Western Influence on African Arts - Filmmaking

The African Film industry has had a roller coaster ride, starting off interesting and bubbling with the introduction of theaters arts, and then loosing momentum when just anybody thought they could pick up a camera and make a production. Now change is so desperately needed in the industry, and over the years the industry has seen a few producers/directors/writers try to come up with a different take into the multimedia industry. Now the Nigerian film industry is #3 in the world, following behind Hollywood and Bollywood. Ghana has also gained popularity in the film industry mostly by teaming up with Nigerians to produce films. This is not to say that the Industry does not still face a lot of challenges, and is not still mediocre; but there have certainly been a few improvements over the past years. Technology has played a significant role in the way the industry, is currently viewed. This development can be attributed to Western influence. Many of the African producers are going abroad to get trained and are getting themselves familiar with the new technology available.
Over the past couple of years we’ve seen the change in technology come to light in the Nigerian film industry, in series such as Tinsel, and the movie Ije. Africans can be proud of the work that the producers put into such productions.
When you research past production in Africa, it is very easy to see that there was no attention to things like Lighting and sound. Filmmakers just knew they wanted to make a movie and would pick up a camera and start filming. There are times when you would have to make sure you have the remote to your TV close-by so as to turn the volume up and down as the film goes on. Now African filmmakers through western influence have been able to learn what is required to put together a quality production that pays attention to detail. Picture and sound are also getting better, and editing is improving. It could take another 5-10years before a Nollywood production can stand side by side with a Hollywood one, but African producers have the right frame of mind and heading towards the right direction!

Tinsel(A Nigerian Soap-Opera) Studio


Nigerian Film Director - Kelani


Nigerian Music Video Director - Kemi Adetiba