In 2019, Genevieve Nnaji’s Lionheart broke into the cinema amid loud cheers and encomiums. When news filtered in that it’s been selected by the Nigerian Oscars selection committee for nominations, it looked like the Nigerian movie industry was beginning to move closer to its long-sought international presence. But that joy was short-lived as organisers of the award disqualified the movie for the choice of language.
The International Feature Film award category for Oscars requires that a movie to be nominated must have 51% of its feature length involving non-English dialogues. Lionheart didn’t observe due diligence with this, but it was nothing short of a good movie - with some hiccups regardless.
For the 2021 Oscars, Desmond Ovbiagele’s film, ‘The Milkmaid’ was selected by the Nigerian Official Selection Committee (NOSC). The movie was relatable to many Nigerians as it detailed an artistic presentation of a gory situation - the Boko Haram insurgency, using a rare depiction of real life events. The movie sold a real story, with no verbiage of sorts and had an original cultural feel to its relevance. Most of the dialogues were in Fulfulde, Hausa and Arabic and was enough for consideration by the Academy, but it was never enough to make it through.
If the Nigerian Film and Video Censors Board yank anything off a movie, it’s one to look out for. The board has more than ever proven to be too paranoid about national issues, even when they portray the true state of things.
About 24-minute length footage was taken off The Milkmaid due to its supposed religious and ethnic colorations. Costumes, dialogues, language - three core features that make art authentic were yanked off the movie before its public screening in Nigeria.
The censorship in Nigeria forced the producer to have a theatrical release of the movie in Cameroon and Zimbabwe last year before a less original screening in Nigeria, where the story would have been best connected to and felt by locals. The little seen was however enough as the movie had courted widespread local delight to get eight nominations at the Africa Movie Academy Awards (AMAA) and win four of them including the Best Film category.
For the 2022 Oscars, the struggle continues.
On Friday, the NOSC announced that there won’t be any Nigerian movie for the 95th Oscars. Disappointing, but hardly surprising. The basic technical requirements for an International category Oscars nomination were not fulfilled by all the considered movies. They weren’t tailored for the Oscars. Their choice of language didn’t meet the criteria and they also came short with video specifications and audio quality - key factors listed by the Academy. What is the issue? Do Nigerian moviemakers want to be identified and ratified by their international achievements? There are less pointers to that, yet in the field of arts, international presence and global awareness is just as great.
What the Hollywood has managed to achieve is astounding but it has all it needs to keep leading the pack. Billion dollar companies with heavy investments keep setting the pace for others but that story and where they stand isn’t Nigeria’s reality. Nigerian filmmakers must pick a struggle. Identify and fully explore our deep cultures and stories or attempt to pacify a new school audience that may not make their movies earn international recognition. That takes it to the question of mindset.
What does the average Nigerian filmmaker want to achieve with his movie? Appeal to the local audience, which is of absolute importance, or take on the rest of the world by getting nomination for the highest international award there is?
Let’s learn from Burna Boy and the Grammy Awards.
When Burna Boy fell short at the last hurdle after his first Grammy nomination, he went back to the drawing board and came with a more compelling body of art. What ‘African Giant’ didn’t manage to achieve, he did with ‘Twice As Tall’, and every step was a straightforward strategy to gain some international recognition. Truth be told, it’s not everyone who seeks an international presence but the respect and prestige that comes with it are undeniable. They open doors for more opportunities, especially for wider talent recognition.
Since Burna Boy and Wizkid’s Grammy success, Wiz has also blown the roof over with Essence, Ckay’s “Love Nwantin tin” is still raving speakers everywhere in the world and many more local artistes are finally getting the recognition they deserve. This is important for the future. Nigerian filmmakers can take a cue.
What ‘The Milkmaid’ managed to do was to soften the ground a bit for what’s coming. Nigeria has enough local content to inspire the world. We are who we are for a reason. The story of every Nigerian family will connect every other and the country, by the virtue of its culture, place and people has more than enough stories to tell.
What must also be strongly looked into is the quality of talent development and the delegation of roles to actors. Some names are regulars in a Nigerian movie and they attract the viewing audience but this is not for the absence of young, teachable, and trainable actors that can make a strong mark if given a chance.
The movie industry has to stay true to the roots, explore the beauty of the Nigerian highlife and nightlife and make a regional balance where it matters.
If a movie sells to a Nigerian audience, it will sell to the rest of the world. Everyone loves it when the art is good, and the beauty of art is not in its general acceptance, but in its sheer brilliance and bravado, enough to steer topics that will get the world talking. That local content that can take on the rest of the world is a possibility in Nigeria, but without connecting to our roots and understanding where we are coming from, we stand no chance.
According to budding Screenwriter, Christie Peters, Nigerian filmmakers have to focus on more indigenous stories to make it at the global stage.
“To a very large extent, Nigerian filmmakers have done really well. To make it to the Oscars, we’ll have to focus more on indigenous original stories.
“Not like there hasn’t been any but more efforts would do,” she said in a chat.
She also decried the lack of opportunities for other story tellers and said this has caused a repetition of storylines.
“Another issue is that they don’t want to give opportunities to other story tellers. It’s just a particular set of people to the extent that stories are being repeated. For instance, two producers may be doing a similar story,” she said.
Nigerian filmmakers have gained the backing of the local audience, it’s time they took on the rest of the world, and give locals the bragging right we’ve long waited for before the rest of the world. Local, original stories will help pave inroads to global competition and it can only start from those platforms. The Nigerian music industry has proven that.
Nigeria does not lack quality in the area production and directing but can improve in the quality of stories and originality.
While investment in the local industry remains a very significant factor for what we’ll see eventually, there must be a decent desire for those local stories and what they mean to the people - especially the ones everybody pretends not to see. They make all the difference.
The 2022 Oscars will not have any Nigerian movie selected, but it may be the perfect springboard for the future. We can learn and earn from our disappointments.
Great piece 👍🏾