Veteran actor Nkem Owoh, popularly known as Osuofia, has dismissed claims that he said Yoruba people founded Nollywood, explaining that his remarks referred specifically to the origins of home video production in Nigeria.
Owoh said the name Nollywood was not in use when he and other filmmakers began producing films, noting that it was adopted later following discussions among industry stakeholders.
“I never said Yoruba started Nollywood. When did Nollywood come out? When we started film, there was no Nollywood as a name,” he said.
He acknowledged the contributions of Yoruba filmmakers, particularly veteran filmmaker Hubert Ogunde, to the development and popularisation of Nigeria’s home-video tradition.
“Ogunde is not Igbo. I am telling you that Yoruba started it,” Owoh said.
The actor maintained that his earlier comments had been misunderstood, reiterating that he was referring to the origins of home video rather than the establishment of Nollywood as an industry.
“Yoruba did not start Nollywood; they started home video and the rest,” he added.