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Nigeria's film industry is one of the largest in the world, with major releases in theaters and on platforms like Netflix and Amazon Prime. But a new generation of Nollywood filmmakers is bypassing both by taking their movies straight to YouTube, where millions of people are watching. As NPR's Jewel Bright reports, the shift is creating opportunities and also raising questions about the industry's future.
UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR #1: (As character) Sorry, but not sorry. And where is his money (ph)?
JEWEL BRIGHT, BYLINE: In a cramped Lagos apartment, 28-year-old director David Akwayo is shooting what he hopes will be his breakout film. "Diary Of A Lagos Girl" (ph) follows a young woman chasing fame in Nigeria's biggest city, only to fall in with the wrong crowd. It's set to premiere on YouTube within weeks - Akwayo's first independent project after years of low-paid work in Nollywood.
DAVID AKWAYO: Filmmaking is lucrative. So much money to make from film. But in the society I find myself, there are so many gatekeepers.
BRIGHT: Akwayo says to move forward, he had to try something different.
AKWAYO: YouTube is free. So what stops me from doing my thing and making more money?
UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR #2: (As character) What else? (Inaudible).
BRIGHT: For years, Nollywood films have appeared on YouTube, but now the platform is becoming a business model. YouTube makes money by selling ads before and during videos and shares a cut with creators. The more views a film gets, the more money it can earn.
(SOUNDBITE OF FILM, "LOVE IN EVERY WORD")
UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR #3: (As character) Hello. What's wrong with you?
BRIGHT: Now, YouTube films like "Love In Every Word," one of the most watched Nigerian films on the platform last year, are drawing huge audiences. This film alone reached more than 30 million views.
(SOUNDBITE OF FILM, "LOVE IN EVERY WORD")
UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR #4: (As character) I can try to recover the losses and...
BRIGHT: And unlike in the U.S. or India, where YouTube is both promotional and a hub for original entertainment, many Nigerian filmmakers now use it as their primary release platform.
ANGELA EGUAVOEN: You could make $30,000 from a film you produced with just 6 or 7 million naira.
BRIGHT: That's roughly $20,000 in profit on a relatively low-budget production, according to Angela Eguavoen, who runs a fast-rising Nollywood YouTube channel with more than 40,000 subscribers.
EGUAVOEN: Some of the actors that used to laugh at actors that did YouTube movies, a lot of them now, they're now on YouTube.
BRIGHT: An actress for over a decade before moving to YouTube, she says the platform has been a game changer.
EGUAVOEN: A YouTube producer can pay you 4 million naira for four days. But cinema producers would hardly do that.
BRIGHT: As views surge, fueled by the diaspora and better internet access, YouTube is paying big money, and filmmakers are bypassing the filmmaking establishment to go straight to audiences.
(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC)
UNIDENTIFIED SINGER: (Singing in non-English language).
BRIGHT: Nollywood's big productions still operate on a different scale. "Behind The Scenes," last year's Nollywood box office hit, is a clear example. A comedy drama about family, love and betrayal, it made over a million dollars in its first four weeks.
(SOUNDBITE OF FILM, "BEHIND THE SCENES")
UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR #5: (As character) But I only just gave you money last week.
UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR #6: (As character) OK (ph).
UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR #7: (As character, non-English language spoken).
BRIGHT: YouTube filmmakers are still a long way from that level of revenue. But that may not last long, and some veterans warn the shift is fueling a focus on quick profits.
SUNDAY OLISEMEKA: So many people that are making movies, films on YouTube today are not real practitioners.
BRIGHT: Director Sunday Olisemeka says the rush to make money is hurting quality.
OLISEMEKA: Whether it is poorly shot, whether it is rightly shot, whether it is richly shot, they don't care.
BRIGHT: Olisemeka believes the industry now needs tighter control, even regulation.
UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR #2: (As character) Get in here.
UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR #8: (As character) Are you looking for somebody, or you want to try the phone?
BRIGHT: Back on set, Akwayo sees it differently. He admits not every YouTube film is polished, but says the platform is breaking down long-standing barriers once controlled by producers, financiers and distributors in the industry.
AKWAYO: Before the advent of YouTube film industry in Nigeria, if you're not a favorite of these gatekeepers, there's no how you progress in industry.
(LAUGHTER)
BRIGHT: For a new generation of filmmakers in Nigeria, the path to success may no longer run through cinemas, but through clicks, views and the algorithm - a shift that could signal what's coming for film industries far beyond Nigeria. Jewel Bright, NPR News, Lagos.
(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC) Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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