Motion Picture and the Nigerian Image

Motion Picture and the Nigerian Image

It must be so, I am a movie freak, but that cannot be a reason for deciding to contribute to this debate. It couldn’t be because I love to write about things, or so sure I could make more meaning about things than any other ordinary contemporary writers. Certainly, it couldn’t be because I cherish being amidst of discuss. Or, possibly, because I want to be heard; make fame from piercing eye into the dark-side, or the good that Nollywood has impacted to the image of the most populous black nation in the would. Or rather it impacts! However, I think, I decided on this in order to tease some of my countrymen. The stance I take may be considered a joke, but are practically true. Do not for this, bang down your interest. It would make no meaning if one thinks nothing good will ever comes out of an untested will such as this elaboration, considering all that could relate to it.
In all of this, my interest were induced from a definite acknowledgement of which in no second thought does, in real sense, covers a lot of things that can give our collective image a face lift. Of course, we know it! We are in a new age! The age not outside the mind, but of which is often being referred to as “Civilization”. Well, before I go further, I know I should be made to understand what is meant to be civilized. But then, my understanding could hardly be separated from a distinct knowledge that civilization only implies “maturity”. The culture which is of the mind; our mind-set about things related to the exigency of our existence.
What is our state of mind? What do we communicate of our self in present of others? In this part of the world, I discovered we are freak about things- new things that spark up a sense within us which often imitate other. There is no such incident that certain expressions of our self, coming from the within will not outlive our presence, or make more betterment of our self if only we could see within. Well, I do not hate the power house of parody but I dislike being held hostage to believe that I cannot do without them. Everything about this life is practically about us. Our self, in the absence of none! Though, we need others to improve ourselves in modality that can enhance our efficiency we need not, for this, turn a prisoner to our own imagination. Let alone sideline our practice. All we need is to work on our self to reverse to the trend of rediscovery master piece of which we were.

Particularly, I belong to this class of new age. And like every others, I had my preschool in the western education where I learned the moon and the sun of this world of which is related to my immediate life. And bragging along her way, I had the good fortune to be told that becoming myself, is the best I could give myself and the rest of the world not loose head over the pack of thing that in the inner world would betray my conscience. I have however, to this knowledge live in an age of conscience – would not find myself derail. Or perhaps brag along the way of life with un-classic conscience of the newness of the world.

Contemporary life annoys me a lot. Deep in the mind of this age, however, it solidities it teaches of which if looked so deep upon would find nothing but the illusioning of it promising. The ideas that we could make more beauty, either our individual personalty, or the corporate heritage by a way of endorsing the systematic fictions of the general contentment of the new world will not mess-up the whole idea, could hardly not be placed under the falsehood. It is so! But the sense of a lame man that we are could hardly differentiate between things. Less the distinctive difference between the animate things of which we belong. This is the realness of things, and not the actual one that having imbibed western culture, need to do everything within our reach to do with everything that is their practice such as those things they overlook too.

Walking in half- nude, or appearing on nude and all the dogmatism practicing on motion is the madness of the west believing that nothing is new. Much of this causes us to loose head to our natural beauty and dignity. I used the word “dignity” not to paint a picture of the beauty of our naturalness but to lay emphasis on the value which in the classicism of our heritage needs not to be a prisoner to time-changing and the place of our culture in the contemporary world. To that end, the very way of our life should be frequently injected into whatsoever message we were to pass across. And not the unforgivable ways mostly used in our home video. I believe this is not our realness. This is a borrow attitude to things. More important, it is not true to say that every movie with a definite theme has a definite costume or that such movie should be specifically made for the purpose of embodying the real value of west. I do not see any reason why we see things this way.
A peep into the mind of average Blackman; it looks odd to say we appear ingenious, or that there is no definite difference between ourselves and the west. Particularly on attitude to contemporary life, we need not for this, over-emphasize our ingenuity that we would make sense to time-changing to the benefit of time; our time! Or that we could combine both to prove our faithfulness to historic movement –embody our heritage of which without a deeper look we often see it silhouette. This is to say practicing is a wind of moral energy; it blows mostly where we had function so well. Every living being born to a particular race has uniqueness just as there are instance of similarities that unifies them all. But then, a man has a root, traceable to a particular source which forms the bases, or the bedrock of his existed yesterday, or his past self still reflecting on his presence. This is true! We do not need another theology or philosophy or possibly a psychology to tell us what we need to know about ourselves. Well, I am not saying categorically that we should limit our self to thing within our reach. I am only saying in an essence that we should not fail to remember who we were; the individual dignity, then the collective image of our dear nation.

This is all we need to know about our self in reality of others. Not to alter our self believing the world of global sense of unattainable reality. In due course, we would realize every alteration we may want to make to our heritage in the name of civilization may never be endorsed in an age to come. Or, if it would ever reconcile the present with the past-self in order to make out a better future. Although, all we had learned of the new world was through the study in the map of western world (education), but this only help us into our acknowledgement of a true-self. In this case, we were only being taught on how to bring out the best that is in us.

I suppose we can now understand that the posture and costume we use on our home video should be more of our own way of telling the rest of the world what they need to know about us; the realness of ourselves which should not be to our own knowledge alone, but to the applauding hand of the larger world, and not this attitude of cultivating an aspect of selling ourselves to their lanquoring eyes. Or even our-self! So that is what I feel or see of certain thing showcase on some of the home video I come across. It is so! Atlas, the ultimate reality to know that every role played is an interpretation of a reality, or existed reality but oh! We seldom gave it a thought.

Instance of this elaboration can be seen of movies from Asia- China, Hong-Kong, India etcetera of which we find solace too, in watching here; The chasten to culture- coloured elaboration often kept me at bay. It made me to want to see more of this side of the human race so significantly difference from where I was born into. The artefactic colour- collaboration of both the posture and costume were all what is needed to corroborate the beauty of each theme as desired to be told. Not that such movies does not exist here! It does! Only that the gap in between it and those that does not were still unabridged. Movies base on culture, or acted as an epic only unifies us with the pass-self which in real sense should not be judge as yardstick for promotion of culture. Rather, this only reconciles us; the presence, to the pass, in colour or language we could best understands so as not to derail totally from our true heritage. I think perhaps, that there should be up-to-date practicing that will enable the use of our own make-up rather than the usual ones in the name of new age.

I understand, the habit of reading in this part of the globe is nothing to write home about. On the other hand, people find solace in things that could elate their daunted spirit resulting either from rush about daily life, or the so-called object poverty. It is true, only a mind thrilling to the ecstasy can find it a desiring to want to learn thing about life, his immediate environment, or possibly to equip himself with the knowledge of others, in books. To him, books were meant for bed-time story which is not mandatory that he must tell. This is true! Real- true, a dispirited soul need only music, or movies to awake their daunted spirit. In this case, the music or the movies to which occupied the vital part of means of either learning or seeing new things that can make their hope alive should be made more of a way to access one-self, or possibly to make oneself outride the dispirited soul in the embodiment of other.

It is true; what we set either our mind or our eyes on so often, or constantly, automatically becomes part of us. This is crucial, for it relates not only with the outside world, but with the one within us which form the exigency of our outer- would.
By experience, I had had a part of life that falls under this category. Going by an aspect of a definite habit I, along with crops of teen or kid had exhibited in those period of childhood; and on the course of watching those kongful movies of the early nineties. It was fun! How we would draw line, tie rope to both our head and our waist we would name each other a name most used for the protagonist. Someone or, one of us would agree to be called by one of the antagonist name-making the whole exhibition a real fun.

Jack-Chan happened to be one of our favourite heroes; going by his role in that debunk movie; the drunken master, and a host of other. We would fight each other without course. Making same sound used in movies Bar- ground. Watching Indian movies too, the sound of interpretable song that colours that air usually escalates our childhood spirit. If you had live in Akure, or possibly, in any part at Ondo State in early nineties, you will understand this prompt.
Well, these could be related to childish stuff, how about the grown up ones that often find their ways, or themselves to the doorstep of pragmatism. How about the two ways round of modeling- once you try watching any theme as you so concentrated on, you will soon realize you’re accustoming them. You will find it much less like you’d been played into doing same. You might not understand why. But you discover that the sense is no longer on your watching any particular movies, but on more easily way you come so close into proactive-ness. This is true about what we set our mind on. There is no doubt! It is one of the informal ways of learning life. That is why, in any masterpiece, or in whichever way a production is made, there is always a trait or traits left behind. This is very true! Every tale told has no end. It continued it telling in the life of individuals who made it a point to watch.
That is why in whatever role we decided for in either our private or public life, or even on stage we should never forget the model in our individuality.

In all of this, we should understand that anything is not suitable for any story as decided to be told. Reason! A tale is not a record of any events happening to people, but of the response to event. It should not be seen as a fiction because all fiction makes uses of human character. And it tells more about the real mankind that we are in a terminology we could best understand. That’s why I believe any story been told has no end. It goes on and on though in a new dimension.

More so, it does not occur to the artiste on stage or on picture that he/she is a same person. It is a most trivial point. But all of this was found answered to. It will not be true to say the role we play on stage, or posture is difference. This can only make pretence of our true nature.

Though, every artiste has a giving role. Yet, the best of each role given only come so well from the individual character (nature), or the skill within us which are best part of our uniqueness as a human- being. So when you hear someone saying life on stage is a different thing in it entirety. Ask him/her in a jiff what make the difference. And if at all, there is any of such as it can be said of, it’s all pretence of a hiding truth about an identity. Well, I am not saying we should take everybody as serious or unserious as they appear on stage as their real-self. Rather, we should see this as our self being played on stage. But then, we should know that there is element of truth in our other self which were best played to the public. In this case, the role being played, of which is our other identity should be more of what could enhance our good growth, both morally and materially. We should been seen as a moral nature. And this starts from how we were being seen on our movies.

I think it is time a reverse on the trend to which our home video is being run. We should not let the position we held now in the world movies industries to derail us. We should understand, this trend did not start over-night, and so should not prepare to run it down if immorality dominates the aspect of our movies.

If there is any better way of saying “our collective values are absolute” I think it should start from our individual self. What we want, and want we don’t want. We could usually make impact into eradicating misconduct or any how shooting of home video that litters the street by a way of maintaining a standard regarding roles. We should understand that the gain of a certain production is seeing that the work live for all time. And not just the present gain! But the immortalizing role is playing in everyone’s life.

This aspect of things about movies industry in Nigeria took me back in a trail to the nineties, the trend to which our movies industry runned. This period witness what is called “Renaissance. The country was made to be established at this period as a focal point of intellectual trends and artistic accomplishments, to the emulation of the sister country of the black nation. It is quit true, this period witness debunk of intellectuality in the showcase of both the storyline and the artistic vision from the individual artiste in the body of actors and actress. And it must be so; this period provided all needed excitement in movies. Reason! I love to be placed on suspense. I don’t like to unravel mystery before it eventually unravels. Keeping people in dark gives them the opportunity to be awakening. More important, it allows a debate on the next action. It’s like the events about life. We only know today because we’ve seen it. Tomorrow is yet unknown. So, same way, I see movies of this period as a masterpiece.

Well, I am not an actor, or a dramatist. Neither am I an onlooker mere studying the passing show about life. Nor a mere spectator of nature’s fairy- land or it highly side; nor a mere passerby, walking the road-side of the way of life in dark. I am who could easily be referred to as a gentle –ordinary man-making a wave in his own way of acting a certain part associated with Goodman’s life. There is a universe which my likes belong; a universe influenced by a definite harmony owning by a nature sparks with unending melody. I am of a kind, who responds to things- beauty and truth whether in book, in colour painting, or in the passion of poetry.

FELIX ORISEWIKE SYLVANUS
163b SILVER CRESCENT
JAKANDE ESTATE, ISOLO
P O Box 1270, MARINA
LAGOS STATE
Blizzfelxcoo72ng@yahoo.com