Why we are investing in Nollywood – Kelvin Obasuyi

For decades, inadequate funding has slowed Nollywood’s growth, affecting film quality and limiting profitability. More money allows for better equipment, special effects, and locations, elevating production quality and creating films that compete with Hollywood.

For it’s new movie, Mistakenly Yours, Laju Iren Films, an independent film making company, took the road not taken; a paid virtual cinema that allows users from all around the world access the film for a stipulated season.

With a significant ton of millions of tickets in sales made so far, the Biodun Stephen directed film which is set to be released this Easter, is Nollywood’s biggest recorded sale for an unreleased film on an out of the box distribution platform.

Laju Iren, the Executive Producer, noted that a film of that magnitude couldn’t have been produced without the support of one of its investors, 56 Capital.

 “Storytelling is a super power that Africans have possessed for generations. Nigerians especially have shown over the years that we can rival anyone across the globe when it comes to our stories. We truly believe that the lack of funding especially for up and coming filmmakers is the difference between where Nollywood is right now and where she ought to be. On the level of job creation, the projects we are involved in, are creating job opportunities for young Nigerians in the entertainment industry.We are glad to be supporting Nollywood via this medium”.

According to experts, the Nigerian movie industry is currently ranked the second largest film industry globally with its financial value put at over $6.4 billion as of 2021; a number that continues to rise.

More and more investors have begun to pay more attention to Nollywood, and with good reason. Only recently, Funke Akindele’s ‘A Tribe Called Judah’ made over N1.65 bn in the box office. Last year, Editi Effiong’s ‘The Black Book’ backed by the founders of Flutterwave among others, was made for over one million dollars, and became one of the most successful Netflix films of the year 2023.

“The sky is the limit for Nollywood,’ said Obasuyi, ‘as long as investors continue to be the wind beneath her wings, propelling her stories, higher and higher.”