Home Video Films Research Articles

Orality in Yorùbá films: A study of selected films of Akínwùmí Iṣọ̀lá

Despite technological innovations, orality still forms one of the aesthetic elements in the new media such as home video films as a result of the unending interface between orality and the literacy tradition. Using intertextuality as an approach, in this article I examine orality in selected films of Akínwùmí Ìṣọ̀lá, with a view to showing how he uses verbal arts as a powerful tool for the transmission of cultural values. The selected films are Saworoidẹ (1999), Agogo Èèwọ̀ (2002) and Ẹfúnṣetán Aníwúrà (2005). The films were selected based on their preponderant featuring of oral narratives. My findings reveal that folktales, legends, songs, Ifá corpus, drumbeats, incantations, and panegyric are the Yorùbá oral genres that Akínwùmí Ìṣọ̀lá incorporates into his films. One can infer from Ìṣọ̀lá’s films that there is an overlap between his oral culture and his creative work because culture is the active force that energises and drives the creative work. I conclude that Ìṣọ̀lá uses his creative ingenuity to re-awake and preserve Yorùbá oral tradition in his films, which points to the fact that oral literature has a continued vitality for contemporary society.

Recreation of Oral Poetic Genres in Selected Yorùbá Home Video-Films


 
 
 The Yorùbá film as audio-visual literature is thought of as one of the most educative components build ing society. “Modernization” and responses to global change brought about the Yorùbá films which are an offshoot of the Yorùbá Travelling Theatre Movement. The indigenous theatre practitioners who are versatile in practicing the oral poetic genre and have successfully emerged as producers, directors and film-script writers employ and recreate oral poetic genres by adding feelings, beliefs and knowledge they had acquired in the past. This paper attempts a descriptive analysis of five purposively-selected Yorùbá video films by using the sociological approach: Ẹfúnsetán Aníwúrà; Basòṛun Gáà, Ogun Àgbékòỵa, Ogun Ìdàhòṃì and Òṛànmíyàn; which are replete with instances of ingenious recreations of Yorùbá oral poetic genres. The analysis is conducted with a view to elucidating the attempts of Yorùbá home-video scriptwriters in recreating and reconstructing their experiences. The analyses of the selected Yorùbá home-video films reveal that the Yorùbá home-video script writers make artistic use of Yorùbá oral genres in their films through the creative exploitation of proverbs, songs, chants and mythical allusions. The allusions to myths in the selected films suggest that Yorùbá home-video films share apparent inter-textual links with Yorùbá oral poetry. The study concludes that Yorùbá home-video scriptwriters deploy oral poetic genres in their films as one of the ways in which the artistic experiences of the Yorùbá people can resonate. KEYWORDS: YORÙBÁ VIDEO FILMS, ORAL GENRES, MYTHS, SOCIAL CHANGE, RECREATION
 
 

Recreation of Oral Poetic Genres in Selected Yorùbá Home-Video Films

The Yorùbá film as audio-visual literature is thought of as one of the most educative components building society. “Modernization” and responses to global change brought about the Yorùbá films which are an offshoot of the Yorùbá Travelling Theatre Movement. The indigenous theatre practitioners who are versatile in practicing the oral poetic genre and have successfully emerged as producers, directors and film-script writers employ and recreate oral poetic genres by adding feelings, beliefs and knowledge they had acquired in the past. This paper attempts a descriptive analysis of five purposively-selected Yorùbá video films by using the sociological approach: Ẹfúnsetán Aníwúrà; Basọ̀run Gáà, Ogun Àgbẹ́kọ̀ya, Ogun Ìdàhọ̀mì and Ọ̀rànmíyàn; which are replete with instances of ingenious recreations of Yorùbá oral poetic genres. The analysis is conducted with a view to elucidating the attempts of Yorùbá home-video scriptwriters in recreating and reconstructing their experiences. The analyses of the selected Yorùbá home-video films reveal that the Yorùbá home-video script writers make artistic use of Yorùbá oral genres in their films through the creative exploitation of proverbs, songs, chants and mythical allusions. The allusions to myths in the selected films suggest that Yorùbá home-video films share apparent inter-textual links with Yorùbá oral poetry. The study concludes that Yorùbá home-video scriptwriters deploy oral poetic genres in their films as one of the ways in which the artistic experiences of the Yorùbá people can resonate.

Home Video Depictions of Health and Moral Decadence as Correlates of Entertainment – Education in Nigeria

The emergence of mass media such as television, internet, radio, and mobile phones has transformed entertainment-education which has been around for centuries in the form of theatre, books, and storytelling. Entertainment-education is the process of purposely designing and implementing a media message to both entertain and educate, in order to increase audience knowledge about an educational issue, create favourable attitudes, and change overt behaviour. The home video is predominantly used for entertainment in the country and is a growing business that has attracted worldwide attention in its short span of existence. This study examines the depictions of health and moral decadence in the Nigerian home videos as instance of entertainment-education. Depictions of health and moral decadence in home videos may seemingly be the ‘self-reflective mirror’ of a society through its popular media to either call attention to their importance, glorify them or use their consequences to drive home some important lessons. If the home video is widely available and used for entertainment purposes in the country, to what extent therefore has it been used to further educational interests? The content analysis method of inquiry was adopted while the social cognitive theory and agenda setting theory were used as the theoretical framework with a sample of fifty Yoruba and English language home video films. The findings of the study have implications for theoretical and practical existence of the home video industry worldwide. DOI: 10.5901/mjss.2015.v6n2s1p293

Home Video Films and Grassroots’ Relevance in Nigerian Political Process

Home Video Films and Grassroots’ Relevance in Nigerian Political Process

Uses and Gratifications of Home Videos among the Nigerian Teenage Audience: Implications for Cultural Development and Sustainability

The fall out of the introduction of the video cassette recorder (VCR) in the mid-1970s has been the proliferation of home video films. And the dominant audience of this unique medium today is found among children and teenagers, which have employed it for various purposes. This work studies the gratifications sought by teenagers in Enugu-North Local Government Area of Enugu State in the home video films they watch. Using the survey research design and a population of 200 this work found that the preponderant of the population use home video for diversion and relaxation, while a sizable number use it to ease tension. The content and duration of watching put in this past time are different ball games. As much as 42 percent of those polled spend 3 -5 hours a day watching films. Their dominant genres are love, comedy, sex and children films. The implication of all this for cultural development and sustainability is that our youths have become captive audiences to immorality and alien culture. The researcher recommends a stricter regulation of this medium as well as training of continuous practitioners of the industry.

The art of costuming and Nigerian home video films

The art of costuming and Nigerian home video films

Home video films and the democratic imperative in contemporary Nigeria

The paper analyses the sociopolitical import of Nigerian home video films (Nollywood) against the backdrop of long years of military rule. Some titles discussed in the paper include: Saworo Ide/Brass Bells and Agogo Eewo/Gong of Taboo, Alaga Kansu/Local Council Chairman, Akobi Gomina I & II/The Governor's Heir and Your Excellency. The paper notes that while military dictatorship lasted, the film was more or less a medium for social diversion, cultural exhibition and religious affirmation. The inauguration of a civilian administration in 1999 has, however, led to the expansion of thematic possibilities through the screen. To this end, the Nigerian home video presents a framework for deepening people's participation in the process of democratization and development, as shown in the film analyses. In conclusion, the paper affirms the potential of video film in tackling the challenges of social re-construction in a post-military democratization.

Nollywood Films and the Cultural Imperialism Hypothesis

Abstract From the viewpoint of the cultural imperialism hypothesis and its complications, the overall aim of this study was to find out if foreign films still had a stranglehold on Nigerian audience members. The findings indicate that a majority of respondents watch and have a favorable attitude towards Nigerian home video films. However, in terms of preference between local and foreign films, a small percentage indicated preference for the former. The study concludes that the high quality of production of American films accounts for the favorable views held by respondents, even though it is apparent that these and other foreign productions no longer have a captive market in Nigeria.

Magical realism and the power of Nollywood home video films

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Religion in Nigerian Home Video Films

The relationship between religion and art, as forms of cultural expression, is an inextricable one. Both are concerned with the fundamental human search for the good, the true and the beautiful. The religious sense of a people is inscribed in their artistic productions. Both art and religion are universal and fundamental human values and they use similar forms of expression. In order for a work of art to have a popular appeal, artists articulate stories that activate and awake the religious perception in audiences. Religion, in a broad sense, is prevalent in Nigerian home video films. The focus of this paper is to examine the religious questions that these films address, and whether these representations facilitate audiences in their search. The paper also explains what accounts for the popularity of these films.

Identity: Openness and Fluidity. From the Populär Travelling Theatre to Home Video Films in West Africa

No AccessIdentity: Openness and Fluidity. From the Populär Travelling Theatre to Home Video Films in West AfricaJoachim FiebachJoachim FiebachSearch for more papers by this authorPublished Online:Jan 2019https://doi.org/10.7767/muk.2006.52.3.137SectionsPDF/EPUB ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack Citations ShareShare onFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail About Previous article Next article FiguresReferencesRelatedDetailsCited byAfrican Women and Theatre for Development29 October 2021 Download book coverVolume 52Issue 3September 2006 ISSN: 0025-4606eISSN: 2305-0667HistoryPublished online:January 2019 PDF download