Summary

Conferences serve the purpose of enriching existing or generating new knowledge about a phenomenon. The Nollywood in Africa conference was no exception. Because Nollywood’s growth is rapid and diversified, forums for discussing its presence, activities and impact have to be as vibrant the industry itself. With a keynote address, two lead papers and 28 others from film scholars, the conference could not have been more dynamic. The uniqueness of the event was evidenced by the mix of academics and film practitioners whose experience gave an enormous lift to the robust discussions at the conference. The event ended on a note of further collaboration between the academia and the film industry, for what use is an industry whose practices cannot be documented for posterity?

Introduction

The School of Media and Communication (SMC) of the Pan-African University, Lagos, Nigeria concluded its annual conference on the theme: ‘Nollywood in Africa, Africa in Nollywood’ which held from Thursday July 21 – Saturday July 23, 2011. Convened by Onookome Okome under the auspices of Emevwo Biakolo (Dean, SMC), the conference attracted Nollywood practitioners and film scholars from Lagos, USA, Barbados, Italy, India, South Africa and other parts of Africa. The keynote speaker, John McCall of the Southern Illinois University, Carbondale spoke on “The Good, the Bad and the Unintended: Nollywood and the Consequences of Culture”. He described Nigeria’s motion picture industry as upwardly global and resolutely African. With the keynote, two lead papers from Jonathan Haynes and Jane Bryce, three practitioners’ roundtables and 28 other papers from scholars within and outside Nigeria, the conference provided a stimulating environment for passionate discussions surrounding the Nigerian film industry.

Conference events and participants

With an estimate of 150 attendees, the plenary sessions explored the production and circulation of culture, representations of women in Nollywood, prospects and challenges of producing and viewing Nollywood products, reception and audience dynamics in Los Angeles, the Caribbean and other parts of the globe.  

Among the guests that graced the 3-day event were: Vincent Maduka, former DG, NTA; Victoria Ezeokoli, Frank Ukadike, Emeka Mba, DG, NFVCB; Tex Benibo representing MD, NFC; Juniper Musa of Africa Magic, Bond Emeruwa, Paul Obazele, Stella Damascus-Aboderin, Zack Orji and a host of members from guilds and associations within the motion picture industry.

The highlight of the conference was the inauguration of the Nollywood Studies Centre (NSC) by Emeka Mba. First of its kind in Africa, and indeed the world, the initiative has been designed to digitize and archive Nollywood (and other African) films as well as literature. This will facilitate access for scholars seeking to research the film industry. The SMC has constituted an advisory board for the NSC and other preliminary steps aimed at ensuring the smooth running of the centre are underway. With requisite partnerships, the SMC management hopes to bring a film scholar to the centre annually to carry out substantial research work.

The first lead paper by Jane Bryce was titled "Watching African films in Barbados".  It presented a survey of audiences viewing African and specifically Nigerian films in the Caribbean Islands. The speaker noted the reception given to the films as well as the socio-cultural contexts of spectatorship. Nigerians and other Black Africans in Barbados use the films to keep abreast of events, fashion styles and political events in Nigeria. Such films fondly remind the viewers of home while also enabling them identify elements of their social lives as portrayed by the characters in the film narrative. The speaker read verbatim some of the comments from the audiences she interviewed.

A second lead paper was delivered by Jonathan Haynes, “Campus Films: A Nigerian Film Genre". He stated that it's about time Nigerian academics started defining the prevailing genres in Nollywood rather than using Western classifications that do not recognise Nigerian culture and filmmaking practices. He identified 18 films shot on difference campuses within Nigeria and highlighted the themes - about 20 of them - that run through the films. Okome’s reaction to this paper highlighted the fluidity of genres. Any attempt at genre classification ought to be presented as tentative since campus films featuring cult activities could well be labelled ritual films in another context.
 
The problems of Nollywood as articulated by the filmmakers during the event were the same - insufficient (or complete lack of) government and institutional support, no funding, piracy, and other infrastructural glitches.
 
The debate on Nollywood’s portrayal of the Nigerian identity is endless. On one side of the divide are scholars who think Nollywood should set about representing Nigeria in positive light, and should refrain from playing up any negative aspects of the nation. This was espoused by Chidi Onwubere in her paper ‘Open Schooling and the Audience of Nollywood: What Relevance?’ The thrust of her argument was the pedagogical nature of films which Nollywood practitioners seemed to ignore.  The filmmakers did not buy the argument. Responding to Onwubere, Rajesh Kumar of India noted that films are primarily tools of entertainment. If they became pedagogic while entertaining viewers, that would be welcome. But the entertainment value should be second to none, he noted.

The subject of women in Nollywood was addressed. The focus of the discussion was that Nigerian films are now throwing up issues of liberation and empowerment for women. Formerly seen as the weaker sex, the tools for men's gratification, and the subservient, women were represented as means by which the male figure achieved his objectives. This is changing. Now, they call the shots, dictate what should and should not be done in offices and homes, ask their husbands to cook and perform other domestic chores and wield the same power that men do in almost all spheres of life including taking chieftaincy titles and spearheading community development. Patience Ozokwor is a Nollywood actress that a presenter, Aje-ori Agbese, used to substantiate her position in the debate.  Her paper was titled, ‘Defining Women’s Liberation and Empowerment in Nigeria through Movies – A look at Women’s Cot, Women in Power and The Bank Manager.

A presentation by Babson Ajibade drew financial support for the on-going research from the director general of the NFVCB, Emeka Mba. The paper titled, ‘Visual Litmus of Religious Otherness: the Placement of TVs in Nigerian Video Shops’ gave “compelling field-based evidence that the placement of TVs in video shops across Nigeria may indicate the extent of religious patriarchy in society”.

In the roundtable on Policies, Policing Nollywood and the Business Side of Producing Culture, Emeka Mba reiterated that it was impossible to police culture. “We cannot set an agenda for the filmmakers” he submitted, but the distribution, circulation and consumption of their products can and should be checked by all stakeholders. Juniper Musa, Channel Head, Africa Magic was present to discuss the economic aspects of airing of Nigerian films, and what that might amount to for filmmakers.

Conclusion

After three days of stimulating discussions, the conference organisers and participants needed to unwind. The screening of Izu Ojukwu’s Sitanda (2007) and the conference dinner provided the much needed avenues for relaxation and networking. Further collaboration among conferees, future Nollywood conferences and projects were the topics of conversation after the paper presentations. The SMC hopes to continue working to put the Nollywood Centre in proper shape for researchers.