Entertainment
Nollywood Glows At Paris Festival
A recent report has re
vealed how Nollywood shined while being celebrated in pans-Nollywood film festival.
For four days, Pans came alive with the Vivid colours of Nigerian prints, and the sound of Yoruba, Hausa and Igbo on the occasion of Paris’ fourth Nollywood film festival that ended on Sunday. Spectators didn’t just get a glimpse of some of the hottest films in Nigerian cinema, but a better insight into their hard-won success.
It’s seen as an African success story, that transcends the boundaries of even Nigeria. Yet the cradle of African cinema almost never made it to the big screen. “If you consider the conditions in which Nigerian producers are working, it’s amazing to work in those conditions and today be the second film producer in the world,” co-founder of the Nollywood festival Serge Noukoue’ told RFI.
Second in the world only to India’s famous Bollywood, and churning out 2,000 or more movies per year, Nollywood is now bigger than Hollywood. A while back, such a scenario would have been unthinkable. Poor or wobbly have often been the adjectives that have dominated the prose of film critics when rating Nigeria cinema. Not anymore. It was gathered that the spectators at the Nollywood festival all praised the quality of the films in competition.
Topping the billing, was Kunle Afolayan’s “the CEO”, bringing together an all-African cast for a mystery packed adventure involving five top executives, who are eliminated one after the other during a leadership retreat gone wrong. The film boasts Benin’s grammy-award winning singer, Angelique Kidjo, and state of the art imagery, a firm criterion for Afolayan who is determined to see Nollywood advance to the next level. “The perception of Africa in the film industry is that we are all poor. That is not the Africa I am from,” Afolayan told RFI. “Africa needs to be celebrated, and the world needs to know that we can have luxury as well, even if problems remain in terms of order,” he said.
His arrival at the festival aboard an Airbus jet, where some 200 vip guests were treated is an indication of Afolayan’s determination to take Nollywood from second to first class.
R&B star, Temilade Openiyi, popularly known as Tems, has recounted the early-career challenges she faced, revealing that she was once booed out of the stage while performing at a school event.
Speaking in an interview with Newsmen, the Crazy Tings crooner shared that she wasn’t only booed but was also harassed with plastic bottles.
“I remember one time I was going to perform at my school as an up-and-coming singer and I thought I was going to receiving a standing ovation.
“But I got booed. They even threw plastic bottles at me,” she recalled.
Tems explained that despite the embarrassing incident and other such rejections, she remained determined to pursue a career in music.
The Tide Entertainment reports that Tems admitted that some of the initial rejections she faced could be due to her conviction to stick to her originality instead of doing covers or familiar sounds like most of her peers.
The Grammy-winning singer said looking back now, she is glad that she didn’t compromise her style despite the initial pressures.
A close associate of late singer Mohbad, Primeboy, has appealed for the artiste’s burial nearly three years after his death.
According to him, Mohbad’s body remains in the mortuary since September 12, 2023, pending burial arrangements.
The Tide Entertainment reports that in a statement Primeboy urged the family, public, and government to permit the burial, stating, “It’s been almost three years since Mohbad left us. His body is still in the mortuary. I’m begging the family, I’m begging the public, I’m begging the government, please let’s bury our brother. He deserves a befitting burial.”
It would be recalled that Mohbad’s death sparked public outrage, protests, and investigations. Ongoing autopsy examinations, police inquiries, and legal proceedings have delayed burial arrangements amid family disagreements and public scrutiny.
Nancy Briggs
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