The Nigerian film industry, popularly known as Nollywood, was once seen as a mass producer of poor quality “home videos”. It’s now become known for increasingly slick films that are able to attract big budgets and compete at film festivals across the world.
As a critic, scholar and lecturer in Nigerian film, I regard 2023 as another impressive year for the quality of Nollywood output.
I saw a number of great films both at film festivals and on subscription video platforms, particularly Netflix and Amazon Prime. I enjoyed the diversity in themes and the “un-Nollywood-like” experience each film presented. Indeed, it is an era of “beyond Nollywood”, a term which a film industry specialist, Nadia Denton, uses for the new wave of cinema. From Kunle Afolayan’s foray into teen movies, to C.J. Obasi’s arthouse reimagination of west African folktale, Babatunde Apalowo’s gay love story, to jungle justice in Toka McBaror’s Dark October, Nollywood is conquering barriers and taking Nigeria to the world through films.
