"Show me a soul who doesn't love any form of the media and I will tell you that person is insane"
The African movie industry has been a loyal and steadily progressing form of entertainment. Gone are the days when we sat together as a family and watched movies about evil forests and spirits, newer battles in the movie industry are being fought, such as rape, corruption, bitterness, love and so on. With progress comes change, either negative or positive but I must say that the progress of the African movie industry is causing a positive change. Our directors have peaked and are making mind-blowing movies not just purely for entertainment but also to pass messages across. There is so much history associated with the movie industry, Africa being part of the history, here are a few facts about the African movie industry
1. Tunisia's cinema and Egypt's cinema are both among the world's oldest. In 1896, Auguste and Louis Lumière, pioneers in the film industry, presented their films in Alexandria, Cairo, Tunis, Soussa, and Hammam-Lif.
2. In terms of volume, number of annual films, revenue, and popularity, the Nigerian film industry is the largest in Africa. It is also the world's second-largest film producer.
3. A New York Times piece gave birth to the term "Nollywood." In 2002, A New York Times piece described movies made or produced for the Nigerian audience or any movie relating to the Nigerian industry as Nollywood.
4. Sembène Ousmane's La Noire de..., popularly known as Black Girl, was the first African film to receive international prominence. It depicted the anguish of an African lady forced to work in France as a maid. In 1966, it was awarded the Prix Jean Vigo. Sembène, originally a writer, had switched to film to gain a bigger audience. He is still known as "African cinema's patriarch."
5. NTA produced the first wave of Nollywood stars.
The bulk of performers, writers, directors, and producers in the early years of the Nigerian film industry were former Nigerian Television Authority employees (NTA). After the media house stopped producing content, the majority of its staff moved to the movie industry.
6. Kenneth Nnebue's film, 'Living in Bondage,' was released in 1992, around 30 years ago, and it essentially established Nollywood. Although it was not the first film made in Nigeria, 'Living in Bondage' is largely regarded as the film that propelled Nollywood forward.
7. Ghana was one of the first African countries to gain independence, as well as one of the first in the post-colonial era to build its own film industry.
8. In the 1960s, Nollywood was established. It was then that historical filmmakers like Ola Balogun, Hubert Ogunde, Jab Adu, Moses Olayia, and Eddie Ugboma developed the first Nollywood films. They are the first generation of Nigerian filmmakers, according to "History."
9. Palaver, directed by Geoffrey Barkas in 1926, was the first feature film made in Nigeria and featured Nigerian performers in significant parts.
10. Nollywood, Nigeria's movie industry has been estimated to generate between $500 million and $1 billion on a yearly basis in revenue. That's a lot of money!
This was a lot of fun, I have been educated and refreshed by the facts. Please feel free to comment what other fact you know about the Nigerian movie industry in the comment section.
Post a Comment