Media personality Chude Jideonwo recently claimed that the majority of Nigeria’s top filmmakers are from the Yoruba-speaking region.
He talked on the important contribution Yoruba filmmakers have made to the Nigerian film industry, especially Nollywood, in a thoughtful Instagram post.
In order to highlight their significant contributions to the development of Nigerian film, Chude Jideonwo referenced a number of well-known figures, including Toyin Abraham, Kemi Adetiba, Funke Akindele, Mo Abudu, Kunle Afolayan, and Femi Adebayo.
He pointed out that the fact that more and more of these directors’ works are available on international streaming services like Netflix highlights their standing as significant figures in the field.
“The Yoruba filmmakers are the biggest in the industry,” Jideonwo said in part, pointing out the overwhelming presence of their works on major streaming services.
He stated that although Yoruba films have become well-known worldwide, there are still not enough Hausa and Igbo productions available on these platforms.
He went on to question the audience about the dearth of Hausa or Igbo-language films available on streaming services such as Netflix and Amazon, pointing out the infrequent exception of Genevieve Nnaji’s “Lionheart.”
“The biggest filmmakers in Nigeria now are all Yorubas. Think about it: Kemi Adetiba, Jade Osiberu, Mo Abudu, Kunle Afolayan, Kayode Kasum, Toyin Abraham, Funke Akindele, Mercy Aigbe and Oga Bello’s son that do every movie, including ‘Beast of Two Worlds’ and ‘Jagun Jagun’—and Bolanle Austin-Peters.
“Think about it: most of the mainstream, big cinema, and streaming movies are all by Yoruba people. What has happened is that the Yoruba filming culture has merged itself into the other groups that are leading again.
“Can you name one Hausa or Igbo-language movie on Netflix or Amazon? The closest was Genevieve’s ‘Lionheart’ many years ago. Only Yoruba movies are able to exist on Amazon, Netflix and become mainstream cultural hits,”Chude Jideonwo added.
