Search

Abstract\nPoints of interestThis paper is part of a five-year research into disability representation in Nollywood and Nigerian culture. While analysing data for the research, a recurrent way for representing and understanding disability was discovered called the bad belle model. The term bad belle model is used to describe views that disabled people are innocent victims of other people’s malice. Thus, this paper analyses Nollywood films and focus group data with disabled people in Nigeria to identify how the bad belle model manifests and its cultural underpinning as a way of extending understanding about the various ableist positions within society as well as contribute to the theorisation of disability shame. Nollywood, the Nigerian film industry, is the second largest cinema in the world according to number of productions. The industry is also nestled against Nigerian cultures which contribute to its ideological positions as much as Nollywood contributes to audience perception of disabilities.The bad belle model explains one of the prominent ways for understanding disabilities and disabled people in Nigerian cinema and culture.Ableist backgrounds found in religion and culture give potency to the bad belle model.The position of the bad belle model is that people can maliciously cause each other a disability.The bad belle model promotes disability shame.This paper reflects on the damaging stereotypes that the bad belle model promotes about disabled people in an era of critical disability theory.The bad belle model explains one of the prominent ways for understanding disabilities and disabled people in Nigerian cinema and culture.Ableist backgrounds found in religion and culture give potency to the bad belle model.The position of the bad belle model is that people can maliciously cause each other a disability.The bad belle model promotes disability shame.This paper reflects on the damaging stereotypes that the bad belle model promotes about disabled people in an era of critical disability theory. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The task in this paper is to critically examine how temperaments and mood configuration in Nollywood film characters serve as cogent reflection of various shades of indeterminate actions, reactions and repercussions as core elements at the fabrics of life and existence in society. No doubt, actions in films reflect the essential human nature that should require in-depth critical study towards a better understanding of the mutable bearings that underlie human existence in society. Among the contemporary activities in the creative arts sector, filmmaking has continually functioned as vital instrument for cultural promotion, artifacts preservation and for the disclosure of human nature. Charles Cooley's theoretical conception of the Looking-Glass Self was adopted for this study. Also, the paper uses qualitative research method to evaluate the portrayal of the coloration of human temperaments and mood through costuming design in Bandele's projection of Elesin Oba, The King's Horseman. Findings show that temperament and mood are different and that both can be creatively encoded in the character's body gears to accentuate the generic consciousness that set the tone of the film. The sanguine, the choleric, the melancholic and the phlegmatic are captured in the costumes as unseen but immutable forces that predetermine the characters' mold in the society. Mood is spontaneous and ephemeral; the recurring ones are coded to reflect the various swings needed to thicken the social context and the thematic focus of the film. The paper concludes that the deployment of costume in artwork serves an important purpose deep-seated appraisal that elevates the cultural identity in film enactments nation's economy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article examines the implications of the transnational dynamics of streaming for the Nigerian video film industry (Nollywood) considering its historical predominance of informality in cross-border circulation. Right from its emergence in 1992 as a straight-to-video film industry, Nollywood has been significantly transnational in distribution albeit through the complex web of transnational piracy and other informal networks. This mode of informal transnationalism orchestrated wide visibility for the industry, but it brought minimal revenues for producers who were desirous of much formalised distribution system to connect to transnational capital and audiences. Since 2010, streaming has become progressively integrated into Nollywood's distribution eco-system and is introducing much formalised transnational consumption practices. Adopting the critical transnationalism approach (Higbee & Lim, 2010; Shaw, 2018), this paper draws from semi-structured interviews with 35 stakeholders in Nollywood and critical analysis of trade press. It argues that streaming has opened formal pathways to transnational capital and audiences hitherto unseen in Nollywood and is orchestrating audience fragmentations and reconfigurations of production practices in the industry. The paper extends existing debates on critical analysis of how specific forms of transnationalism impacts the quotidian practices in a media industry as well as the cultural implications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The African religious landscape is partly characterized by a plurality of vibrant neo-Pentecostal and charismatic movements. Many of these movements are founded, led or influenced by perceived gifted individuals who claim to have had a firsthand experience with the spirit world through diverse mystical or paranormal means. Some of these means include near death experiences or resurrection from the dead. Although some research works have examined the relationship between the narratives of these gifted individuals and the socio-political discourse in Africa, very little attention has been devoted particularly to how their descriptions of the spirit world and the afterlife affect or reflect cinematic production in Africa. This paper seeks to fill this gap in knowledge through an examination of the ways in which resurrection and near death stories driving charismatic Pentecostalism are reflected in some Cameroonian and Nigerian video films. Using secondary sources and a qualitative content analysis of relevant films, the paper specifically attains two main objectives. In the first place, it examines how Cameroonian and Nigerian resurrection stories describe the spirit world and affect the popular culture in Cameroon and Nigeria; while in the last place, the paper examines how these stories are particularly reflected in Cameroonian and Nigerian films.

In this paper, the study engages the post nationality of Nollywood, which is manifest in its traveling patterns and its transgression of cartographic boundaries to engage diasporic communities around the world. Of particular interest of the study are how Nollywood has emerged as the third biggest film industry in the world, after Hollywood and Bollywood, from its humble Nigerian beginnings and how this post national character has been acquired and sustained. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Este estudio aborda la problemática de la homogeneización cultural en Nollywood, la industria cinematográfica más desarrollada de África. Para comprender este fenómeno, se examinaron las condiciones históricas que permitieron su origen, desarrollo y establecimiento. Se optó por una metodología interdisciplinaria basada en los aportes de la comunicación (Onuzulike, 2015), la economía (Okeani, 2018) y los estudios culturales (Abbas y Amos, 2013). El análisis incluyó el impacto de las lenguas locales Hausa, Igbo y Yoruba, así como el papel del inglés como lengua oficial, que domina las producciones cinematográficas y fomenta su exportación. Los hallazgos revelan que, si bien Nollywood se ha consolidado como un pilar de la economía nigeriana, su expansión plantea desafíos significativos. Por un lado, se destaca su contribución a la preservación de lenguas y culturas locales; por otro, el predominio del inglés y el enfoque en el mercado internacional tienden a homogeneizar las representaciones culturales. Esto pone en riesgo la rica diversidad étnica y lingüística del país. Se concluye que es imperativo desarrollar políticas públicas que equilibren el crecimiento económico con la preservación de la diversidad cultural. Esto incluye incentivar el uso de lenguas locales en las producciones y fomentar una representación más inclusiva que celebre la multiculturalidad de Nigeria.

In this paper, the study engages the post nationality of Nollywood, which is manifest in its traveling patterns and its transgression of cartographic boundaries to engage diasporic communities around the world. Of particular interest of the study are how Nollywood has emerged as the third biggest film industry in the world, after Hollywood and Bollywood, from its humble Nigerian beginnings and how this post national character has been acquired and sustained.

This article explores the impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic on the Nigerian film industry (Nollywood) and the local responses of filmmakers to the precariousness engendered by the pandemic. This research adopts the critical media industry studies framework and relies on interviews with 30 Nollywood filmmakers who provided insights on the impact of the pandemic on labour in Nollywood. Theorizing the Covid-19 dynamics as reflective of the ambivalence of informality, this article submits that although informality was central to Nollywood's industrial structure and sustainability, the pandemic triggered unprecedented tensions associated with those informal practices and highlighted existing precarity which had been largely masked by constant availability of jobs. Accordingly, a significant legacy of the pandemic for the industry is the unprecedented gravitation of industry players towards more formalized industrial structures and practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nigeria's thriving film industry, Nollywood, has long been praised for its vivid narrative and diverse cultural representations. Nollywood has grown to become a potent tool for introducing both local and foreign viewers to the country's rich cultural heritage. Traditional Nigerian costumes are potent cultural signifiers and symbols of national identity and they are central to the visual narratives of many Nollywood films. Thus, these costumes are powerful symbols of social standing, spirituality, and cultural identity. In this study, the several functions of traditional Nigerian clothing in Nollywood films are discussed, along with their historical background, artistic development, and socio-cultural ramifications. Through the content analysis and descriptive approaches of the qualitative research methodology, the study interrogates the costumes used in two Nollywood films titled The Figurine and The Milkmaid; and explores how traditional dresses function as visual languages in Nigerian films; noting that they express cultural heritage, social status, and personal identity. The study recommends a knowledgeable portrayal of Nigerian dress cultures through effective costuming in Nollywood films. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article focuses on the transformative impact of artificial intelligence (AI) on Nollywood, Nigeria's film industry, highlighting concerns about AI-generated content potentially displacing traditional roles. Topics include the emergence of generative AI models capable of autonomously creating films, the cultural and economic significance of Nollywood, and the need for nuanced policy frameworks to address compensation and intellectual property rights amidst technological disruption.

Although filmmakers in the Nigerian film industry, Nollywood, have consistently depict the family setting as a reference point for x-raying the struggles and trials of individuals or a group of people within the larger society, researchers in the field have rarely concerned themselves with highlighting this connection. While conflicts in marital relationships continues to receive attention as a significant thematic preoccupation in Nollywood, analyses of these films are usually focused at identifying issues vis-à-vis the negative representations and objectification of women. This is often to the exclusion of how the films serve as commentaries and reflections on social relations in the large society. Against the foregoing background, this study examines the role of patriarchy in the ordeal of two protagonists in the oeuvre of Nigerian filmmaker, Tunde Kelani, namely, Ngozi in Thunderbolt (2001), and Awero in The Narrow Path (2007). It adopts the conceptual frameworks of auteur theory and Womanism in the analyses of the film texts. Analyses reveal that the films are commentaries on gender relationships in African societies where women are victims of cultural inequities dictated by patriarchy. In addition, in line with womanist ideology, they emphasize the significance of cooperation between both sexes for the peaceful coexistence and development of any community.

This article examines how streaming is altering established viewing practices that traditionally characterised video film consumption among domestic Nigerians. Following the creation of the Nigerian video industry (Nollywood) as a straight-to-video film industry, audiences watched movies solely through the technologies of television sets and video players. The fluid and opaque circulation of video copies located audience consumption practices within informal realms and communal spaces. This article analyses how streaming is catalysing a distinctive viewing culture in Nigeria. It argues that streaming is formalising access to Nollywood movies, upending the communal practices associated with legacy video viewing, and fostering an individualised viewing culture though some informal communal practices persist in the streaming ecosystem. By emphasising the role of smartphones and apps in the emergent streaming culture, this article demonstrates how streaming is restructuring the temporal, spatial, and affective features of audience engagements that traditionally characterised movies viewing in Nigeria. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Over the years, studies in prosthetic artistry and costuming in Nollywood films have been used to strike the right balance between visual spectacle and narrative impact. Being that narrative coherence is essential in Nollywood's storytelling thus, these effects have helped to create a major impact on the characters' appearance and believability. Although one of the essential parts of the visual aspect of modern cinema, but the inability of the Nollywood designers to seamlessly integrate prosthetic artistry and character costuming that improves on the visual elements of Nollywood films forms the major drawback to this research study. Based on this outlook, the paper investigates prosthetics and character costuming in Nollywood video films and seeks to determine the challenges faced by Nollywood designers in achieving effective prosthetic artistry and character costuming. The paper through a critical analysis and two randomly selected Nigerian Video films- Biyi Bandele's Blood Sisters (2022), and Inawadolu Greg's Egwonga - the deadly god (2013) explores how Nollywood designers integrate prosthetics artistry and costume design within the vibrant landscape of Nollywood narratives. However, the paper discovers that Nollywood designers are faced with myriad problems such as striking a balance between spectacle and authenticity in historically informed films, budget and time constraints, lack of technical advancements and innovations, limited resources, etc. The paper therefore concludes that achieving effective prosthetics artistry and character costuming in Nollywood films will set the stage for an intriguing analysis, creativity, resourcefulness, and impacts on extravagant cultural expression and authenticity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Portrayal of traditional values of any culture requires a high degree of accuracy. Quite some Nollywood films have continuously provided a misrepresentation of the indigenous culture and traditional values of Igbo people. Over the years, this misinformation has continued to serve as a guideline in the perception of their custom which stems from a place of colonial inferiority and bogus capitalist tendencies. Findings show that many Nollywood films are hastily churned out and distributed with little or no research. This paper aims to evaluate the extent to which the industry has gone to undermine the Igbo culture, in terms of religion, customs, social practices, intrinsic values, and cultural heritage. The study examines the correlation between the Nollywood space and the Igbo society, and more so, how detrimental many of the themes and messages they pass across continue to portray a biased and inept view of the Igbo culture. The paper interrogates the industry with the intent of shedding light on the misconceptions with a view to counter the narratives erroneously being peddled by the industry and to rectify the aberration evident in many of the Nollywood films. The study concludes that unprofessionalism, the quest for quick money, and the lack of creative strength to carry out adequate research about the history and traditions of a people before embarking on movie-making often lead to erroneous representations and sheer stereotyping of the people's way of life. The paper adopts Cultivation theory and qualitative methods of inquiry using secondary source materials in analyzing the issues involved. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While the literature is replete with the soft power potential of Nollywood and Afrobeats, no comprehensive analysis has been undertaken on the power of attraction of the Nigerian fashion industry. Given that the latter is one of the most critical industries in the Nigerian creative sector, an analysis of the soft power of the creatives is arguably incomplete without an account of the actual and potential soft power of the country's fashion industry. This article examines the increasing global appeal of the Nigerian fashion industry and argues that the sector has enhanced Nigerian soft power most especially in the spheres of cultural and economic diplomacy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lots of debates, contestations and criticisms have continued to trail the subjugation of women in Nollywood narratives. Film scholars and critics, especially those who tow the feminist line, keep bemoaning the manner in which patriarchy and male hegemony take centre stage in many Nollywood movies to the detriment of women. Employing the mixed research methodology (qualitative content analysis and key informant interview), this study explores the loud silence in women’s struggle for liberation in contemporary Nollywood narratives. Three widely acclaimed and contemporary movies – Muna (2019), Omo Ghetto: The Saga (2020) and Fine Wine (2021) – were content analysed to foreground and highlight male chauvinism and hegemony as well as women’s struggle for their liberation. Though women’s silence in the movies is as prolonged as it is loud, the fierce fight they later put up against male oppression comes as a great solace. Therefore, it is concluded that Nollywood film-makers should continue to give preeminence to such issues in subsequent narratives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lots of debates, contestations and criticisms have continued to trail the subjugation of women in Nollywood narratives. Film scholars and critics, especially those who tow the feminist line, keep bemoaning the manner in which patriarchy and male hegemony take centre stage in many Nollywood movies to the detriment of women. Employing the mixed research methodology (qualitative content analysis and key informant interview), this study explores the loud silence in women’s struggle for liberation in contemporary Nollywood narratives. Three widely acclaimed and contemporary movies – Muna (2019), Omo Ghetto: The Saga (2020) and Fine Wine (2021) – were content analysed to foreground and highlight male chauvinism and hegemony as well as women’s struggle for their liberation. Though women’s silence in the movies is as prolonged as it is loud, the fierce fight they later put up against male oppression comes as a great solace. Therefore, it is concluded that Nollywood film-makers should continue to give preeminence to such issues in subsequent narratives.

This article examines the representation of rape in Nigerian films, specifically "October 1" and "Alter Ego." It discusses the lack of adequate representation and awareness of rape in most Nigerian films and recommends that Nollywood filmmakers use their works to combat sexual violence. The article provides definitions of rape and acknowledges that men can also be victims. It discusses the physical, psychological, and sociological effects of rape on victims, as well as the economic and spiritual toll. The text emphasizes the need for social institutions to be involved in the fight against rape and highlights factors contributing to its prevalence. The article concludes by discussing the theoretical framework of self-control theory and its relevance in understanding impulsive responses towards sexual violence. It also analyzes the films "Aderopo" and "Alter Ego," exploring the themes of rape and its impact on victims. The text highlights the role of abnormal eroticism and hyper-sexuality in rape and raises questions about society's response to rape. It also discusses the vulnerability of rape victims in a society that prioritizes sexual gratification and the importance of seeking professional help for recovery. The article emphasizes the devastating impact of rape on victims and the role of social institutions in addressing the issue. It calls for parental involvement and education in preventing rape and emphasizes the need for collective efforts to combat sexual violence in Nigeria. [Extracted from the article]

The Covid‐19 pandemic inflicted socioeconomic harm on an unprecedented scale. Across the world and to varying degrees, cinemas were closed, festivals were cancelled or postponed, and film releases were moved to future dates or delayed indefinitely. In 2020 the entire global theatrical and home/mobile entertainment market totalled $80.8 billion, the lowest figure since 2016 and a decline of 18% from 2019. Theatrical entertainment accounted for only 15% of the total global entertainment revenue, compared to 43% in 2019. While some has been written about the effects of Covid‐19 on both international and local film industries, this article seeks to provide an African perspective focusing on the realities in Nigeria and South Africa, respectively. This article examines the importance of filmmaking industries in Nigeria and South Africa as well as the difficulties faced during the Covid‐19 pandemic. Copyright laws in both terrains are critically reviewed based on the capacity of these laws to protect the interests of film industries pre and post‐Covid‐19. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this essay, I revisit the history of the emergence and evolution of the Nigerian screen media industry (Nollywood) through the prism of the concept of "infopolitics" to develop an analysis of the interaction between media technology innovation and state control in Africa. After being a key preoccupation during Cold War, the issue of the state's capacity to control the production and flow of media content and data within its borders has become again the object of controversial debates in recent years, as shown by the multiplication of research on the issue of "digital sovereignty" and "platform capitalism." By focusing on an African case study to reflect on issues of global relevance, this essay shows how the analysis of African realities can help us in interrogating and complementing theories formulated in relation to western case studies (and generally uncritically applied to other contexts). Combining first-hand ethnographic data to the analysis of the research results of other scholars who have investigated the emergence and growth of Nollywood over the past decades, this essay follows media producers and their relationship to technologies and the state, over a period of forty years, from the introduction of the videotape to the arrival of streaming platforms. In so doing, this research puts into perspective the "presentism" of many recent works, which tend to see the introduction [End Page 625] of new digital technologies as the bearer of an unprecedented historical break, and makes an attempt at highlighting the links of continuity and discontinuity between recent transformations and the technological innovations which preceded them. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nigeria's film industry had a significant year in 1992. Since then, numerous films have faced criticism for promoting negative behavior and attitudes. However, this study challenges those claims, demonstrating that Nollywood films can promote positive attitudes and sustainable development. The study analyzed two films: Daybreak in Udi and Nigeria: A Squandering of Riches. To achieve this goal, Nollywood is expected to facilitate the needed development through productions aimed at persuading the people towards adopting values that enhance a better life and motivating them to greater heights in development. To this end, it was advanced that there was a need for Nollywood to revisit the change prism by making significant films geared towards social and cultural reorientation leading to sustainable national development rather than placing undue emphasis on entertainment value and box office returns. The study appealed to government at all levels and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) to come to the aid of the film industry to enable it play this significant role. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article analyzes representations of the value of university education, as depicted in selected Nollywood films and television serials. I analyze Tunde Kelani's film The Campus Queen in conversation with Funke Akindele's television serial Jenifa's Diary, drawing out in each of them the commentaries on higher education and its uses as well as limitations. In The Campus Queen, such moments of critique are realized through instruction-driven classroom scenes, while in Jenifa's Diary this happens through Jenifa's adaptation of the salon as a pedagogical space. The article also shows the lines of continuity between this representation of education and the earlier Yorùbá traveling theater's didactic intentions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Analogies have been drawn between therapeutic recovery and decolonization. This will mean that one can interrogate psychological effects of trauma on cultures or nations that undergo or have undergone colonization. If decolonization is perceived a form of therapy, colonialism is adjudged potential trauma. This paper is interested in understanding how colonialism could potentially traumatize a nation or given culture. It equally explores decolonization as a form of therapy. It thus analyses the trauma of colonialism in Kunle Afolayan's October 1 (2014). No scholarly work has been done on the analysis of colonial trauma in Nollywood film texts. This might be as a result of the paucity of film texts that speak to the theme. This paper is therefore interested in understanding how Nollywood ace filmmaker, Kunle Afolayan, uses his October 1 as a metaphor to mirror the traumatic effect of colonialism on Nigeria as a nation. It explores how the film's major characters' relations to their traumatic pasts provide insight to Nigeria's social history. This study attempts to visualize in Afolayan's characters, a Nigeria traumatized by colonialism. It further envisions the possible paths to Nigeria's survival of colonial trauma in these characters' chosen paths to recovery. Using psychoanalysis as framework, this qualitative analysis explores decolonization as therapeutic and contributes to decolonization discourses in African film studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Cahiers d'Études Africaines is the property of Editions EHESS and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Casting is one of the most crucial parts of the filmmaking process because performance can significantly impact how audiences and critics receive a film. Choosing the right actor can enhance your project, while a miscast role can diminish a particular character's believability, which can be detrimental to a film or TV show. Even if the character is unlikeable or an antihero, the audience must believe the actor's performance to remain invested. Finding the right talent for a role can be challenging because it requires a mix of critical analysis, instinct, and good timing. However, actors are constantly pigeonholed into roles that objectify them to a particular type. Why can't Patience Ozokwor be a good mother in-law for once in most of her movies or even Kanayo not being Portrayed as a ritualist all the time? Not much academic research has been sufficiently carried out to addressing casting conventions especially in Nollywood acting. This paper aimed to address this gap by gaining insight on casting practices from the writers, producers, and directors perspectives. The paper is standing on the Impression Formation Theory and Representational Theory that ascertain that stereotypes reduce an individual to few characteristics and may like to create untrue impression about a person. Qualitative methodology was used to find out data and results for the study. The researcher conducted interviews with some directors and actors and also served as an observer and participant in an auditioning and casting session, the researcher in the findings was able to reveal the intricacies of casting, including the prevalence of type. The paper therefore encouraged especially upcoming actors to shun being static and diversify in role-playing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Like other established institutions, organizations or academic disciplines, the film industry has its unique culture that is so peculiar to its operations locally or globally. While culture can be seen through the use of language, social values, religion, art and other approaches, in recent times, film has become a potent medium through which culture can be learned and disseminated. From the colonial era to the emerging digital era in Nollywood, there are operational cultures/traditions, ethics or principles that influence the operation of the industry from the production process (shooting, editing & premiere) to distribution, exhibition and consumption (audience patronage) stage. This paper examines the Nigeria film cultures from two perspectives: the pre/post Nollywood film production era, and the digital technology era, looking critically at how these impact production in Nigerian film industry. Relying primarily on literary evidence, the paper attempts to lay bare the ethical premise of the Nollywood film culture and how such is influencing the industry while foregrounding the intimacy that exists between film culture and institutional theory. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It could be reiterated that, of all the components of mise-en-cadre, cinematographic lighting is one of the most important features but this component had received little attentions from most Nigerian film critics or scholars. In most cases, this element is only used to explain or buttress relevant points in film theory and discourse. However, in this study, attention will be devoted on the deployment of cinematic lights and the various techniques used in selected Nollywood films. In the creative deployment of the 3-point lighting technique in selected cultural works of Yoruba Nollywood films, the researcher employed a library study, descriptive analytical cum studio diagnostic approaches as the basic methods of data gathering. The observation research method is deployed as secondary source of information. While a structuralist hypothetical approach is equally employed as a theoretical framework. In this exploration, the paper reviews the concepts of cinematic lighting before zooming on to discuss the key light, fill light and backlight as components of the 3-point lighting system. Practical analysis and demonstration are thus carried out with concrete sample shots from selected Yoruba films. Finally, it is recommended that a 3-point lighting technique should be creatively utilised as innovative device through which a director and the light-designer could create impressive and wonderful pictures and thus improve on the quality of Yoruba films. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article examines the representation of Pentecostal Christianity and African traditional religion in Edo-language (also known as Bini or Benin) video films. It discusses this in relation to English-language Nigerian religious video filmmakers' demonisation of African traditional religion in their films. The article responds to Birgit Meyer's work in her article "Religious Remediations: Pentecostal Views in Ghanaian Video-Movies". It adopts an ethnographic approach based on participant observation, and uses interviews with key Edo-language video filmmakers. The current scholarship on Nigerian religious video films mainly focuses on the representation of religions in English-language Nollywood films and creates the impression that the Nigerian video film industry is an area of homogeneous cultural production. In contrast, Edo-language film producers do not privilege Pentecostal Christianity or traditional religion in their films but use the values of the two religions, which they see as similar, to edify Edo citizens and to promote the wellbeing of Benin society. This article therefore challenges the view that all Nigerian films represent traditional religion negatively and calls for greater recognition of the particularity of indigenous-language religious video films. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While Nollywood, Nigeria's movie/film industry, may have had a chequered history, it has no doubt carved a niche for itself in the global space of the film industry. It currently stands as the most authoritative and authentic voice of Africa and the Black race in film discourse. Employing historical-analytic and direct observation methods, this paper examines how Nigerian moviemakers preserve the Nigerian/African ecosystem through their film locales. By building homes for the gods in the forests and on tree trunks, they preserve such trees, which would have fallen victim to modernisation by being used as planks and woods for various purposes. Unfortunately, this supposedly noteworthy effort is distorting reality and misrepresenting the way Africans relate with and treat their gods. Drawing from Gerbner's Cultivation Theory, the paper submits that Nollywood's concept of forests and tree trunks as the dwelling place of the gods might, over time, be assumed to be the norm rather than a fictitious creation of filmmakers by the viewers in contrast to reality unless it is addressed forthwith. It is, therefore, recommended that Nollywood filmmakers should not sacrifice the reality of the dwelling place of the gods in Africa for the purpose of achieving film richness and aesthetics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In spite of the homophobic nature of Nigerian society, the LGBTQ+ rights movement has been very visible in Nigeria. A number of local pro-LGBTQ+ initiatives have sought to challenge the conservative myths and homophobic stereotypes that prevail in the society. One method used for such advocacy has been avant-garde cinema, particularly lesbian or gay films. A case in point is Ikpe-Etim's 2020 romantic film titled Ife. As an unusual Nollywood movie, Ife strongly makes a case for the human rights of lesbian, bisexual, and queer women in Nigeria. Its very positive representation of what Nigerian legislation and censorial forces consider deviant sexualities has fueled a huge controversy in the Nigerian socio-cultural sphere. This controversy has been understudied. Using Anthonio Gramsci's concept of hegemony and the feminist film theory as interpretative tools, this paper examines how Ikpe-Etim's film is both a counter-hegemonic and queer feminist initiative. The paper argues that although Ife contributes to proselytism for LGBTQ+ rights and feminism in Nigeria, it has serious weaknesses and limitations. Despite the producer's and director's sexual identities and work as activists, straight Nollywood filmmakers have remained reluctant to join the LGBTQ+ rights movement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Youths are influenced habitually from what they see or hear through the internet, television, over the radio, reading books, or watching movies. In recent times Nollywood film industry and the new media have become the major sources of entertainment, inspirations and aspirations for the youths and even adults alike. This study, however, focuses on ritual representation and quick money syndrome themes in Nollywood films and thus applies Stuart Hall's Media Reception theory as a theoretical framework to evaluate how the receiver of media messages behaves. A survey design of a quantitative research method is employed to carry out the analysis of the numerical data generated for the study. The research findings reveal that there are changes in the behaviours of most of the Nigeria youths living in Awka metropolis as a result of seeing Nollywood movies on ritual killings and financial crimes which most of the respondents agreed is one of the reasons behind the get-rich-at-all-cost syndrome among today's youths. The researchers therefore recommend that the government of Anambra State/Nigeria should organize conferences, workshops and symposia for the filmmakers to ensure that film productions are being built on proper storylines different from ritual killings and the bastardization of the people's cultural practices. The script writers must be encouraged and sponsored to write scripts worthy of changing the prevalent narratives of money rituals and get-it-at-all-cost syndrome that is dominating more content in the Nollywood film industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Big Data is an all-encompassing term that refers to the accumulation of data in large pools employed in today’s global corporate world. Twitter is one such Big Data platform with over millions of tweets daily. Reading through the humongous volume of tweets posted with reference to an event such as a movie is practically impossible. Aníkúlápó is a movie of Nigerian origin that became the most viewed non-English film within a few weeks of its release on Netflix and in cinemas. The movie has been trending on social media, especially Twitter. While some reviews considered the movie as a literary masterpiece with several lessons to be learnt from it, some are either critical or indifferent. The paper explores the efficacy of analyzing the sentiments expressed on Twitter about the movie “Aníkúlápó” using Big Data Analytics. Data was programmatically obtained from Twitter using Twitter Application Programming Interface (API). Purposive sampling technique was adopted for sampling the reviews, and the major criterion for selecting a review was the inclusion or presence of the word “Anikulapo” in an original tweet, not retweet. Python programming language, Tweepy, TextBlob and Pandas were used for downloading, wrangling, cleaning, and analyzing the data. The findings showed that most tweets expressed positive sentiments, and the analysis of engagement metrics showed that tweets with positive sentiments received more likes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Neste artigo, tento problematizar a atuação da Netflix como agente do campo de poder que impacta as dinâmicas de funcionamento do campo de produção dos cinemas africanos, a partir da sua atuação na Nigéria. À luz de Bourdieu (1996), busco contextualizar o lugar da Netflix como uma instância de poder sobre os agentes criativos africanos, incentivando financeiramente seus projetos ao mesmo tempo em que impõem limites em termos temáticos, linguísticos e estéticos, além de manterem o controle sobre os modos de distribuição. Amparada no conceito de colonialidade do poder como discutida por Walter Mignolo (2020), interessa-me pensar a Netflix a partir dos supostos diferenciais que ela traz para essa relação: a participação ativa de agentes criativos do audiovisual africano e a promessa de alcance global, algo que nunca chegou a acontecer para os cinemas da África.

Its important features have carried cinema far beyond being a source of art and entertainment. Many studies on cinema have dealt with it from different perspectives. In the study, cinema is examined from a broad perspective through many different studies on cinema and research on Turkish films in the Internet Movie Database (IMDB). The main purpose of the study is to examine the cinema industry in Turkey, in terms of providing a comparison opportunity, with the USA (Hollywood), which has an important place in the world cinema industry, along with India (Bollywood) and Nigeria (Nollywood). In the first two parts of the study, the development of Hollywood, Bollywood and Nollywood film industries are discussed. In the third chapter, the birth and development of Turkish cinema is examined. In the fourth part of the study, movie contents in Turkish cinema are presented with examples. In the last part, ideas on the future of Turkish cinema are put forward through a general evaluation of Turkish cinema. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the box office success of the recent Black Panther films it may seem that Hollywood's approach to such films is slowly accommodating a domestic audience's demand for diversity. Yet, there is a danger in assuming that these films are still largely made for white audiences, since these audiences and their representatives in Hollywood boardrooms may become convinced that films like this are proof of Hollywood having engaged with Africa and done enough about diversity. This paper argues that to ensure the continued success of diverse artists in Hollywood and elsewhere the focus should extend beyond a study of the domestic market and look toward the formal 'alien esthetic' engagements and structure of the colonial gazing at spectacle that Hollywood demands all its audiences invest in. This paper presents Africa's established experience of super diversity and its recognized authority in the arts – particularly the way its formal esthetics of spectacle and fantasy exceed the visual and are entwined with the lived-conditions of its audiences – as central to approaching a deeper understanding of diversity in cinema. Drawing upon this "progressive African aesthetic" to expand Hollywood's formal engagement with fantasy and visual spectacle, opens an opportunity to decolonize Hollywood's gaze and understand diversity in cinema more deeply. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Globally, the cultural and creative industries have evolved to become a critical sector that contributes significantly to the growth and development of economies. Whereas most western nations have long identified the potentials inherent in the cultural and creative industries, nations in the global south still grapple with strategies that will facilitate the harnessing of the prospects in the creative industries. This paper seeks to explore the Nigerian Cultural and Creative industry sector and its contributory potential to the growth and development of the economy. Leveraging a critical analysis of extant literature, the paper highlights the immense potential inherent in the industry and how these have been facilitated by the evolution in digital technology and globalisation. While acknowledging the contribution of the film, music, fashion and other sectors to the industry, the paper argues that significant challenges must be addressed if the nation must achieve the desired growth from the industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research explores the unique approach to costume design in Nollywood, the Nigerian film industry. It focuses specifically on the epic film genre and discusses how Nollywood costume designers blend a variety of cultural and historical influences to create costumes that are both authentic and visually striking. It argues that this approach to costume design reflects the eclecticism and diversity of Nigerian culture while also highlighting the specificity and hybridity of the ethnic costumes represented in the film. Drawing on a close analysis of costume designs in Fred Amata's Ijele (1999) and Kingsley Orji's Eyes on the Throne (2019), the article offers insights into the creative processes and cultural context that inform this distinctive style of costume design. It uses the cultural hybridity theory by Bhabha Homi to explore the unique approach to costume design in films. Ultimately, the article demonstrates the importance of costume design in Nollywood epic films and argues that it plays a crucial role in constructing the visual and narrative world of these films. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This essay introduces this number, reflects on the future of African cinemas and the nature of the 'de-colonial' relation to global industries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hyginus Ekwuazi is one of the pioneer scholars of film studies in Nigeria. He completed his undergraduate education in the Department of English at the University of Ibadan, an MA and later a Ph.D. in the Department of Theatre Arts of the same university. His Ph.D. thesis, which investigated the context of film production in Nigeria, developed into the pioneer book Film in Nigeria. Ekwuazi's scholarship spans a period of about forty years, which has interestingly contributed to and influenced the careers of a much younger generation of students and scholars in the field. This article is a tribute to the intellectual labour and accomplishment of Hyginus Ekwuazi, as an administrator, film scholar, theorist, writer, laureate and intellectual of a remarkable reputation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This reflection explores the pioneering and critical contributions of Professor Hyginus O. Ekwuazi to the development of the Nigerian film, and film studies in Nigeria in particular, as well as to the growth of the African film in general. It highlights that Ekwuazi's scholarship and contributions – which span teaching and academic administration, research and writing, curriculum development, mentorship, corporate engagement and service to and engagement with industry – count among the earliest to inaugurate and define the discursive landscape of film studies in Nigerian universities. Nevertheless, the reflection contends, Ekwuazi's scholarship is not fossilized in the past. Ekwuazi has continued to advance the discourse on Nollywood with his ongoing research and writings, as he both highlights its improvements and also critiques its oversights. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent times female Nigerian filmmakers have integrated an array of counter interventionist measures in their movies in a bid to undercut patriarchy’s narrative primacy. This study investigates feminist responses to toxic masculinity in critical and commercially acclaimed Nigerian films, revealing how three female Nigerian directors leveraged their authentic experiences to demonstrate women’s social capacity without threatening patriarchy directly. The study analyzes how young female moviemakers deploy art as a narrative of struggle against a limiting sexist frame. Based on findings culled from visual research and dramaturgical analysis, the paper explores how three Nigerian movies, Omoni Oboli’s Wives on Strike, Stephanie Okereke Linus’s Dry, and Remi Vaughan-Richard’s Unspoken, pioneer social change through the stories of young people battling to survive in a sexist space. The study focuses on blockbuster Nollywood movies challenging misogynistic narratives, and contextualizes the process through which Nigerian movies construct the identity of the “Other” within dominant discourse.

This article examines the production practices that underpin the production of portal films in the Nigerian video film industry (Nollywood). Following the recent surge in the number of streaming portals focusing on the distribution of Nollywood films, a nascent video on demand (VOD) market has been created. This new market has given rise to a crop of filmmakers who now produce straight-to-portal films. This article draws on semi-structured interviews with 30 industry stakeholders comprising producers, directors, writers, and streaming executives. Adopting a critical media industry studies approach, I argue that, in the face of pervasive precarity in the Nollywood VOD market, portal filmmakers adopt informal social relations and 'hope labour' in navigating productions and ensuring the market is sustained. The article contributes to extant research on Nollywood's production dynamics and extends existing debates about precarity in cultural industries through a less-studied context like Nollywood. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]