grace
The origin of Netflix in Nigeria is dated back to 2016. The movies that drew the interest of Netflix to the Nigerian movie industry include Kunle Afolayan’s ‘1st October’, Biyi Bandele’s ‘Fifty’, and several others that were distributed at the time.
During the international film festival in 2018 held in Toronto, Netflix announced its global exclusive distribution rights for the comedy Lionheart, Genevieve Nnaji’s debut film as a director. The film was Netflix’s first original production from Nigeria.
Netflix has provided opportunities for producers and screenwriters in Nigeria. Netflix has helped Nigerian culture reach a global audience. Furthermore, the streaming giant has helped Nollywood film entrepreneurs reach new deals and partnerships thereby creating revenue for filmmakers. Netflix’s involvement has elevated the production standard in Nollywood inspiring local creators to strive for global excellence.
On December 4th 2024, movie enthusiasts in Nigeria panicked upon hearing that Netflix was withdrawing its service from Nigeria. The rumour about Netflix’s withdrawal from Nollywood gained support after a statement the filmmaker Kunle Afolayan made at the 2024 Zuma Film Festival. Speaking during a panel discussion, Afolayan disclosed that previously Netflix had canceled several commissioned projects. He said, “Thank God we had shot seasons 2 and 3 of Anikulapo because all the other people that went with us at the same time were canceled”. This statement raised concerns about the intention of Netflix for Nollywood. The cause for alarm was also as a result of Amazon Prime’s strategic shift from Nollywood in early January.
The strategic shift was as a result of Amazon prime’s decision to focus on European originals, this is as a result of the the competition from other streaming services who are vying for a shared of Nigerian audience.
In response to the rumour stemming from Kunle Afolayan’s statement, Netflix has denied plans to exit the Nigerian industry in a statement addressing the rumor the platform reassured the audience of its commitment “We are not exiting Nigeria we will continue to invest in Nigerian stories to delight our audience”.
Despite the reassurance by Netflix, Kunle Afolayan has cautioned filmmakers against depending solely on platforms like YouTube, Netflix, etc. “what if tomorrow YouTube brings policies that will affect our projects as practitioners we need to come together to discuss solutions rather than placing the entire weight on the government”.
Nigeria has a few successful viewing platforms and if properly harnessed Netflix’s will never cause nollywood a lot of harm . Iroko TV owned by Jason Njoku has since early 2010s been promoting African movies, Ibaka TV founded in Lagos by Blessing Idoringe has been a great promotion for nollywood , ghallywood and other african movies.
In order to avert the consequences netflix’s supposed withdrawal can cause , nollywood can apply some strategies Hollywood and other thriving movie industry utilize. These include ‘cinematic innovation’ – Evolving in film making technology and story telling techniques that peaks the interest of the audience. High production quality and Film Festivals and awards are also a great tool as this creates a perception that enhances nollywood’s global appeal.
The consequence of a possible withdrawal of Netflix from the Nigerian market could cause a significant gap that could lead to loss in terms of finance and reputation for Nollywood. The Nigerian movie industry must step up and challenge itself to grow beyond what it currently is. Every organization evolves. Nollywood needs an evolution so it is not over-reliant on streaming service platforms. Rather, Nollywood should be the place where streaming services never lose interest because of the opportunities available.
