The Nigerian movie industry first began producing films which were shot on celluloid by Nigerian filmmakers after the country gained it’s independence in 1960. Movies became a popular pastime with Nigerians who had more disposable income in the 1970s from an economic boom spurred by oil and other foreign investments. Movie theaters sprung up in Lagos, the country’s largest city, showing a mix of international and homegrown films.
PIVOT TO VIDEO: Nigerian cinema declined in the 1980s due to various factors, including devaluation of Nigeria naira, and lack of production equipment. Audiences flocked to a growing Nigerian video film industry, which released films shot on home video directly to television and sold VHS copies in local markets. “Video films”—full movies shot on video became industry-standard, after the home video sales of a movie, titled “Living in Bondage” turned into a blockbuster which was directed by Chris Obi in the year 1992.
RISE OF NOLLYWOOD: The success of video films transformed the Nigerian film industry into “Nollywood,” a global movie powerhouse and one of the largest employers in the country. Nigerian film companies turned out four to five films a day for an estimated audience of fifteen million in Nigeria and five million in other African countries.
NEW NIGERIAN CINEMA: Nollywood video films were low-budget productions at the time, though profitable. Government investment in Nigerian cinema and a wave of modern movie theaters that refused to show video films led to industry-wide changes in the 2000s. The result was the New Nigerian Cinema, which showcased professional production values, talented Nigerian actors, and complex stories. Audiences flocked to hit movies like: “Irapada” (2006) by Kunle Afolayan, and “The Wedding Party” (2016) by Kemi Adetiba, which set box office records and drew invitations from international film festivals.
TODAY: The New Nigerian Cinema made the Nigerian film industry the second-largest film sector globally, surpassing even the United States Hollywood, and became the third most profitable Film Industry globally, with a $5.1 billion valuation in 2013 which accounted for five percent of the Nigeria’s gross domestic product (GDP).
ORIGIN OF THE TERM “NOLLYWOOD”
The origination of the term “Nollywood” lies with two separate articles from the New York Times, which appeared in print in 2002 concerning Nigerian filmmaking. In both articles, the authors—Matt Steinglass and Norimitsu Onishi—used the term to describe the country’s motion-picture industry. The US media still uses “Nollywood” as a catch-all word for the Nigerian movie industry, African movies from neighboring countries, and African cinema made in a perceived “Nollywood style.”
CONTROVERSY AROUND THE TERM “NOLLYWOOD”
The term “Nollywood” has courted controversy for several reasons. Detractors say that the term, which originated with people outside of Nigeria, has a connotation with the country’s past as a colony of imperialist nations. Others note that “Nollywood” suggests that the Nigerian film industry is a carbon of “Bollywood” and Hollywood and negates its achievements and cultural identity.
Several filmmakers, including Kunle Afolayan and Tunde Kelani, have stated that the term ignores a prolific period in Nigerian film history before the phrase appeared in Western media in the 2000s.
