Dynamic, vital, unstoppable: films from Nigeria are great experiences
Nollywood? Yes, Nollywood - in the style of Hollywood - does indeed exist, but not on the sunny west coast of the USA, but in the West African country of Nigeria. Films have been made in Nigeria since the 1970s and on a larger scale since the 1990s. According to estimates, up to 2500 films are produced in Nigeria every year. This makes Nigeria the second largest film nation in the world after India and ahead of the USA.
According to director and film producer Okechukwu Ogunjiofor, who is regarded as the ‘inventor’ of Nollywood, the new Nigerian cinema was born out of a personal need: as a young, penniless graduate, he was overflowing with stories to tell. Kenneth Nnebue, a dealer who sold empty video cassettes and distributed Yorubian films at the Idumota market in Lagos, advanced him the money that made the first Nollywood film ‘Living in Bondage’ (1992) possible. For Ogunjifor, cinema in the 1990s was ‘guerrilla cinema’, shot with light equipment and without a break.
From 1999, the production of Nollywood films exploded when the now civilian government largely reintroduced freedom of expression and freedom of the press in Nigeria. Since its beginnings, Nigerian film production has changed dramatically. Today, it offers a kaleidoscope of everyday life in Nigeria, the country's history and its diverse connections abroad.
Our small Nollywood collection includes six vital films from Nigeria, four of which were directed by Imoh Umoren. The short film ‘Akwuna’ about a Nigerian woman's struggle to survive was made outside of Nollywood in the USA.
Nollywood? Yes, Nollywood - in the style of Hollywood - does indeed exist, but not on the sunny west coast of the USA, but in the West African country of Nigeria. Films have been made in Nigeria since the 1970s and on a larger scale since the 1990s. According to estimates, up to 2500 films are produced in Nigeria every year. This makes Nigeria the second largest film nation in the world after India and ahead of the USA.
According to director and film producer Okechukwu Ogunjiofor, who is regarded as the ‘inventor’ of Nollywood, the new Nigerian cinema was born out of a personal need: as a young, penniless graduate, he was overflowing with stories to tell. Kenneth Nnebue, a dealer who sold empty video cassettes and distributed Yorubian films at the Idumota market in Lagos, advanced him the money that made the first Nollywood film ‘Living in Bondage’ (1992) possible. For Ogunjifor, cinema in the 1990s was ‘guerrilla cinema’, shot with light equipment and without a break.
From 1999, the production of Nollywood films exploded when the now civilian government largely reintroduced freedom of expression and freedom of the press in Nigeria. Since its beginnings, Nigerian film production has changed dramatically. Today, it offers a kaleidoscope of everyday life in Nigeria, the country's history and its diverse connections abroad.
Our small Nollywood collection includes six vital films from Nigeria, four of which were directed by Imoh Umoren. The short film ‘Akwuna’ about a Nigerian woman's struggle to survive was made outside of Nollywood in the USA.
Nollywood? Yes, Nollywood - in the style of Hollywood - does indeed exist, but not on the sunny west coast of the USA, but in the West African country of Nigeria. Films have been made in Nigeria since the 1970s and on a larger scale since the 1990s. According to estimates, up to 2500 films are produced in Nigeria every year. This makes Nigeria the second largest film nation in the world after India and ahead of the USA.
According to director and film producer Okechukwu Ogunjiofor, who is regarded as the ‘inventor’ of Nollywood, the new Nigerian cinema was born out of a personal need: as a young, penniless graduate, he was overflowing with stories to tell. Kenneth Nnebue, a dealer who sold empty video cassettes and distributed Yorubian films at the Idumota market in Lagos, advanced him the money that made the first Nollywood film ‘Living in Bondage’ (1992) possible. For Ogunjifor, cinema in the 1990s was ‘guerrilla cinema’, shot with light equipment and without a break.
From 1999, the production of Nollywood films exploded when the now civilian government largely reintroduced freedom of expression and freedom of the press in Nigeria. Since its beginnings, Nigerian film production has changed dramatically. Today, it offers a kaleidoscope of everyday life in Nigeria, the country's history and its diverse connections abroad.
Our small Nollywood collection includes six vital films from Nigeria, four of which were directed by Imoh Umoren. The short film ‘Akwuna’ about a Nigerian woman's struggle to survive was made outside of Nollywood in the USA.