Nollywood, as Nigerian film industry is familiarly called, is Africa’s leading film set-up in terms of appraisal and movie making. Producing more than 2,000 movies annually, Nollywood is no doubt a force to reckon with in filmmaking worldwide. The creation of Nollywood started in the 1960s. It was when the first Nollywood movies were being created by historical filmmakers such as Ola Balogun, Hubert Ogunde, Jab Adu, Moses Olaiya and Eddie Ugboma. They are considered the first generation of Nigerian filmmakers. These pioneers started the Nigerian movie industry in a country full of citizens that looked to Hollywood for their entertainment. In recent times, Nollywood has set its standard to meet other movie industries in the world with the emergence of professional actors and actresses like Genevieve Nnaji, Funke Akindele, Ramsey Nouah, Kunle Afolayan, Desmond Elliot and others.
NOLLYWOOD FINANCE
The Wedding Party a 2016 Nigerian romantic comedy-drama film, directed by Kemi Adetiba was premiered on 8 September 2016 at the Toronto International Film Festival in Canada and on 26 November 2016 at Eko Hotel and Suites in Lagos. The film was released worldwide on 16 December 2016, and became the highest grossing Nigerian film; a record which was broken in 2017 by its sequel The Wedding Party 2. With both raking in 435,050,000 Naira and 500,000,000 Naira respectively.
Funding can be a challenge for an average Nigerian film-maker as only a few options are available to be explored. One of the most common mode of raising funds for projects in Nollywood is soliciting funds from affluent figures and indigenous brands. Sometimes, the sponsors often require ‘slots’ or choose who they want to see in the movies. Oftentimes, sponsors require sex with actresses in exchange for financial support.
Richard Mofe Damijo (RMD)
With an estimated net-worth of $15 million, Richard Mofe Damijo popularly called RMD is the richest and highest paid Nigerian actor. RMD has multimillion naira endorsements deals with the likes of Glo and Heineken.
FEMALE INFLUENCE IN NOLLYWOOD
Nollywood like its Hollywood counterpart has been faced with several several sex-for-roles and gender inequality scandals. In Nollywood, its generally assumed that there are more successful actresses than actors. Some citing prostitution and favoritism as reasons. Nollywood has produced several successful actresses, one of the most notable is Omotola Jalade Ekeinde who was in 2013 honored in Time magazine's list of the 100 most influential people in the world alongside Michelle Obama, Beyoncé, and Kate Middleton.
Genevieve Nnaji
Genevieve Nnaji is a Nigerian actress and singer. She won the Africa Movie Academy Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role in 2005, making her the first actress to win the award. In 2006, she was honoured as a Member of the Order of the Federal Republic by the Nigerian government for her contribution to Nollywood. Genevieve Nnaji is considered one of the best-paid actresses in Nollywood. Presently, Genevieve Nnaji net worth comprises of over 8 million dollars (2016). Such a huge sum gives her the right to top the richest Nigerian actresses list. Moreover, Genevieve Nnaji is a talented entrepreneur. In 2008, she created her label and called it St. Genevieve.
Nollywood is popularly hailed in the media world for producing with little budgets and creating large amounts of content regardless. The film industry in Nigeria has great potentials and the world is watching.
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