Move over Nollywood - Nigerian teens with smartphones crowdfund their way into films

Record ID: 1427240

  • Title: Move over Nollywood - Nigerian teens with smartphones crowdfund their way into films
  • Date: 14th August 2019
  • Summary: LAPTOP SCREEN
  • Embargoed: 28th August 2019 16:20
  • Keywords: crowdfunding teenagers Nollywood smartphone film
  • Location: KADUNA, NIGERIA
  • City: KADUNA, NIGERIA
  • Country: Nigeria
  • Topics: Arts / Culture / Entertainment,Human Interest / Brights / Odd News,Society/Social Issues
  • Reuters ID: LVA003ASBV2AH
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: In a compound in Nigeria's north-western state of Kaduna, Godwin Josiah and his cousins hang green fabric on a gate as they get ready to shoot a movie scene.
    Using a smartphone and a tripod made from a broken microphone stand, they start filming. A blower generates wind which hits the actor who, in the film, will be flying through the air.
    These days, sci-fi films are made using sophisticated software. But the films created by these boys use every day, recycled items and their works have catapulted them into social media darlings.
    "Well the main aim was not for our stuff to go viral, we just wanted people to see that okay there are kids in Kaduna doing something different, so that was just the main aim. So, it all of a sudden just happening, it blew our mind and it made us happy," says Godwin Josiah, 19.
    The crew of eight call themselves "The Critics Company".
    Their released their first film "Redemption" in 2016 after saving for a month to buy the green fabric for the chroma key and teaching themselves how to do visual effects by watching tutorials on Youtube.
    Battling slow internet and power cuts, they created a tale about two boys who create an organic biofuel.
    Nigeria's multimillion-dollar sector, Nollywood, is ranked second largest in the world after Bollywood by quantity of films produced. Popular themes are cannibalism, witchcraft and weeping girlfriends who put curses on their boyfriends.
    The student film makers have found their niche with sci-fi. The 20 short movies or 10 minutes or less they have produced are mostly about superheroes, aliens and supernatural powers.
    No costs are involved as they do everything themselves, but they have to keep their works short - or it would take too long to upload.
    Their efforts impressed Nollywood movie producer Kemi Adetiba so much she tweeted enthusiastically about them in June. The students, known online as @thecritics001, have since gone viral.
    A funding campaign for the boys amassed donations of about 5,800 USD and they are now on their way to upgrading their equipment. Josiah now has his sights on making it in Nollywood.
    "One of the targets we aim for in the years to come is to make the biggest film in Nigeria and probably beyond," he says. "We want to do something crazy, we want to do something great, something that has not been done before, and from what has been going on now, we believe quite well that it is going to happen soon enough."
    The boys are now busy working on a new film, but they cannot disclose the plot until its finished.
    (Production: Angela Ukomadu, Abraham Achirga, Masako Iijima)
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
  • Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2019. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
  • Usage Terms/Restrictions: Footage contains computer game or software screenshots. User is responsible for obtaining additional clearances before publishing this clip.
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