The Weird And Wild World of Nollywood Hits Art Galleries

The Nigerian cinema - called Nollywood - is huge. It’s the second biggest employer in Africa, and it’s a 250 million dollar a year industry. Nigeria’s film industry is one of the biggest in the world. It’s also beyond bizarre, consistently amateurish and often, in my opinion, borderline unwatchable. Many Nollywood films are shot on camcorders, are edited in camera and star people who are truly non-actors. But above all else they’re fucking ODD, and they’re not afraid of being extreme.

South African photographer Pieter Hugo has been taking photos of the industry and is now exhibiting in New Zealand. A local news report covers his show, which includes the graphic violence and nudity one finds in Nollywood films. Click here to watch the report - I guess embeddable media hasn’t yet come to New Zealand!

Hugo has collected his photos into a book, by the way - you can buy that below.