A lot of Nigerians were excited by the news that Love In Every Word, a new movie by actress Omoni Oboli, got 10 million views on YouTube within a week. It was a feat no other Nollywood movie had pulled before on the streaming platform. The success even got a congratulatory message from a presidential aide.

I seldomly watch Nollywood movies uploaded to YouTube but the social media hype generated by this particular movie forced me to see it. After streaming the movie, I could see why it trended. Love In Every Word sold a female fantasy, the type that involves a Knight in shining armour, the Disney cartoon prince that comes to the rescue of a girl from a small town. I could also see why the movie’s critics were mostly guys. However, I won’t be talking about the theme but the technical and creative aspect of the movie and others alike on YouTube.

Before streaming platforms, the best Nigerian movies made it to the cinema. After their run at the cinema, the producers were left at the mercy of pirates who sold the movies in traffic. It was so bad that movie director, Kunle Afolayan, had to cry out bitterly on social media after seeing the pirated copy of his movie being sold in traffic. Many producers and directors were going broke and in debt as they couldn’t recoup what they invested in movies because of piracy. And because of that, the quality of movies getting released dropped. Nigerians had to find solace in foreign movies.

Out of nowhere, streaming giant, Netflix, stormed the country and the story of movie directors changed. Nollywood became transformed for good and was the pride of the country and even Africa. This was because the platform demanded quality production from the industry. The world was blessed with King of Boyz, Anikulapo, Seven Doors, Afamefuna: An Nwa Boi Story, Oloture, Lisabi, Jagun Jagun, etc. Those movies and series were the talk of the town when they were released on Netflix. The quality of their storytelling, creativity and technicality was topnotch. Nigerians panted for more and did got more. This time around, producers didn’t have to worry about piracy because the world had shifted from video compact disc to streaming. Also, they were well-paid by the streaming platform for their work, which explained their desire to step up their game. It was so untill every Tom, Dick and Harry started eyeing the funds dished out by the platform.

Movie budgets diverted for houses, cars

At the 2024 Zuma Film Festival, the President of the Directors Guild of Nigeria, Victor Ohai, revealed that Netflix would be reducing its support for Nigerian films. This was also echoed by Afolayan who directed Anikulapo and also the series Anikulapo: Rise of the Spectre, both streaming on Netflix.

“The last time they were here, we had meetings and they’re still reassuring that, look, we’re still here, we’re going to do stuff, but we might not be able to do the kind of volume that we used to do. What I was emphasising at that meeting was to say, look, even if you guys are saying Netflix is not doing enough, or Netflix is not taking as much as they should, why shouldn’t we as a country even come up with other distribution platforms?” Afolayan explained.

He also stated that most Nollywood series streaming on Netflix were not approved for a second season by the platform, except his own show, which luckily scaled before the new policy.

Shortly after the event, comedian Bright Okocha, popularly known as Basketmouth, blamed some movie directors for the platform’s decision.

He said on Arise TV, “When the streaming platforms came in, they provided significant funding to producers. But these producers would take the $1.5 million or whatever they’re given and use about 10 per cent to make the movie. The rest? Houses, cars, and personal expenses. I can’t call names, but they know themselves.”

He lamented that the misuse of funding from Netflix is the reason why most movies that made it to the platform reek of poor quality.

He added, “I’m not generalising, but most of them —70 per cent or more— misuse these funds. When the platforms noticed, they started paying actors directly to ensure transparency. But even then, these producers would go behind the scenes and demand that actors return half of their pay.

“When you do that and expect your movie to be 100 per cent, it can’t. That’s why some of our epic movies look like stage plays. The horses? They’re lean and coughing!

“If you’re given $1.5 million to make a movie, use it all for the production. That’s how you get quality, but cutting corners for luxury and lifestyle shows in the final film product.”

Attention shifts to YouTube

You don’t need a mathematician to make you understand that the gatekeeper at Netflix will no longer allow poor quality movies. Since funds provided by the platform in the past were misused, it is doubtful that the same platform will be willing to continue with that model. This means that movie makers will have to fund their shows and submit their work to the platform. If it measures up to standard, it will be approved and streamed. If it doesn’t, it will be rejected and no one will care about whatever the producer claims he spent on creating the film. This means that directors and producers will have to come correct before walking up to Netflix. No half-baked products henceforth, only the best.

With a tight gatekeeping at Netflix, the attention of mediocre movie directors shifted to YouTube where no one really regulates their content. Anyone can produce a movie and upload it on the platform. Even without belonging to any acting or directing guild in Nigeria, such movie will be regarded as a Nollywood production. Since the revenue from YouTube is not much, quality products will hardly be uploaded there. Most of the movies on YouTube all follow the same love and drama theme. Their pictures and locations are awful. Flyers and thumbnails are unprofessional. Cinematography is nothing to write home about. Watching such movies is like a torture to someone used to qualify. Why would anyone spend precious two hours watching what will dumb him down?

On the same YouTube, Love In Every Word was taken down briefly because it was flagged for copyright. A travel content creator also raised the alarm that his drone footages were used in the movie without his approval. Imagine if the movie was streamed by Netflix. That would have resulted in a huge lawsuit. But on YouTube, that would just be a copyright infringement flag, and it usually ends right there. Since there are no real consequences for mediocrity, many producers now see YouTube as the streaming platform for their movies to the detriment of the industry’s growth.