The movie cost approximately N1.27 billion ($8m) to make. Half of a
Yellow Sun’ is an adaptation of Chimanmanda Ngozi Adichie’s novel, ‘Half
of a Yellow Sun’, the movie was shot at Tinapa Film Studio, Cross River State, and in the United Kingdom.
The movie is yet to be released but we have confirmed that the movie
was directed by Biyi Bandele who had most of its cast and crew flown
from abroad. The cast comprised Britons and Nigerians such as Chiwetel
Ejiofor (Kinky Boots, American Gangster, 2012, Salt); Thandie Newton
(Mission: Impossible II, Crash, The Pursuit of Happiness); Anika Noni
Rose (Dreamgirls, The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency, For Coloured
Girls); Joseph Mawle (Women in Love, Game of Thrones); John Boyega
(Attack the Block); Onyeka Onwenu, Nigerian singer and actress;
Genevieve Nnaji and Zack Orji.
The production quality of the film
directly points tothe growing professionalism in Nollywood. In the last
five years, Nollywood has been growing in terms of output and quality.
.The development has also impacted huge returns. Not only is Nollywood
ranked third globally in terms of quality of production, financially
Nollywood is also placed third in the world. Managing director,
Robert Orya of Nigerian Export-Import Bank (NEXIM), says: ‘The global
film and entertainment industry generated about $90.6 billion revenue in
2010,’ Orya explains, saying ‘the revenue increased to $102.7 billion
in 2012.
Most of these revenue streams are largely from
theatrical distribution. North America contributed the largest market
share of about 40 percent. Europe, Middle East and Africa accounted for
24 percent, Latin America 20 percent, and Asia Pacific made only 3
percent contribution.’
Film maker Victor Okhai says a new breed
of film makers began to bring professionalism into the industry, which
explains the improvement in the quality of films produced lately. ‘It is
expected that the quality of films will improve,’ says Okhai. ‘We are
at a stage where we can no longer play the mediocre anymore. We have
discovered that when we attend film festivals, we realised that nobody
pays attention to Nollywood films. They look at the industry with
disdain at these film festivals. Then local film makers came back home
to do some serious work.
Many film makers are challenged by
what they see at film festivals,’ he says. Before the emergence of ‘Half
of a Yellow Sun,’ the movie ‘Tango with Me’ produced by Mahmoud
Ali-Balogun, ranked as the most expensive film. The movie was shot with
the latest Kodak 35mm camera, ‘Tango with Me’ costs over N50 million to
produce says Ali-Balogun. To show the passion Ali Balogun had for movie
production, he travelled all the way to Bulgaria to master film
technology. The end product of the trip was an outstanding film that
‘Half of a Yellow Sun’ has knocked-off. Experts say the return of the
cinemas has offered a veritable platform for film makers to escape
piracy and the open market. By granting first viewing to cinemas, film
producers are assured of getting returns on their investments.
But
Okhai still emphasizes on the quality of production, he says: ‘Cinemas
cannot project poor quality films,’ explains Okhai, as ‘your flaws as a
film producer are blown in proportion to the size of the screen.
Film makers in the Diaspora are returning home to show how good films
are made abroad. Their films are changing the way local film producers
are making films’. True to Okhai’s theory, movie producers can recover
tremendous amounts from cinema viewing. A couple of examples are In 2009
for instance, Stephanie Okereke’s movie, ‘Through the Glass,’ premiered
at the cinemas making over N10 million. This was followed by Kunle
Afolayan’s ‘The Figurine’ becoming the first local film to make over N30
million in the cinemas. Chineze Anyaene’s film, ‘Ije,’ also recorded
tremendous success at the cinemas, making over N57 million and viewed by
an estimated 14,000 people. In 2010, ‘Ije’ was reputed to be Nigeria’s
highest selling movie in the cinemas, returning to the cinemas three
times that year. Its success was next to Hollywood’s ‘Avatar.’ ‘Anchor
Baby’ produced by Lonzo Nzekwe also made over N17 million
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