“The Challenges Before Us” – Amaka Igwe’s Speech at “Nollywood @ 20”

On Saturday, March 2nd 2013, the president held a dinner to celebrate “Nollywood at 20”. The following is an excerpt of the speech given by ‘veteran filmmaker, director and writer Amaka Igwe’

The full text of the speech was originally published by TheNetNg, the following is just an excerpt… read the rest at TheNetNg

…Great as all of this sounds however, it saddens me to admit that for a while now, we have spent too much time celebrating this phenomenon and lost focus on what it truly important; putting down a Superstructure for the realisation of the potentials of Nollywood as a socio-economic giant especially in our quest for the transformation of our father land. Because of its informal beginnings a lot has been left unattended on the growth path of Nollywood. We somehow assumed that things will take care of themselves as we went along. In places where we have made attempts, we have failed to follow through the processes that have led to true development in other places. After two decades of existence, we have a poorer distribution network than when we started. Where once our guilds and associations were worthy representations of our collective desires for a common front to tackle our issues, they are today a shadow of what they used to be. As nature never allows for a vacuum, piracy is at 82% because distribution is grossly inadequate. Where once our films sold copies in thousands of thousands over long periods, we can barely hold on to a two-week shelf life today and sales are dismal. Now more than anytime, we need a superstructure to cash in on the potentials of Nollywood.

Let us for a minute take a look at two different scenarios that clearly emphasis the need to build super structures now. If you visited the cinemas in Nigeria (an around the world) some 30 years ago, you will have no choice but to see a Chinese film, often with implausible storylines, funny sounds where you saw the punch land before you heard the sound. Due to government policies and interference, the Chinese movie industry stagnated at a point. In the time in-between, the Chinese saw how America used Hollywood to propagate its ideologies across the world, taking local American brands to international heights, turning their actors and studios into international money making ventures. Chinese filmmaking regressed badly. Now, the Chinese have learnt their lesson. In the recent past, they have built over 13, 000 cinema multiplexes in china, they drop 3 cinema screens a day through two companies created and funded by government, the 2^nd largest cinema distribution chain in America now belongs to the Chinese. They have also started making inroads into Africa and I can bet you Nollywood is their main target… perhaps we all should start learning Chinese! China’s aim is to outdo Americans in cultural, economic and ideological domination of the world using film.

The other example is of course, Bollywood. Have you seen a Bollywood film recently? Are you, like I am, amazed at the technical revolution that has taken place? We watched Indian films all those years ago and laughed at horses climbing walls and sound that doesn’t sync. Today Indian films are some of the top box office hits around the world, with over 20, 000 cinemas in India alone. They have expanded into America now, with over 200 cinemas bought to cater to Bollywood audiences. Some of the richest people in India are Bollywood filmmakers and distributors. Some Bollywood actors are so rich they own cricket clubs where they sign on players for a million dollars. When the Communist Chinese took a step back, Bollywood went forth and built superstructures….

Read the full text at http://thenetng.com/2013/03/nollywood-the-diamond-in-nigerias-jewel-by-amaka-igwe/

Image source: Nigerians Report