Nollywood regained the respect it once enjoyed from its fans worldwide following its release of awesome movies in 2024. The year showed improvement in the industry’s storytelling as seen in some released series.
Some of the incredible releases this year include Anikulapo: Rise of the Spectre; Seven Doors; Lisabi: The Uprising; House of Ga’a, Ajosepo, Ajakaju: Beast of Two Worlds, The Waiter, Funmilayo Ransome Kuti, etc.
This write-up looks at how Nollywood attained new heights through the contributions of these movies.
Storytelling at its finest –
Over the years, Nollywood has been known to churn out movies with the same theme. Not that there’s anything bad about such, but most of the movies with the same theme almost had the same kind of story. One could almost tell the end from the beginning. It was usually about a village girl who successfully won the heart of a prince, or a village boy making it big just months after arriving in the city. Others centred around kings and “the gods of our land.”
The old theme kept viewers going for a while until a yearning for something spectacular began to grow loud. Fans were already being loaded with foreign content via streaming platforms, most of which were professionally put together using the latest technologies. The likes of Game of Thrones had them panting for more. Their eyes and ears were now opened to great stories and the art of storytelling. Sadly, they couldn’t find much on the home front until Anikulapo directed by Kunle Afolayan streamed on Netflix. The movie quickly became the talk of the town. It took viewers back to the glory days of the Oyo Empire, telling the story of a mythical bird and how it made a young man famous. Anikulapo was immediately followed by the series Anikulapo: Rise of the Spectre, a show full of cliffhangers that left fans peeping to see what the next episodes had to offer.
‘Anikulapo season 2Scenes from Anikulao: Rise of the Spectre
Another series that had fans glued to their screen is Seven Doors by Femi Adebayo. The hype the film enjoyed on social media lured many to see it and it was worth more than the hype. In the past, Yoruba movies were slammed for always making use of flashbacks. However, Seven Doors got away with using it because it was done fantastically. With the success of both shows, One can almost sense that most producers are already looking to history to find something amazing to tell the world.
Special effects –
Nollywood in 2024 showed that it is not afraid to explore unfamiliar terrains. This was displayed in Lisabi: The Uprising, which had some special effects that left viewers wowed. The movie had some computer-generated imagery (CGI) that transformed humans into werewolves and birds. Also in Seven Doors, the scene where a truck loaded with lugs had an accident was mindblowing in terms of effect. To confess, the effects are not Hollywood standards, but a bold move in the right direction. It shows that the industry is ready to use modern technology to tell stories, especially epic ones.
Costume and set designs –
In the past, Nollywood didn’t care much about costumes and set designs, especially in epic movies. The industry of old gave us movies that made use of the same costumes and even locations. That contributed to part of why Nigerians got fed up with the industry, especially when the likes of Squid Games and Vikings were streaming.
However, 2024 saw a rich display of culture in Nollywood movies through costumes, mannerisms, and architecture. Sets were built from scratch, regardless of whether they would only be featured in two scenes. Directors like Kunle Afolayan, Ibrahim Chatta and Bolanle Austen-Peters bought large areas of land to set up film villages.
While effort has been put in place to make Nollywood regain its respect from Nigerians and the rest of the world, more still needs to be done, especially against lapses. For example, the horses used in Anikulapo: Rise of the Spectre and House of Ga’a by Bolanle Austen-Peters looked too skinny. One could almost take them for donkeys or goats. They looked too poor and weak to be owned by the royals and noblemen who rode them in the movies. Ajakaju: Beast of Two Worlds made use of goats instead of antelopes in a story about antelopes. I wonder what foreigners will say when they see that in a movie coming from Africa, a continent that prides itself on wildlife.
Tech Specs –
Streaming platforms did well in shaping Nollywood today. For instance, Netflix only accepts films shot on certain cameras. This explains the cinematic look of the Nollywood movies they stream, except for some that should be blamed for why the platform was rumoured to be exiting Nigeria.
The year 2024 showed that Nollywood is now taking color grading seriously, though the industry is not right where one expects it to be – the Hollywood standard. Some movies attempted the Orange and Teal look but they were poorly done. Some looks were too contrasty, while some must have been problematic for colorist because they were shot under harsh lighting. Blacksmith: Alagbede and The Waiter showed some good looks with appropriate contrast and controlled highlights, which was a step in the right direction.
Outdoor daylight scenes have been poor except for a few movies like Anikulapo that excelled in that area. Regardless of how contrasty most movies in 2024 looked, they often fell flat when the outdoor daylight scenes came on. The night scenes are not amazing except for a few movies. It seems as if the cinematographers in the industry don’t use foreign movies as references when lighting their scenes. One poor technique noticed in Nollywood is using floodlights for indoor night scenes. This leaves the scenes looking too bright with almost no dark areas for contrast. The overly bright lights also make negro actors have hotspots on their foreheads. Keeping a room very dark and making use of a practical light is enough to create Rembrandt lighting that gives faces a 3D look. This is realistic and quite close to what we see at night. Blacksmith: Alagbede and also Tokunbo are commendable in terms of night environment lighting.
Movie posters have also improved in quality. The posters of today immediately tell how amazing a movie is. However, some don’t do justice to the movies because they lack that cinematic look. The sad part about today’s posters is that the designers often display almost all the actors on them instead of exploring the simple style that only shows the main character. In a time when Nollywood is now been run by a consortium of actors that love to feature in each other’s movies, having all the actors on the poster can discourage viewers who don’t like seeing the same faces in every movie.
Well, while 2024 earned Nollywood lots of commendations worldwide, the industry should not rest on its oars because it is yet to arrive at the destination expected of an industry that releases loads of movies every year. With improvements noticed in storytelling, producers in the industry now need to improve on the tech specs to achieve stunning visual displays.
Some of the incredible releases this year include Anikulapo: Rise of the Spectre; Seven Doors; Lisabi: The Uprising; House of Ga’a, Ajosepo, Ajakaju: Beast of Two Worlds, The Waiter, Funmilayo Ransome Kuti, etc.
This write-up looks at how Nollywood attained new heights through the contributions of these movies.
Storytelling at its finest –
Over the years, Nollywood has been known to churn out movies with the same theme. Not that there’s anything bad about such, but most of the movies with the same theme almost had the same kind of story. One could almost tell the end from the beginning. It was usually about a village girl who successfully won the heart of a prince, or a village boy making it big just months after arriving in the city. Others centred around kings and “the gods of our land.”
The old theme kept viewers going for a while until a yearning for something spectacular began to grow loud. Fans were already being loaded with foreign content via streaming platforms, most of which were professionally put together using the latest technologies. The likes of Game of Thrones had them panting for more. Their eyes and ears were now opened to great stories and the art of storytelling. Sadly, they couldn’t find much on the home front until Anikulapo directed by Kunle Afolayan streamed on Netflix. The movie quickly became the talk of the town. It took viewers back to the glory days of the Oyo Empire, telling the story of a mythical bird and how it made a young man famous. Anikulapo was immediately followed by the series Anikulapo: Rise of the Spectre, a show full of cliffhangers that left fans peeping to see what the next episodes had to offer.
‘Anikulapo season 2Scenes from Anikulao: Rise of the Spectre
Another series that had fans glued to their screen is Seven Doors by Femi Adebayo. The hype the film enjoyed on social media lured many to see it and it was worth more than the hype. In the past, Yoruba movies were slammed for always making use of flashbacks. However, Seven Doors got away with using it because it was done fantastically. With the success of both shows, One can almost sense that most producers are already looking to history to find something amazing to tell the world.
Special effects –
Nollywood in 2024 showed that it is not afraid to explore unfamiliar terrains. This was displayed in Lisabi: The Uprising, which had some special effects that left viewers wowed. The movie had some computer-generated imagery (CGI) that transformed humans into werewolves and birds. Also in Seven Doors, the scene where a truck loaded with lugs had an accident was mindblowing in terms of effect. To confess, the effects are not Hollywood standards, but a bold move in the right direction. It shows that the industry is ready to use modern technology to tell stories, especially epic ones.
Costume and set designs –
In the past, Nollywood didn’t care much about costumes and set designs, especially in epic movies. The industry of old gave us movies that made use of the same costumes and even locations. That contributed to part of why Nigerians got fed up with the industry, especially when the likes of Squid Games and Vikings were streaming.
However, 2024 saw a rich display of culture in Nollywood movies through costumes, mannerisms, and architecture. Sets were built from scratch, regardless of whether they would only be featured in two scenes. Directors like Kunle Afolayan, Ibrahim Chatta and Bolanle Austen-Peters bought large areas of land to set up film villages.
While effort has been put in place to make Nollywood regain its respect from Nigerians and the rest of the world, more still needs to be done, especially against lapses. For example, the horses used in Anikulapo: Rise of the Spectre and House of Ga’a by Bolanle Austen-Peters looked too skinny. One could almost take them for donkeys or goats. They looked too poor and weak to be owned by the royals and noblemen who rode them in the movies. Ajakaju: Beast of Two Worlds made use of goats instead of antelopes in a story about antelopes. I wonder what foreigners will say when they see that in a movie coming from Africa, a continent that prides itself on wildlife.
Tech Specs –
Streaming platforms did well in shaping Nollywood today. For instance, Netflix only accepts films shot on certain cameras. This explains the cinematic look of the Nollywood movies they stream, except for some that should be blamed for why the platform was rumoured to be exiting Nigeria.
The year 2024 showed that Nollywood is now taking color grading seriously, though the industry is not right where one expects it to be – the Hollywood standard. Some movies attempted the Orange and Teal look but they were poorly done. Some looks were too contrasty, while some must have been problematic for colorist because they were shot under harsh lighting. Blacksmith: Alagbede and The Waiter showed some good looks with appropriate contrast and controlled highlights, which was a step in the right direction.
Outdoor daylight scenes have been poor except for a few movies like Anikulapo that excelled in that area. Regardless of how contrasty most movies in 2024 looked, they often fell flat when the outdoor daylight scenes came on. The night scenes are not amazing except for a few movies. It seems as if the cinematographers in the industry don’t use foreign movies as references when lighting their scenes. One poor technique noticed in Nollywood is using floodlights for indoor night scenes. This leaves the scenes looking too bright with almost no dark areas for contrast. The overly bright lights also make negro actors have hotspots on their foreheads. Keeping a room very dark and making use of a practical light is enough to create Rembrandt lighting that gives faces a 3D look. This is realistic and quite close to what we see at night. Blacksmith: Alagbede and also Tokunbo are commendable in terms of night environment lighting.
Movie posters have also improved in quality. The posters of today immediately tell how amazing a movie is. However, some don’t do justice to the movies because they lack that cinematic look. The sad part about today’s posters is that the designers often display almost all the actors on them instead of exploring the simple style that only shows the main character. In a time when Nollywood is now been run by a consortium of actors that love to feature in each other’s movies, having all the actors on the poster can discourage viewers who don’t like seeing the same faces in every movie.
Well, while 2024 earned Nollywood lots of commendations worldwide, the industry should not rest on its oars because it is yet to arrive at the destination expected of an industry that releases loads of movies every year. With improvements noticed in storytelling, producers in the industry now need to improve on the tech specs to achieve stunning visual displays.
