How film and television can improve Nigeria’s image
Since Nigeria transitioned to democratic rule in 1999, we have seen a few branding campaigns aimed at improving the image of the country.
The first of the branding campaigns came during President Obasanjo’s era. It was the “Heart of Africa” project designed by Alder Consulting in collaboration with the Federal Ministry of Information. Although it was campaigned locally and internationally, “Heart of Africa” didn’t quite catch-on among the citizenry.
In 2009, Nigeria’s minister for information and culture, Dora Akunyuli, under the Yar’Adua administration, launched the “Good People Great Nation” campaign. The campaign was hinged on the idea that Nigeria could only be great, if it had good people. It resonated more with Nigerians — and for good reason. It called for self-examination like Michael Jackson’s “man in the mirror.” But the campaign’s popularity faded with the change of power in 2015.
In 2016, came yet another campaign launched by President Muhammadu Buhari’s government. This time tagged, “Change Begins with Me.” The campaign much like “Good People Great Nation” places the responsibility on the populace. However, the government received a lot of backlash for this campaign. In branding, your actions must match your brand promise, but that hadn’t been the case with this government. President Buhari had promised “change” during his campaign, sadly Nigeria slipped into a recession after he took over power. As a result, the “change” mantra didn’t hold water.
20 years of democracy, several campaigns and Nigeria’s image is still in shambles. So, why haven’t the campaigns been successful?
The first issue with these campaigns is that they were one-off. A one-off marketing campaign was never sufficient in building a brand. Brand building is more than a logo and slogan unveil. It is a planned and sustained effort. It takes consistency for a message to stick. For instance, Americans might not have invented the phrase “God’s own country” but we refer to them as such because consciously or unconsciously, they have sent this message consistently for decades. Therefore, a one-off branding campaign won’t cut it for Nigeria.
Secondly, a brand cannot be built only through rational messaging. Beyond the hard sell, there needs to be some soft selling too. And one of the ways we can approach soft selling, is through television. By television, I am not referring to a tourism campaign like those you see on CNN. But here’s what I mean.
Like it or not, our first impressions of a country we have never visited are based on what we see on television or read about them. The United States of America is one of such countries.
With some of the world’s biggest studios located in the US, Americans have told stories of the US offering the best in healthcare to reinforcing the message that America is a superpower and free nation, while also telling the light-hearted stories that make you want to visit “Wisteria Lane of Desperate Housewives.”
When you watch ABC’s “Grey’s Anatomy,” you marvel at the advancements in healthcare even though the doctors are actors. When Fitzgerald Grant in ABC’s “Scandal” refers to himself as ‘the leader of the free world, ’ and says ‘I’m arguably the most powerful man on the planet…,’ you applaud. And when “House of Cards” Frank Underwood says ‘We don’t submit to terror. We make the terror,’ you quiver in respect.
What about the Brits? Detective Chief Inspector John Barnaby has been uncovering community crimes in “Midsomer Murders” for over two decades. So, when I heard of the looting which followed the 2011 UK riots, I had no doubt that the looters would be brought to justice. And they were! Let’s also not forget the numerous documentaries that tell us how humane and charitable the British royal family is.
Rape is a big issue in India but in 2009, Brazil’s Rede Globo network aired a telenovela, “India: A love story.” It was shot in three locations — Brazil, Dubai and India. The telenovela explores arranged marriages in India and contrasts it with life in Brazil. The telenovela was a big hit in Brazil and internationally. I am not sure what Rede Globo’s motivations were for producing this telenovela, but it seemed to have served India’s interest best because after watching “India: A Love Story,” you forget about the rape incidents in India. You just want to love the India-way.
On 20 December 2018, CNN reported that box office hit “Crazy Rich Asians” might be the reason why ‘Singapore seems to have suddenly become a must-visit destination.’ According to the report, Singapore which witnessed 17.4m visitors (almost triple its population) in 2014 was projecting a 1–4 % increase in 2018.
The examples are inexhaustible. And so, for years I have questioned the kinds of stories Nollywood told -especially the Yoruba movies. Whilst Yoruba movies have a huge audience, it always bothered me that the movie producers explored very limited themes. More so, the poor subtitling didn’t help Nigeria’s image.
About five years ago, we began to see improvements in Nollywood production values after Kunle Afolayan released “October 1.” The film’s budget was reportedly N330million (about $2million) at the time, and one of the highest in Nollywood to date. “October 1” was also one of the first Nollywood films to screen in theatres in recent years. Afoloyan challenged many local filmmakers and production quality has indeed improved since then.
In 2018, some Nollywood filmmakers took things a step further by telling stories that matter. Some of the movies also showed that Nigeria is much bigger than Lagos whilst seeking to change the narrative.
Speaking at Lights, Camera, Africa 2018, “Kasala” director, Ema Edosio said that ‘most movies about the slum are sad and tragic.’ Edosio says people from the slum ‘do live happy lives because they have built support structures to help them cope with the hardship around them.’ So, she set out to change the narrative.
“Kasala,” a 90-minute comedy is set in the slums of Surulere. The movie doesn’t shy away from the grime and stench but it’s a story of friendship, dedication and courage. Four friends run into trouble when one of them decides to take his uncle’s car for a joyride. One person might have been guilty for the mess, but they work together to try to clean it up.
In December came Tope Oshin’s “Up North” set in Bauchi, a state which has suffered terrorist attacks in the recent past. The movie shows the tourism potential of Bauchi state and tells of the great lengths a youth corps member goes to, to ensure that school girls are actively engaged in sport. “Up North” also sends a subliminal message that despite the kidnapping of school girls in Chibok and other parts of the north, education of northern girls is still being encouraged.
The icing on the cake is the much talked about Genevieve Nnaji film, “Lionheart.” The movie makes history as Netflix’s first original film from Nigeria and that’s important because Netflix is distributing it globally. It’s a fantastic opportunity for us to tell the world who we are. And “Lionheart” achieved that with the several themes which the movie explored.
“Lionheart” showcases some of the finest Igbos in Nigeria’s film and music industries whilst celebrating the culture. The Igbos are known to be merchants and entrepreneurial. “Lionheart” highlights this.
It’s also a great reputation management campaign for the Igbos. In one of the scenes, Nkem Okoh — who plays Godswill Obiagu — averts the defrauding of a Hausa man. He says to the fraudsters, ‘it’s people like you that give Igbo’s a bad name.’
“Lionheart” is also about family and teamwork. When the patriarch falls ill, there’s no infighting. Instead, Godswill and his niece work together to save the family business.
But perhaps the strongest message which “Lionheart” sends is the cooperation between the north and the east. It’s a step in changing the longstanding notion that Igbos and Hausas cannot work together following the events surrounding the Biafra war. Some might even suggest that it has some political undertone ahead of the 2019 elections. But I’ll like to think of it as a coincidence.
Whatever the case, these movies are good for Nigeria’s image and a welcome development in Nigeria’s film industry. As we ponder on our national slogan, we can begin the rebranding process by telling the positive yet authentic Nigerian stories using film and television.
