Weinsteins Want Miramax Name Back 
'Saw 3D' vs 'Paranormal Activity 2' Battle … 
TV TUG OF WAR: It's Ellen vs Simon, And … 
Robert De Niro Returns To CAA From WME; Jane … 
Fox Wins Studio War For Robert Rodriguez' … 
Weinstein Co Gets "New Lease On Life"? 
Nicole Kidman Hires Angelina's Manager 
So What Are The Hot Films At Sundance? 
Huge $70M Settlement In TV Writers Age … 
TOLDJA! Momoa Chosen 'Conan' Barbarian 
Oscar Campaign Badmouthing Has Begun! 
India remains the world’s leading film producer, but Nigeria is closing the gap after overtaking the United States for second place, according to a global cinema survey conducted by the UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS). Bollywood produced 1,091 feature-length films in 2006 compared to 872 productions (in video format) from Nigeria’s film industry, which is commonly referred to as Nollywood. In contrast, the United States produced 485 major films. The three were followed by eight countries that produced more than 100 films: Japan (417), China (330), France (203), Germany (174), Spain (150), Italy (116), South Korea (110) and the United Kingdom (104). These and other findings were collected through a new international survey launched by the UIS in 2007 with financing from the Government of Québec.
Regarding Nigeria's boom, Nollywood filmmakers rely on video instead of film to reduce production costs. And as the survey points out, Nigeria has virtually no formal cinemas. About 99% of screenings occur in informal settings, such as “home theatre.” Another key element of the Nigerian success story is multilingualism. About 56% of Nollywood films are produced in Nigeria’s local languages, namely Yoruba (31%), Hausa (24%) and Igbo (1%). English remains a prominent language, accounting for 44%, which may contribute to Nigeria’s success in exporting its films.
"Film and video production are shining examples of how cultural industries - as vehicles of identity, values and meanings - can open the door to dialogue and understanding between peoples, but also to economic growth and development. This conviction underpins the UNESCO Convention on Cultural Diversity" said Koïchiro Matsuura, the Director-General of UNESCO. "And this new data on film and video production provides yet more proof of the need to rethink the place of culture on the international political agenda." Overall, the survey yielded data from 101 countries.
English remains the dominant language in filmmaking globally. In total, 36% of films produced in 2006 were shot in English, according to the survey. U.S. films continue to dominate admissions globally. All of the top ten films seen in Australia, Bulgaria Canada, Costa Rica, Namibia, Romania, and Slovenia were made in the U.S., according to the survey. Bollywood productions were the obvious favourite in India. In France, seven out of the top ten films were French. And in Japan and Morocco, domestic productions accounted for five out of the ten most widely viewed films. The survey also addressed additional issues related to the digitalization of films, the types of cinemas available in selected countries, and information concerning co-productions and distribution networks.
Loading ...
I call BS. 485 “Major Films” in America? If you included all the films that fall into the production value category as all these Nigerian films being screened in their living rooms/backyards that 485 number would increase, what, tenfold?
They’re comparing apples to oranges by including Nigerian films that have probably less than half the budget of a true indie destined for a fest or two then straight to DVD, and not including that in the US total.
Where’s Nigeria on the chart?
All of this is interesting, but why doesn’t #2 Nigeria appear anywhere on the UN graph?
Alright Nollywood! Next step is to improve on the quality of films produced.
EXACTLY!!!!!
Yea okay… but consider the budget of the average U.S. studio film compared to the average film produced by Nollywood or Bollywood. Not to mention the level of professional skill, number of crew etc. It’s like saying, “NFL teams only play just over ten regular season games but in Europe their are a number of professional “American” football leagues that have more games and more teams.”
It doesn’t matter how many films Bollywood makes. Everyone imitates Hollywood.
wow…are you an idiot! I can’t believe you wrote that! You are complete and utter tool…end of story.
Nikki, you should read the WSJ. There was an article there in May where Nollywood producers are saying they may go extinct. Piracy, violence, corruption, lack of reliable electricity, and the global recession are cited as reasons why profits are so small many producers are abandoning the market.
But here is the deal. It is unlikely in the extreme that Nigeria or Bollywood or China or Japan are going to create consistent hits for the US market because they are culturally too alien, with people who don’t look or act like average Americans. But it is just as unlikely that Hollywood films like “Land of the Lost” or “Funny People” will recoup their costs from foreign sales either, given local language competition and material created by natives and performed by people who look like and act like Nigerians, Indians, Chinese, and Japanese, etc. Which means an end to the global film marketplace and localization.
Or, bottom line films will have to make money in their local markets, no more taking out Superman fighting for Truth, Justice and the American Way because the studio expects to sell the film in Nigeria or China. That’s just a fantasy. [I've seen the WSJ report that studios have essentially shut down Spanish Language and South Korean DVD units, given rampant piracy. Eli Roth was quoted by MTV as saying he found Hostel II on sale in Mexico City for the equivalent of a quarter.]
I’d suggest adding Nigeria to the chart. I know their industry is invisible to most Americans but let’s not get reckless in illustrating it.
I can do a (better-looking) replacement chart in thirty minutes if that’s the hold-up…
Interesting. Have any films from Nigerian gained traction in the US?
Wow! Nigerian film production is, literally, off the chart!
Based on the logic that Nigeria’s cheaply made videos (not films) make it number two in “film production” in the world…………… does that mean it is number one in the world in “published creative writing” with it’s E-mail scam letters?
I don’t buy this chart. If Nigeria films aren’t screened in theaters and are shot on video, how does that qualify as a major movie? Can’t we count all the Youtube videos Americans make and screen on their computer? Can’t we just count anything?
I have never seen nor heard of a Nigerian film. Emails from princes I get a lot of, but never an invite to a movie premiere.
If they’re going to include cheaply made videos (especially ones that are only shown in homes) for India and especially Nigeria, then they should also include America’s body of student work, let alone Independents.
The UN study provides only one side of the story. Share of total filmed entertainment revenues (which includes BO, TV Licensing, DVD, digital, PPV/VOD and, althoug minor today, digital) gives a more accurate portrayal of where the center of gravity is in the industry today. And you would end up with a very different stack bar if you were to use that metric, I guarantee it….
don’t compare nigerian films with Indian films (bollywood refers to just movie made in Mumbai and that number would be much less)..As far as I know Indian films now have quite high production standards , if not the budget… they are not mere video films
ummm… the Nigerian movies are relevant because tens of millions of ppl watch them. So relax Americans, don’t worry, the movies aren’t meant for you. When a Nigerian movie is made for you, you’ll most likely know about it. It’ll probably be a movie about email scams and you’ll probably pay to see it
Ironic huh? In the meantime i wouldn’t mind a few bank account details from y’all. You see i’m a prince and… aah you know the rest. Cheers.
kex, you are an idiot. There is no way that Nigeria’s film industry even holds a candle to India, US, China, Japan…hell, most if not all of the G20. Video productions, home viewings, and whatever else they are doing does not mean it’s a true barometer of what the global industry picture looks like. I call bullshit on this- and why isn’t Nigeria even on the graph provided?!?!
Nigeria makes the commercial equivilent of home movies that everyone gathers to watch because there is nothing else to see or do.
To compare them to the product produced by Hollywood is just absurd.
Thats why they are not on the UN chart.
hmmm. Begs question, if 485 pix were PRODUCED in US, how many were actually released theatrically? Assuming studio distrib output is between 126 to 140 per year and demise of mini majors and indie distribs, then it is highly likely that over 50% of remaining 350 pix never saw the light of day, or at least a big screen. Not sure what charts mean as more interesting stat is how many are RELEASED . And folks are wondering why independents are having trouble finding financing.
Good heavens, Nikki. I’m with everyone else on this one. There are over 3,000 submissions every year to Sundance alone, even excluding those that are foreign or short films, there are at least another 1,000 that would qualify as “indie films” if the only definition of a “film” is that it gets made. What is the point of this chart/article?
So the UN is now getting involved in the monitoring of the movie business. Here is a suggestion. How about they do their job and help some of the people in Sudan and leave the movie business to others.
I dont know if you guys hav noticed this but the chart clearly says “Feature Films” and not any other films that are being made .. and this is the reason why Nigeria is not on that chart ..bcoz they don’t produce fature films on celluloid
Very interesting statistics. Hard to believe that the U.S.A. is not no.1.
with all due respect to unesco
last year more than 1,500 features were produced in the u.s. … you might ask your friends as ifta what figure they are promoting … enough’s been said already about nigeria … as to india, there were not 1,091 bollywood films produced in 2006 … bollywood relates specifically to the hindi-language industry centered in mumbai and that figure was roughly 400 … now india also has active industries making films in tamil, telegu, bengali and several other languages and india indeed makes in excess of one thousand movies annually but this comparission is apples to oranges as india has more recognized official languages than any other nation … also the hong kong/china (what no taiwan) figure is way low … those countries are producing 100 plus films annually
Yet another BS study by the UN that defies logic, common sense, and frequently the study guidelines.
If we counted all the b movies made that go straight to video, since under the Nigerian comparison home screenings count, the US is back in first place.
I listened to Fernando Meirelles speaking about the Nigerian cinema. They mostly film people speaking with each other, there is no story arc, plot, character development, etc. and it’s their nature, not a flaw. In movie theaters, or the improvised ones, people enter and leave all the time and talk all the time, smoke, drink, it’s a social thing. it is not like a movie experience as we know it; when a movie ends another different one begins without breaks.
In terms of volume, the Nigerian might be even bigger than Indian cinema, but as I said, their cinema is a different thing.
This is an outrage. This article should be a condemnation on the U.N.’s report! It’s waaaay too full of holes.
My favorite: There are over 3,000 submissions every year to Sundance alone. Yet the whole of Nigeria is counted? C’mon, U.N. You’re not THAT stupid, are ya?
And why even have a chart if it doesn’t list Nigeria?
If you guys read the study, you would see that Nigeria was not on the chart because it would be an apples to oranges comparison. The Nigeria information was just mentioned as an interesting tidbit.
“Nigeria would rank second with 872 productions in 2005, exclusively in video format. However, this type of film statistics is limited to productions that are shown in cinemas and produced in 35mm format, whereas all Nigerian productions are distributed and shown in private homes or video theatres.”