Welcome To Nollywood (2009/IndiePix DVD)
Picture:
C Sound: C+ Extras: D Documentary: B-
You hear
about India (aka Bollywood) outproducing Hollywood in the quantity of films,
especially after the critical and commercial success of Slumdog Millionaire, but a new story developing in world cinema may
not be producing the top art films or creating a new wave of storytelling, but
is impressive in the way it is sustaining itself in Nigeria, of all
places. Thanks to digital video, the
country has become the third largest producer of feature releases and Jamie
Meltzer’s Welcome To Nollywood
(2007) tells this amazing story.
Because
people love movies over there, a large market has arisen that is a big
moneymaker and it has all happened without the support of the government or any
outsiders, including other film production companies. Though you can get films from elsewhere,
audiences there are interested in product shot there and the result is a
commercial explosion that is one of the most interesting untold stories of the
last ten years.
For all
the boasting of “digital revolution” in U.S. production, it is constantly clear
all digital and HD has done here is give people who are clueless, bored,
ignorant or could really care less about filmmaking and real storytelling a
chance to make garbage package deals with no point that no one wants or needs
to see. By comparison, what should have
happened in the U.S. (and
might have up to the early 1980s) is instead happening in Nigeria. There is a real enthusiasm for storytelling
and making these projects. The people
have an energy missing from similar U.S. product and though these films
may seem crude at times, they are serving an enthusiastic audience and everyone
is benefiting. There is also a joy long
missing from U.S production, especially when shot in video or mutilated by
digital work they are unaffected by.
Lasting
under an hour, Welcome To Nollywood
reminds us of the can-do attitude that has slowly faded from the U.S. since the
1980s and for any serious filmmakers, should remind (and to those who should
know better and/or forgotten, re-remind) us of the way this particular business
should work. It is more than about
product or technology, it is about people making something by hand they can be
proud of. Though most of what we see
made is simple and commercial, it is refreshing in its attitude and you can see
why Producer/Directors like Chico Ejiro and Izu Ojukwu are doing so well. As compared to many boring U.S.
counterparts, they and their work simply embarrass them.
The letterboxed
1.78 X 1 image is on digital low definition video with analog video clips at
times and has its share of aliasing errors, but the presentation is passable
considering the circumstances in which it was made, while the Dolby Digital 2.0
sound is simple stereo at best and often mono with location drop outs. There are no extras.
- Nicholas Sheffo
