Nigerian film industry bigger than Hollywood

In a surprising report, the Nigerian film industry, dubbed Nollywood has beaten Hollywood as the 2^nd largest in the world after Bollywood.

Nollywood made 872 films last year according to a recently released UNESCO report, which puts it ahead of Hollywood. The pace of the Nigerian film industry has also been a factor to the large amount of productions made. The average budget of a Nigerian film is around 15,000 dollars with very low cost digital equipment, making shoots last much shorter than your average Hollywood blockbuster.

The distribution model for Nigerian films is also different, where a majority of movies are sold directly to customers in the street rather than in cinemas first which creates a more direct selling approach for the average movie release. Nigerian filmmakers have long used this method, but as the African film industry develops, more films will soon have the chance to get cinema screenings with new investments in the region.

Nigerian films tend to look at traditional beliefs and how they co-exist with Islam and Christianity, according to Nollywood Now film festival creative director Phoenix Fry. The Nollywood Now festival will take place in the UK between the 6^th and 12^th October and hopes to draw attention to the Nigerian film industry and how African films have a wider appeal outside of the continent.

"The director went on to say, Nigerians are the largest group of Africans living in the UK, and the majority of them live in London,"

"Nigerian films still hold their strongest appeal to first generation immigrants who feel a deep attachment to their homeland."