Nigeria Cinema aka Nollywood – Introduction to the industry

by Tunji Akinsehinwa
Boston, USA

Often touted as the 2nd largest film industry in terms of the volume of films its produces, it is more prolific than Hollywood, producing over 1000 films compared to the USA’s 504 in 2023 but it still remains behind Bollywood. Nollywood’s films and TV series populate the main global streaming services like Netflix and Amazon, and its own indigenous online network called Ibaka TV. Nollywood contributes over $1billion dollars to Nigeria’s GDP, and it employs directly and indirectly approximately 1 million people.

Nollywood arose from the economic austerity of the 1980s when Nigerian filmmakers and actors collaborated to make their own films when money from the government dried up. They soon realised that they could sell these films. At first on video tapes and then on video compact discs. It was in 1992 that the first hit film Living in Bondage directed by Chris Obi Rapu materialised, generating a decent profit. It was not too long before other filmmakers and their backers (marketeers) realised this earning potential and soon the production of films was widespread.

Nollywood is the generic nickname given to Nigerian Cinema, however smaller film industries which are tribal in origin have emerged in other parts of the country. To the North of Nigeria which is predominantly Muslim (Fulani and Hausa) is Kannywood, based in the city of Kano. In the East the industry is located in Asaba (Igbos). The Yorubas dominate the South of the country with the main centre being in Lagos. What makes Nollywood so special is that films and stories focus on African issues and culture, and therefore enabling Nigerian and African audiences around the world to watch content they can likely relate to such as marriage, women’s issues, getting rich and even Vodoun/Juju.

Some of the major figures in Nollywood are women such as Mo Abudu who established EbonyLife and has turned it into one of the largest production companies in Africa. Its films and TV content populate Netflix. Actress and Director Funke Akindele has one of the longest running TV sitcoms, Jenifa’s Diary which began in 2008 and has amassed over 30 seasons. Her film, A Tribe Called Judah, is to date the highest grossing film Nigerian Movie. Bolanle Austen-Peter is a lawyer turned theatre director/film director who in 2024 directed the film titled Funmilayo Ransome Kuti, mother of Fela. Her work has won multiple awards. and is testament of Nollywood’s continuous rise to one of the world’s leading film industries.