With the world wide acclaim of Slumdog Millionaire showcasing the best of Hollywood-Bollywood film synergy at this year's Oscars, it is important to note the increasing emergence of yet another developing media market rich in culture and ambition. After the United States and India, West Africa has become the birthplace of the world's third largest film industry in terms of production.
The Nigerian film industry, nicknamed Nollywood, produces at least one thousand films annually and generates approximately $286 million dollars per year. That may not sound like a whole lot, but to put this in perspective, the industry is largely a DVD-home-viewing market with each unit selling for $2-3 a pop. Therefore, we are talking about a whole lot of DVDs.
Nigeria, a former British colony, is home to more than 250 ethnic groups, with English being the nation's unifying language. Nearly 44 percent of Nollywood films are in English, while the majority of the residual percentage is allocated among the country's three main ethnic groups: Yoruba, Igbo and Hausa. Nearly 70 percent of the country is literate and about 32 million cell phones are in operation and growing. Fifty percent of movie production occurs in Lagos State, the state home to the country's commercial center, Lagos.
Every week, at least thirty new titles reach the market shelves of Africa's most populous nation. Reocurring Nollywood genres include religion, the occult and rags-to-riches tales. Nollywood popularity has spread throughout English-speaking Africa and has even gained traction in the African Diaspora of North America, Europe and the Caribbean.
The Digital Revolution was the reason behind galactic growth of the industry, allowing anyone with a laptop and a camera to shoot, edit, produce and sell their work. However, technological convenience is where the ease of Nollywood filmmaking ends. Filmmakers often produce films under conditions far from desirable to any American or Indian filmmaker.
Nollywood movies are produced on an average, shoestring budget of $15,000 per film. Production typically takes up to two weeks and most of Lagos is well-known for its frequent power outages, congested traffic and crumbling infrastructure. Some top actors have been known to contract themselves to more than one movie at a time, occasionally creating a situation where the talent doesn't show up when they are supposed to. Yet, regardless of these challenges, Nigerian filmmakers remain undeterred and continue to make and release their films at a staggering rate.
The Nollywood Foundation, a U.S. based, non-profit organization devoted to promotion of the industry, insists that foreign investment coupled with the already apparent drive of Nigerian filmmakers could prove lucrative for both Hollywood and Nollywood in the near future. The Foundation holds annual conventions promoting such awareness and also provides information on investment opportunities for those interested in the Nigerian film industry. The 2009 Nollywood Foundation Convention is set to take place this June in Beverly Hills, CA.
Nollywood has also been the subject of some documentaries, one of which made it to the Sundance Film Festival this year. The documentary, Nollywood Babylon, showcases the industry through the eyes of Lancelot Oduwa Imasuen, known in Nigeria as "Da Governor," one of the country's top filmmakers.
The Director General of the Nigerian National Film and Video Censors Board, Emeka Mba, has referred to the industry as an "untapped gold mine." Opportunities certainly exist for development and investment in Nollywood.
Production, post-production and financing in Nollywood is largely an independent venture. As mentioned earlier, production budgets are small, schedules are tight and financing is largely derived from one's own pocketbook. The scenario just depicted may be typical of independent filmmakers in the United States, but is largely standard industry practice in Nollywood, often times with some of Nigeria's top talent.
Post-production is of particular importance to any feature film. In Hollywood, considerable time and energy is spent on post-production, a key piece in the puzzle responsible for correcting any mistakes made during shooting. However, given the Nollywood pressure to get that DVD onto the market and make another movie in order to stay relevant, little time is given to this part of the process in many instances. Mistakes can be left in and the movie gets packaged and sold. Post-production training could be another integral piece in ensuring that Nollywood filmmaking enjoys continued technological advancement.
In Hollywood, movies are financed in a variety of ways ranging from studios to individuals to hedge funds. Nollywood does not yet enjoy such a luxury. With a culture largely focused on professional titles and not on the arts, corporate Nigeria still has yet to fully embrace Nollywood and all of its commercial promise, thereby leaving a real opportunity for foreign investment.
Given the growing demand for Nollywood content and the world class expertise of the Hollywood establishment, quality collaboration could one day yield a unique brand of highly acclaimed visual media.