ADVERTISEMENT

Dollars, numbers and why most Nigerian movies look the same

In Nollywood, the mainstream is the only stream: filmmakers who hope to make some sort of return, or even get critical acclaim in the eyes of restrictive critics, must cater to the mass audience

To gentrify, according to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary means to change a place by improving it and making it more appealing to people who have more money.

In the context of Nigerian movies, it means to adapt or evolve into such a shape or form that would be more attractive to the majority; the middle class, or what in movies is called the mass audience.

In a country of 180 million people with more television sets than Britain has people, digital storytelling is as much a part of life in Nigeria as the events it depicts. Television shows like "Village Headmaster" and "Things Fall Apart" have become a part of folklore themselves.

In the years since then, more screens, handheld and wall-mounted have found their way into hands and homes. Nigerian movies have also found great success in that period.

ADVERTISEMENT

The golden era of movies like "Papa Ajasco" (which many regard to be Nigeria’s first true blockbuster) to Moses Olaiya’s "Mosebolatan" can only be matched by the resurgence of the 90s and classics like "Diamond Ring", "Living in Bondage" and Tunde Kelani’s Mainframe productions.

Starting with the 1996 epic "Irapada" starring Toun Oni, the best movies from the new age of Nollywood will send anything from those earlier eras to the cutting floor for a facelift. But that success has come at a cost that was too quickly paid.

That Nigerian movies could make money had been proved by filmmakers like Hubert Ogunde, but their viability on a commercial scale was secured by the Indigenisation Decree of 1972.

In line with that decree, foreign companies and individuals turned over a total of 300 movies to Nigerians. That opened the door for more Nigerian actors, producers and films to get involved.

The oil boom of 1973–1976 provided the finances that were needed to complete many local success stories. Storytellers could afford to shoot movies and the audience could afford to get to the cinemas or watch special broadcasts on television.

ADVERTISEMENT

That medley of circumstances inspired the greatest sales numbers till that point in Nigeria’s film history.

According to Oladapo Olatimehin's paper, "Cinema Business in Lagos, Nigeria since 1903", Wale Adenuga’s Papa Ajasco became the first blockbuster, grossing approximately ₦61,000, (adjusted for the inflation rates since then, that figure would come to approx. ₦21,552,673 in 2015). A year later, "Mosebolatan" (1985) by Moses Olaiya also went ahead to gross ₦107,000 (approx. ₦44,180,499 in 2015) in five days.

It was also during this period that the ethos of the Nigerian movie was created in bits and pieces.

Papa Ajasco made meals of the interaction between traditional roles and expectations and the aspirational appropriation and adoption of western culture within middle-class families, with a traditionally western ultra-humour as the main vehicle.

ADVERTISEMENT

In the '90s, where movies like Mosebolatan had set a foundation, the movies, such as 1992's "Living in Bondage" were driven by metaphysical elements. The alternative was usually fast-paced crime action, as seen in "Most Wanted", or a hybrid of both, as in "Diamond Ring" or the many cop-and-robber flicks.

This streamlining happened because the filmmakers now had indices of success to achieve.

With proven formulas established by earlier films, the choice of trying re-iterations or writing to fit what the audience was already familiar with was easy to make, almost second-nature.

Whether that evolution came to good or bad is difficult to determine.

Decades after, the momentum and other social factors have elevated the Nigerian film industry into a class that includes the American and Indian film industry, in production and value.

ADVERTISEMENT

Investment dollars have poured in. In 2010, the administration of President Goodluck Jonathan launched a ₦30 billion (US$200 million) “Creative and Entertainment IndustryIntervention Fund, financed by the Bank of Industry (BOI), in conjunction with Nigerian Export and Import Bank (NEXIM).

In 2013, a smaller new grant of ₦3 billion (US$20 million) was awarded once again solely for Nollywood, and specifically for the production of high-quality films, and to sponsor filmmakers for formal training in film schools.

Also in 2015, Bank of Industry launched another “NollyFund” program, in the form of loans for film producers.

They have been followed by multi-million dollar production projects and distribution companies such as the industry leader, FilmOne.

Side-by-side with this explosion, more than ever, Nollywood has become a factory of productions; many of the movies on its conveyor belt are cut on the same board and the evidence of the temptation to make big numbers has become all too obvious to see.

ADVERTISEMENT

Take 2016 for instance; heralded by most as one of the most remarkable years in Nigerian film history. The year’s two biggest movies were variations of that original ultra-humorous style in Ayo Makun’s “A Trip to Jamaica” and the new-age classic, “Wedding Party”.

It should be noted that some of the age-old social commentary has remained in Nigerian film-making and filmmakers have not shown much reluctance to address popular issues such as classism

However, what has gone missing is the courage to tell stories from a diverse range of nuanced perspectives. The use of eclectic story-telling techniques has been sacrificed for the approach that is familiar to the people who have fueled this new successful age of Nollywood; the audience.

The result is that the average Nigerian movie looks like the next one until something changes for a few scenes, and then it becomes the same again.

ADVERTISEMENT

Save for directors like Kunle Afolayan (who has consistently pushed the envelope with credits like "Irapada," "The Figurine" and this year’s “ROTI”), Imoh Umoren and a number of their peers, few filmmakers have inspired any major shift in how Nigerian stories are told.

Most of this is down to the absence of niche audiences, a plague that has scorched every other field of creative media in Nigeria.

Akin Omotosho's silent film "A Hotel called Memory" suggests that there are filmmakers courageous enough to address this. But while it is a good indicator, productions like this are too few and far between to foster any form of sub-culture, among producers or the audience.

The reality is that the mainstream is the only stream: producers and directors who hope to make some sort of return, or even get critical acclaim in the eyes of restrictive critics, must cater to the mass audience.

It has been said that a message is only as strong as its audience. In Nigeria, making something unusual, like a neo-noir movie for the cinemas is one of the best ways to ensure your audience has no idea what you're trying to pass across.

ADVERTISEMENT

Nevertheless, Nigerian movies are in their most successful phase ever and they have become the pride of a nation as well as an industry that supports hundreds of thousands around the country.

Convincing the film-makers who have made this happen to change a winning formula will be a very hard sell.

But in an age where content is easier to access than ever before, it remains to be seen how soon the Nigerian movie industry will begin to explore itself to remain in a place that its practitioners have undoubtedly earned.

JOIN OUR PULSE COMMUNITY!

Unblock notifications in browser settings.
ADVERTISEMENT

Eyewitness? Submit your stories now via social or:

Email: eyewitness@pulse.ng

Recommended articles

Victor AD features 2Baba, Mayorkun on debut album 'Realness Over Hype'

Victor AD features 2Baba, Mayorkun on debut album 'Realness Over Hype'

Dynamic duo Ajebo Hustlers taps Zlatan & Blaqbonez for 'Dreams II'

Dynamic duo Ajebo Hustlers taps Zlatan & Blaqbonez for 'Dreams II'

Nigeria's podcast surges 482%, Gospel streams rise to 1228% on Spotify

Nigeria's podcast surges 482%, Gospel streams rise to 1228% on Spotify

People are threatening to kill me and my son Liam - Mohbad's widow Wunmi

People are threatening to kill me and my son Liam - Mohbad's widow Wunmi

Spyro, Phyno deliver sensational blend of Afro Pop, Highlife with 'Shut Down'

Spyro, Phyno deliver sensational blend of Afro Pop, Highlife with 'Shut Down'

Oscar Heman-Ackah releases 'Finding Messiah' teaser — it's too good

Oscar Heman-Ackah releases 'Finding Messiah' teaser — it's too good

Sony’s Creators Convention redefines creative landscape for content creators

Sony’s Creators Convention redefines creative landscape for content creators

Eniola Ajao apologises for naming Bobrisky best-dressed female at movie premiere

Eniola Ajao apologises for naming Bobrisky best-dressed female at movie premiere

NFVCB wants to stop skits, Nollywood films from encouraging crimes

NFVCB wants to stop skits, Nollywood films from encouraging crimes

ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT