A movie director, actors and a soundman on the set of a low-budget Nollywood movie production. Photo: Panos/Jacob Silberberg
As
an entrepreneur, 32-year-old chemistry graduate Jason Njoku achieved
success in a most unlikely way: he is Africa’s largest distributor of
Nigerian movies, and has raked in over $8 million since 2010, when he
founded the company Iroko Partners.
In December 2012 he captivated an
audience at a conference in Texas, United States, as he narrated the
story of his success after failures in some other business ventures. Mr.
Njoku currently has 71 employees in Lagos, London and New York, and
often boasts that “these people are working for us in a country with 50%
unemployment.” He was recently listed by Forbes, an American business magazine, as one of the top 10 young African millionaires to watch.
The Nigerian film industry is undoubtedly helping create
jobs in a country with an economy that relies mainly on oil and
agriculture. Over a million people are currently employed in the
industry, making it the country’s largest employer after agriculture.
Although Nigeria’s economy will grow by 7% this year, according to the
African Development Bank, insufficient jobs for a growing youth
population continue to be a huge concern.
One million new jobs
The Nigerian film industry, also known as Nollywood,
produces about 50 movies per week, second only to India’s Bollywood—more
than Hollywood in the United States. Although its revenues are not on
par with Bollywood’s and Hollywood’s, Nollywood still generates an
impressive $590 million annually. Believing that if the industry is
properly managed, a million more jobs could be created in the sector,
the World Bank is currently assisting the Nigerian government to create a
Growth and Employment in States project to support the entertainment
industry, along with other industries.
Chioma Nwagboso, a World Bank finance and private sector
specialist, says that the Bank understands the job creation potential of
the Nigerian film industry and the need for a “fruitful export for the
country.” Without initial support from the government, Nollywood
propelled itself to the position it occupies today, and a little lift
could take the industry to even greater heights, she adds.
Low production costs
Koïchiro Matsuura, former
director-general of the United Nations Educational Scientific and
Cultural Organization (UNESCO), says that “film and video production are
shining examples of how cultural industries, as vehicles of identity,
values and meanings, can open the door to dialogue and understanding
between peoples, but also to economic growth and development.” The
African film industry is not only an entertainment industry; it is also a
moneymaker. Film industry analysts believe that the Nigerian cinema is
the most popular on the continent.
Nollywood films have a large following in
Africa and among Africans around the world. They gained popularity
during the digital revolution of the early 1990s when camcorders
replaced 35-millimeter film cameras, and digital systems replaced
celluloid as recording devices. At the time, while some parts of the
world adapted to the new digital technology, Nigeria continued to use
inexpensive VHS tapes and players that were easily accessible and
affordable to consumers. Eventually film technology evolved as movies
made on DVDs started to generate huge demand.
On average, producing a movie in Nigeria
costs between $25,000 and $70,000, says the British Broadcasting
Corporation. The films are produced within a month and are profitable
within two to three weeks of release. Most DVD movies easily sell more
than 20,000 units, while the most successful ones sell over 200,000. But
despite the success of the movies, Nollywood actors’ incomes are low.
Even the most popular get paid between $1,000 and $3,000 per film. Only a
few can claim higher earnings. Actress Omotola Jalade Ekeinde, one of
Nollywood’s highest-paid performers, recently topped the charts at 5
million naira ($32,000) per film.
Tackling Piracy
Author Patrick Ebewo attributes the
popularity of Nigerian movies not only to their low unit costs, but also
to their “indigenous content of issues relevant to a mass audience.”
Through a combination of African storylines and Western technology,
“these films document and recreate socio-political and cultural events,”
states Mr. Ebewo.
But Nollywood’s popularity also means
serious piracy problems. The World Bank estimates that for every
legitimate copy sold, nine others are pirated. “In terms of exports,
these movies are purchased and watched across the world — in other
African countries, Europe, USA and the Caribbean, and almost all the
exports are pirated copies,” remarks Ms. Nwagboso. She adds that because
there are currently few legal channels for exporting movies, few or no
returns go to the filmmakers and practically no revenue goes to the
government. The current collaboration between the World Bank and the
Nigerian Export Promotion Council, the Nigerian Copyright Commission and
the National Film and Video Censors Board is therefore necessary and
urgent, many analysts believe.
Legitimate distributors also want an end
to piracy. “We’re the first guys to actually legally reach out in Lagos
to the production houses, the owners of the movies, and negotiate and
sign deals with these guys so they can finally get remunerated for their
hard efforts,” claims Mr. Njoku.
Shining light
The Nigerian government and other industry players,
assisted by the World Bank, hope to fund anti-piracy measures such as
the source identification code, which will create “a digital
distribution platform for Nigerian films.” The code will connect video
clubs and retail outlets and ensure that only digitally secured content
can be rented.
Euromonitor International and Reed Exhibitions, organizers
of the World Travel Market, a global event for the travel industry,
predicted in their November 2012 report that Africa’s projected 5.2% GDP
growth rate in 2013 would be due in part to the popularity of the
Nigerian film industry, which it said would also attract domestic and
regional tourism. While Nigeria was hosting the industry’s top brass in
March, President Goodluck Jonathan referred to Nollywood as “our shining
light,” adding that “whenever I travel abroad, many of my colleagues
ask me about Nollywood.” The challenge is to ensure this light shines
even brighter in the future.
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