and helps you catch the buzz in travel, career, health, fitness and wellbeing and much more. Vive is all about life and the style you live it. Subscribers and loyal dealers of Infinity Television must get good value for their money, says the MD/CEO, Mr. Anthony Ikeokwu.
The rest of the new channels are AFRICAN MOVIE CHANNEL 2 (AMC 2) – Movie, series and lifestyle AFRICAN SERIES CHANNEL – powered by Zeb Ejiro, Chico Ejiro and Fidelis Dukar. This channel is dedicated to African soaps and series. NIGEZIE – musical DUCK TV – foreign musical channel KISS TV – foreign musical channel KARENG TV - foreign musical ( rock ) channel FASHION ONE – foreign fashion channel MAGIC TV – foreign musical channel AKINKOGUN – a Yoruba language channel DEUTSHE WELLE ( DW TV ) – German News and lifestyle channel.
~ Ingram Osigwe is the media Consultant to Infinity Television.
Thursday, January 13, 2011
Beyond the Theater: Moviegoers and Other Media
13 Jan 2011 11:00 Africa/Lagos
Beyond the Theater: Moviegoers and Other Media
Moviegoing Declining; Movie 'Viewing' Not
PR Newswire
SANTA MONICA, Calif., Jan. 13, 2011
SANTA MONICA, Calif., Jan. 13, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Interpret, a leading entertainment, media and technology market research firm, today released its Interpretations report, "Beyond the Theater: Moviegoers and Other Media," which found that though the number of moviegoers decreased over the past year, time spent with other media to view movies has increased.
Interpret's New Media Measure™ data shows the number of moviegoers (defined as those who watch 3 or more movies in a theater in the past 6 months) has decreased 11% over the past year, and the average number of movies watched in the theater among this group has also decreased. At the same time, more moviegoers (36%) are streaming full-length movies online, increasing 16% in the past year. Perhaps most disconcerting is that these alternative options have resulted in less interest in being the first to see movies in the theater.
"While the number of active moviegoers is down, there is a silver lining in that movie lovers are turning to other media to view movies," said Dan Casey, VP of the Movie Group at Interpret. "Moviegoers' use of other media – like video games and social networking – has also increased, offering studios and marketers new ways to interact with movie-loving audiences."
Click here for more information about this report.
New Media Measure™ is Interpret LLC's proprietary, quarterly survey of media behaviors, attitudes and product consumption. Designed to keep pace with the evolving media landscape, New Media Measure™ supplies the means to better measure and keep track of fast-changing consumer behaviors. New Media Measure™ surveys 9,000 consumers aged 12-65, representative of the U.S. population and weighted to U.S. Census. Data collected includes: demographics, psychographics, brand consumption, traditional media consumption, online and social networking, mobile phone, video gaming, and digital entertainment. Data is available via Interface, a web-accessible, interactive analysis tool, through Intrend, quarterly trend reports, and through Interpretations, monthly whitepapers written by Interpret analysts.
About Interpret LLC
Interpret is the leading cross-media market research firm. The company applies proprietary, cutting-edge methodologies and extensive category knowledge to help clients plan, test, and measure business strategies in the fast-evolving media landscape. Interpret's unique combination of syndicated measurement products and custom market research services provides a common language across media for the key stakeholders of the digital age. www.interpretllc.com.
SOURCE Interpret LLC
CONTACT: Jeff Tiddens of Interpret LLC, +1-310-255-0590, ext. 346, sales@interpretllc.com
Web Site: http://www.interpretllc.com
Tuesday, November 30, 2010
The Untold Truth about Nollywood: Separating the fact from the fiction
Poster of Nollywood Babylon, a 2008 feature documentary film directed by Canadian filmakers Ben Addelman and Samir Mallal.The documentary has been described as an “electric vision of a modern African metropolis and a revealing look at the powerhouse that is Nigerian cinema — Nollywood.”
The Untold Truth about Nollywood: Separating the fact from the fiction
Presently the Nigerian movie industry popularly known as Nollywood is no longer the second largest movie industry in the world as reported by UNESCO in 2009. The UNESCO report was based on statistics of the quantity of home videos produced in Nigeria when Nollywood was at its peak in the late 1990s and early 2000s before rampant piracy and the economic downturn changed the fortunes of Nollywood and left most of the stakeholders in dire straits.
Genevieve Nnaji is the most popular Nollywood star
In fact, we can now count the movies produced in 2010 on our fingertips, because things have fallen apart and people are no longer at ease in Nollywood.
The worst hit have been the English speaking practitioners dominated by Igbos, but the more down-to-earth and better organized Yoruba practitioners have managed to weather the storm, while the other producers of videos in Edo, Hausa, Efik and Ibibio have been doing their best in spite of their own professional inadequacies.
There are those who are the Real McCoy of the Nigerian film industry like the foremost Nigerian filmmaker Dr. Ola Balogun, Tunde Kelani, Femi Lasode, the Adesanya brothers, Mahmood Ali-Balogun, Mildred Owoh,Tade Ogidan, Francis Onwuchie, The Amatas. Femi Odugbemi, Kunle Afolayan who is bearing the mantle of the legacy of his father Adeyemi Afolayan, aka “Ade Love”, Joe Brown, Didi Chika, Joe Brown, Lucky Onyekachi Ejim, Gugu Michaels, Faruk Lasaki, Chike Ibekwe, Mark Kusare, Kenneth Gyang and the new kids on the block Niyi Akinmolayan and Chineze Anyaene whose first features Kajola and Ijé The Journey who are outstanding indicators of the future of the Nigerian film industry. They often prefer to disassociate themselves from the popular videographers of Nollywood. The other Real McCoy can be found in the heart and soul of Nollywood, such as the accomplished Lancelot Imasuen, Teco Benson, the ambitious team of Emem Isong and Desmond Elliot and those in the same league with them who have been producing good movies in videos.
The troubles in Nollywood
“Nollywood habours lots of greedy producers.”
~ Kate Henshaw-Nuttal, Sunday Punch, August 1, 2010.
Notable pioneers of Nollywood such as Ejike Asiegbu, Madu Chikwendu, Paul, Justus Esiri, Olu Jacobs, Prince Jide Kosoko, Pete Edochie, Glory Young, Ngozi Ezeonu, Joke Silva-Jacobs, Rachel Oniga, Kate Henshaw-Nuttal, Zeb Ejiro, Chico Ejiro, Kingsley Ogoro, Lancelot Imasuen, Teco Benson, Emem Isong, Shan George, Genevieve Nnaji, Omotola Jalade-Ekeinde, Jim Iyke, Ramsey Noah, Riita Dominic and other members in the same League have been busy trying their best to rejuvenate the ingenuity of the heyday of Nollywood. But there are those who have resorted to dirty partisan politics contrary to professional ethics.
Home videos of Nollywood movies are sold on the street and often pirated
Yes, desperate times call for desperate measures, but going bonkers will only worsen the situation. Frustration often pushes people to acts of desperation in the struggle for survival or trying to catch up with the Joneses. The critical state of Nollywood is also bringing out the best and the worst characters of the principal practitioners and other stakeholders as shown by the petty squabbles in the guilds. The squabbles of the opposing camps and factions of those at loggerheads have left the troubled guilds in disarray and opportunists are fishing in the troubled waters.
One of them is fond of contesting for the bragging rights over celluloid filmmakers in Nigeria. He boasts that he has shot 18 celluloid films. But not a single one has ever qualified for screening at the Cannes Film Festival where other African filmmakers have proved their mettle competing and winning highly coveted laurels among the best in the world. Making dozens of substandard movies that are the best examples in mediocrity is nothing to brag about and talking bollocks from Lagos to Abuja. How many of the films have made the list of the best films by Africans? How many of them have won awards at major film festivals in the world? And now he is the chairman of an international film festival? I wonder why Nigerians like celebrating mediocrity. What a comedy of errors.
Many of them were taking sides in partisan politics as they supported the gubernatorial quest of Prof. Chukwuma Soludo, the former governor of the apex bank and were disgraced when he lost. And now they have rushed to endorse President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan to contest in the presidential election in 2011. Then he has promised to give $200 million to the entertainment industry after listening to the pleas of Mr. Ben Murray-Bruce at the 30th Anniversary of Silverbird Group on November 6, 2010. But a promise remains a promise until fulfilled.
What matters most is providing a proper infrastructure for the film industry, because presently there is none. We don’t even know if the practitioners pay taxes.
Azuh Amatus of the Daily Sun said there is no longer sanity in Nollywood, because all that has been bastardized.
Amatus is right, because the various guilds have no administrative polices comparable to best practices in more organized film industries like in South Africa and Egypt. The Actors Guild of Nigeria (AGN) simply collects a membership fee from anyone who claims to be an actor even if the person has never acted in any movie. Presently, the AGN is in disarray as two actors are fighting over the titular leadership of the guild. One of them who has a degree in engineering said he is more qualified than the rival who has only a diploma in theatre arts. The AGN is dominated and manipulated by the English speaking actors who are mostly from the Igbo tribe while the non-English speaking actors belong to another professional body. Membership of the professional body of the Yoruba actors is by apprenticeship. An apprentice pays more than N2, 000 (two thousand naira) for registration, but in most cases, the apprentices don’t get paid until after three years. There is no insurance or any gratuity. And they do not pay taxes on their various artistes fees from acting in the numerous movies churned out regularly.
There is nothing like an insurance policy in Nollywood. The practitioners and production companies are not insured. No insurance in case a studio is razed or an actor has an accident.
The Nigerian Film Corporation (NFC) and the National Film and Video Censors Board (NFVCB) are functioning, but is it not troubling that a billion naira industry has no insurance and does not pay tax?
~ By Ekenyerengozi Michael Chima,
Tuesday, August 10, 2010.
The Untold Truth about Nollywood: Separating the fact from the fiction
Presently the Nigerian movie industry popularly known as Nollywood is no longer the second largest movie industry in the world as reported by UNESCO in 2009. The UNESCO report was based on statistics of the quantity of home videos produced in Nigeria when Nollywood was at its peak in the late 1990s and early 2000s before rampant piracy and the economic downturn changed the fortunes of Nollywood and left most of the stakeholders in dire straits.
Genevieve Nnaji is the most popular Nollywood star
In fact, we can now count the movies produced in 2010 on our fingertips, because things have fallen apart and people are no longer at ease in Nollywood.
The worst hit have been the English speaking practitioners dominated by Igbos, but the more down-to-earth and better organized Yoruba practitioners have managed to weather the storm, while the other producers of videos in Edo, Hausa, Efik and Ibibio have been doing their best in spite of their own professional inadequacies.
There are those who are the Real McCoy of the Nigerian film industry like the foremost Nigerian filmmaker Dr. Ola Balogun, Tunde Kelani, Femi Lasode, the Adesanya brothers, Mahmood Ali-Balogun, Mildred Owoh,Tade Ogidan, Francis Onwuchie, The Amatas. Femi Odugbemi, Kunle Afolayan who is bearing the mantle of the legacy of his father Adeyemi Afolayan, aka “Ade Love”, Joe Brown, Didi Chika, Joe Brown, Lucky Onyekachi Ejim, Gugu Michaels, Faruk Lasaki, Chike Ibekwe, Mark Kusare, Kenneth Gyang and the new kids on the block Niyi Akinmolayan and Chineze Anyaene whose first features Kajola and Ijé The Journey who are outstanding indicators of the future of the Nigerian film industry. They often prefer to disassociate themselves from the popular videographers of Nollywood. The other Real McCoy can be found in the heart and soul of Nollywood, such as the accomplished Lancelot Imasuen, Teco Benson, the ambitious team of Emem Isong and Desmond Elliot and those in the same league with them who have been producing good movies in videos.
The troubles in Nollywood
“Nollywood habours lots of greedy producers.”
~ Kate Henshaw-Nuttal, Sunday Punch, August 1, 2010.
Notable pioneers of Nollywood such as Ejike Asiegbu, Madu Chikwendu, Paul, Justus Esiri, Olu Jacobs, Prince Jide Kosoko, Pete Edochie, Glory Young, Ngozi Ezeonu, Joke Silva-Jacobs, Rachel Oniga, Kate Henshaw-Nuttal, Zeb Ejiro, Chico Ejiro, Kingsley Ogoro, Lancelot Imasuen, Teco Benson, Emem Isong, Shan George, Genevieve Nnaji, Omotola Jalade-Ekeinde, Jim Iyke, Ramsey Noah, Riita Dominic and other members in the same League have been busy trying their best to rejuvenate the ingenuity of the heyday of Nollywood. But there are those who have resorted to dirty partisan politics contrary to professional ethics.
Home videos of Nollywood movies are sold on the street and often pirated
Yes, desperate times call for desperate measures, but going bonkers will only worsen the situation. Frustration often pushes people to acts of desperation in the struggle for survival or trying to catch up with the Joneses. The critical state of Nollywood is also bringing out the best and the worst characters of the principal practitioners and other stakeholders as shown by the petty squabbles in the guilds. The squabbles of the opposing camps and factions of those at loggerheads have left the troubled guilds in disarray and opportunists are fishing in the troubled waters.
One of them is fond of contesting for the bragging rights over celluloid filmmakers in Nigeria. He boasts that he has shot 18 celluloid films. But not a single one has ever qualified for screening at the Cannes Film Festival where other African filmmakers have proved their mettle competing and winning highly coveted laurels among the best in the world. Making dozens of substandard movies that are the best examples in mediocrity is nothing to brag about and talking bollocks from Lagos to Abuja. How many of the films have made the list of the best films by Africans? How many of them have won awards at major film festivals in the world? And now he is the chairman of an international film festival? I wonder why Nigerians like celebrating mediocrity. What a comedy of errors.
Many of them were taking sides in partisan politics as they supported the gubernatorial quest of Prof. Chukwuma Soludo, the former governor of the apex bank and were disgraced when he lost. And now they have rushed to endorse President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan to contest in the presidential election in 2011. Then he has promised to give $200 million to the entertainment industry after listening to the pleas of Mr. Ben Murray-Bruce at the 30th Anniversary of Silverbird Group on November 6, 2010. But a promise remains a promise until fulfilled.
What matters most is providing a proper infrastructure for the film industry, because presently there is none. We don’t even know if the practitioners pay taxes.
Azuh Amatus of the Daily Sun said there is no longer sanity in Nollywood, because all that has been bastardized.
Amatus is right, because the various guilds have no administrative polices comparable to best practices in more organized film industries like in South Africa and Egypt. The Actors Guild of Nigeria (AGN) simply collects a membership fee from anyone who claims to be an actor even if the person has never acted in any movie. Presently, the AGN is in disarray as two actors are fighting over the titular leadership of the guild. One of them who has a degree in engineering said he is more qualified than the rival who has only a diploma in theatre arts. The AGN is dominated and manipulated by the English speaking actors who are mostly from the Igbo tribe while the non-English speaking actors belong to another professional body. Membership of the professional body of the Yoruba actors is by apprenticeship. An apprentice pays more than N2, 000 (two thousand naira) for registration, but in most cases, the apprentices don’t get paid until after three years. There is no insurance or any gratuity. And they do not pay taxes on their various artistes fees from acting in the numerous movies churned out regularly.
There is nothing like an insurance policy in Nollywood. The practitioners and production companies are not insured. No insurance in case a studio is razed or an actor has an accident.
The Nigerian Film Corporation (NFC) and the National Film and Video Censors Board (NFVCB) are functioning, but is it not troubling that a billion naira industry has no insurance and does not pay tax?
~ By Ekenyerengozi Michael Chima,
Tuesday, August 10, 2010.
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