Filming it up in Africa: the African Film Industry

Very few moviegoers probably realise that Nollywood, the Nigerian film industry is the second largest film industry in the world after the Indian film industry, Bollywood. Nollywood releases approximately 200 movies a month. Nevertheless most of these films are shot on a very low budget. In contrast to Nollywood is the South African film industry which is relatively small. This industry however competes more with Hollywood films than Nollywood. It is a difficult task for these industries to compete with the global giants of Hollywood and Bollywood, especially with the crippling effect of piracy that occurs heavily in Nigeria. This essay will look at these industries through the opinions expressed in various blogs from Africa and the USA. Blogs provide more personal, in-depth accounts about various issues rather than the supposedly objective reporting of journalists. The beauty of blogging is that it interacts with the reader as they are able to comment on the issue they have just read about.

Mr S. Okwunodu Ogbechie is an African art historian who writes about African art on his blog, http://aachronym.blogspot.com/. Although he lives in California, USA the blog specifically deals with African art issues. On the 25 June 2009 Ogbechie posted a report about the Nollywood industry and its current situation; however it was related to a CNN article published by Ms Mairi Mackay. Ogbechie was happy to release information to Ms Mackay provided that he was credited. Unfortunately Ms Mackay failed to credit him properly in her article. This raises another issue- the lack of respect towards African interlocutors. It also shows the West feels that African information is free and shouldn’t come at a cost.

The design of Aachronym is particularly standard with no unusual features. His latest posting appears at the top of the blog and as one scrolls down so does one see the older posts. There is one sidebar on the right hand side that provides information about the blogger, namely Ogbechie. Below this information is a map providing information about the location of visitors to the blog. Below this map is an archive of all the posts by Ogbechie. It is relatively simple to nagivate around the website. Ogbechie posts at least one article a week on his blog.
Ogbechie posted the interview that was carried out between him and Mackay. Ogbechie generally is very optimistic about the development of Nollywood which only began in the 1960’s. This is apparent in his post, http://aachronym.blogspot.com/2009/06/cnn-story-on-nollywood-problems-of.html. He speaks optimistically about how it is the first film industry that is “completely owned and operated by Africans” (Ogbechie, 2009). The films made in Nigeria are very popular throughout Africa and are starting to grab a foothold in other continents such as Latin America. Despite this optimism there are vast challenges facing the industry, which are mainly economic ones. One of the biggest challenges threatening the growth of this industry and many other global industries is piracy. Approximately 50% of the profits from these films are lost to piracy. The minute films are produced copies are sent to China for pirating. Filmmakers are worried that as technology develops, pirates will be able to store more films onto a DVD thus allowing them to sell films at a cheaper price. This consequently will further cripple the industry. As a result of piracy there are very few traditional cinemas left in Nigeria. Most people watch films at home.

A side blog on the Reuters news website, http://blogs.reuters.com/africanews/2009/03/05/is-africa%E2%80%99s-film-industry-losing-its-light/ has a post by Ms Katrina Manson that titled, Is African film industry losing its light? This report reveals the lack of technology available in Africa to shoot movies on 35mm film. As Manson reports, “Currently only North Africa and South Africa have studios equipped for 35mm” (Manson, 2009). The majority of African films are shot on digital thus allowing the films to be edited at home. This is a similar problem in South Africa, where there is little infrastructure for post-production. Much location filming is done in South Africa but then the film is sent to Europe or the USA for post-production. It is significant to note that the comments by readers do not comply with that of the journalist, Manson. A comment by the reader Tilewa accounts for the fact that even if the films don’t win overseas awards they are nevertheless very popular in Africa. The reader, Wirndzerem feels that Nollywood is on the right track by telling African stories for an African audience with the available technology. What is the point of shooting films on 35mm when this technology is unavailable in Africa? This is an example where the blog comments contribute greatly in order to create a much richer glance into the topic at hand.

http://khanya.wordpress.com/is a South African blog. Khanya means ‘shine’ in Zulu and ‘glory’ in Sotho. Mr Steve Hayes who writes the posts describes himself as an Orthodox Christian. It therefore has a strong religious leaning that influences a number of the posts. It was thus ironic to find an in-depth review of District 9, a science fiction film. Hayes decided to move his blogs from Blogger to Wordpress as he was unhappy with the new features on Blogger. This blog is on wordpress unlike Aachronym which is on Blogger. Wordpress is generally very similar to Blogger. The most recent posts like Blogger appear at the top of the website. It also has a sidebar with features such as ‘most recent posts’, ‘top posts’ and ‘recent comments’.

Hayes and his wife went to watch the new film, District 9. His post on District 9 is, http://khanya.wordpress.com/2009/09/08/district-9-science-fiction-as-social-satire/ . This film was produced by the highly successful director of the Lord of the Rings trilogy, Peter Jackson. In all respects it is a South African film although it was released by Tristar pictures. It was directed by a South African, Neil Blomkamp and the main character, Wikus van der Merwe is played by the South African actor, Sharlton Copley. Hayes’ review is in all respects very informative. His review has captured the themes in the film: a satire on xenophobia and the South African history of forced removals that occurred during the apartheid era. It is highly ironic that whilst they were filming District 9 in Johannesburg, xenophobia attacks were occurring in the same area. In the film set in 1982 citizens of Johannesburg vent feelings of xenophobia against the aliens called prawns who live in an informal settlement on the outskirts of the city. In the film there is also a satire on the Nigerian gangsters who trade with the prawns. Many South African citizens have had dealings and know of the infamous criminals that are prevalent in South Africa. For Hayes who would have lived in South Africa during Apartheid, it is evident in his review that the forced removals of the prawns, “has a whiff of the old apartheid-style ethnic cleansing” (Hayes, 2009). More so there are still forced removals happening in present day South Africa as the government is forcing residents to relocate out of informal settlements so that they can build new houses in the proposed areas.

Although both Hayes’ blog and Ogbechie’s blog deal with African films, one can assume that on an economic standing District 9 has been incredibly successful in comparison to recent Nigerian films. To date District 9 has made $117 million. This is mainly due to the excellent reception it received in the USA. It competed with the other Hollywood movies whereas very few American films or South African films show Nigerian films. Although Nollywood films are incredibly popular in Nigeria they have not made a breakthrough in many other countries around the world. Nevertheless films such as District 9 face similar problems as Nigerian films with regards to piracy and illegal copying of movies. Western critics and interlocutors however do receive the necessary credits whereas African interlocutors obviously do not receive enough credit from the West.

Timothy Burke is a professor at Swarthmore College near Philadelphia in the USA. His blog, http://weblogs.swarthmore.edu/burke/, is written in a particularly academic frame of mind which should be expected considering it is written by an academic. His blog post, http://weblogs.swarthmore.edu/burke/2009/09/02/district-9/ about District 9 is not merely a review, it questions the way the movie was filmed and the questions it raises. He uses the blog to reiterate the “internal dialogues” going through his mind. Burke is fascinated by the comparison between District 9 and South Africa’s apartheid history. He felt that “it’s a fantastic film to show in a course that deals with cosmopolitan identity, hybridity, and creolization in colonial and postcolonial societies” (Burke, 2009). Unlike Hayes, Burke picked up on another theme- the castaway or abandoned character in alien territory. For Wikus van der Merwe this is certainly is plight has he starts evolving into a prawn alien. Burke confronts this situation and this scenario the protagonist, Wikus does not come out supreme as is the case of Tarzan. Burke also highlights his suspicions of the characterization of the Africans especially the Nigerians in the film. Burke feels that Blomkamp has specifically invoked a theme of South African xenophobia through his portrayal of the Nigerian gangsters. The Mail and Guradian online posted an article, http://www.mg.co.za/article/2009-09-20-nigerian-official-rails-against-district-9, in which Nigeria’s information minister Dora Akunyili asked all cinemas in Nigeria to stop screening District 9 as it portrayed Nigerians in a bad light. Furthermore Akunyili asked the filmmakers to edit out the scenes with the Nigerian gansters. Burke is thus right to think it risky to include ‘aliens’ alongside African people in the same film. On the whole Burke is incredibly impressed at the questions that District 9 raises to an audience. For him it is also a very successful science-fiction film. Burke’s blog entitled Easily Distracted is neatly and simply set-out with a focus on the text. There are very few images to support the text. Similar to both other blogs, Easily Distracted contains a sidebar with his archives and linking pages. Burke’s post on a South African movie dealing with South African issues is very insightful but this is coming from a History professor with a focus on Africa. It is fascinating to read the varying opinions and blog styles from one country. For example, a Texan blog, http://ourworldofus.blogspot.com/2009/09/district-9-and-south-africa.html shows how ignorant some people are of Africa. The blogger obviously has no interest in seeing a film related to African issues. To help the ignorant reader, the blogger pointed out that SA stands for South Africa and Joburg is short for Johannesburg.

Film is certainly alive in the African continent, as these blogs have certainly shown. There has been much development is this field over the past 50 years. Blogs offer one the chance to hear people’s opinions and feelings in a world dominated by media in which so-called ‘objectivity’ abounds. It is apparent to see that Nollywood is very successful in Nigeria and other African countries but hasn’t managed to breakthrough on an international scale. Nollywood needs the finances so that they can produce 35mm film and compete with other international movies. Aachronym is a highly informative African blog. Ogbechie has researched Nollywood’s current situation and has highlighted the issues affecting it such as piracy. The Khanya blog provides a detailed review of the South African film, District 9. Unlike most blogs, Hayes provides a straightforward look at the film with few opinions about the film. The American blog, Easily Distracted on the other hand shows Burke’s specific interest in the film’s themes such as xenophobia and creolization. He also makes the reader aware of his perceived weaknesses inherent in the film such as the portrayal of Nigerians as gangsters. This is a sensitive topic as many South African will generalize Nigerians as gangsters. Burke was very impressed with District 9 which can be enjoyed by any science-fiction enthusiast or by someone interested in South Africa’s past history and the themes of forced removals and xenophobia. The design of these three blogs is generally quite similar. It is the content which differs in particular. Aachronym is written in an informed style, Khanya is more informal in its style and Easily Distracted is intellectual and academic, which is appropriate since he is writing about the underlying themes in District 9. According to the views shared by these blogs it is clear to see that much optimism currently abounds in the African film industry.