Conservative northern Nigeria, with its Muslim majority, is witnessing a radical transformation in the Nigerian film sector known as “Nollywood,” which is thriving significantly.
Young filmmakers, influenced not only by their peers in the liberal, Christian south of the country but also by counterparts from distant nations like India, are seeking to reach an audience beyond Nigeria and West Africa, even the entire African continent.
However, the task is complex. Kano State, a cultural crossroads in northern Nigeria after which the local cinema is named “Kannywood,” is subject to Islamic Sharia law, and a government censorship board oversees music and film production.
Approximately 200 films are produced in “Kannywood” each month.
Similar to southern Nigerian cinema, northern cinema deals with themes of love, revenge, and betrayal, but it is distinguished by its adherence to Sharia law and its use of the Hausa language instead of English.
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Films from “Kannywood,” which emerged in the early 1990s, are subject to a government censorship office that supervises all audiovisual productions, as Kano State is governed by Islamic Sharia law.
The executive secretary of the Kano censorship board, who is also a director, producer, and actor, states: “These films are prohibited from containing scenes of nudity or other sexual content,” or from being “contrary to customs, traditions, and religion.”
“Kannywood” has established itself as a cultural phenomenon followed by over 80 million Hausa speakers in West Africa. Some professionals are seeking to expand its reach and are calling for changes to its content and form.
Targeting a Wider Audience
A director says he initiated this shift by adding English subtitles and addressing “aspects rarely seen in Hausa films.”
He and his team intended to film several scenes for the second season of the series “Wata Shida” (“Six Months”) under the scorching sun, to the sound of the call to prayer from a nearby mosque.
The series tells the story of a woman who enters a six-month marriage of convenience to escape a forced marriage. This agreement quickly turns into a dramatic plot involving love, rivalry, and inheritance disputes.
One of the lead actors hopes the series will be shown on streaming platforms to reach the Hausa diaspora abroad and a global audience. The series is currently available on YouTube and a local channel.
Most Nigerian films featured on major platforms like Netflix and Prime Video are produced in the south, specifically by the Yoruba and Igbo ethnic groups, while Hausa-language productions represent a minority among these offerings.
The actor says: “They have bigger budgets, more equipment, and more sponsors and investors,” hoping that “Kannywood” will one day have the same opportunities, despite the language barrier.
A Local Streaming Platform
A local streaming platform named “Arewaflix” was recently launched to gather productions from northern Nigeria, initiated by the head of a Nigerian production company.
He says this platform “will provide opportunities not only for Hausa films but also for films produced in other languages of northern Nigeria,” such as Kanuri and Nupe.
“Arewaflix” plans to add English subtitles, followed gradually by French and Arabic.
The executive secretary believes security remains a major challenge for local platforms, also considering that “Kannywood” needs better equipment and government financial support to reach major global platforms.
Nigeria
Nigeria is a West African country with a rich history shaped by ancient kingdoms like the Nri and Benin, followed by British colonization until it gained independence in 1960. It is Africa’s most populous nation and a cultural powerhouse, renowned globally for its diverse ethnic groups, vibrant music, and influential film industry known as Nollywood.
Nollywood
Nollywood is Nigeria’s prolific film industry, based primarily in Lagos, and is one of the largest film producers in the world by volume. It emerged in the early 1990s following the success of the direct-to-video film *Living in Bondage*, growing rapidly due to low-budget production and widespread distribution on VHS and later DVD. The industry is known for its storytelling that reflects local social, cultural, and religious themes.
India
India is a South Asian country with one of the world’s oldest civilizations, dating back to the Indus Valley Civilization around 2500 BCE. Its rich history includes the rise of major empires, the development of diverse religions and philosophical traditions, and a long struggle for independence from British rule, achieved in 1947. Today, it is the world’s largest democracy and a vibrant, pluralistic society known for its profound cultural heritage.
West Africa
West Africa is a diverse region encompassing 16 countries, known historically for powerful pre-colonial empires like Ghana, Mali, and Songhai, which controlled trans-Saharan trade. Its cultural heritage is profoundly shaped by the legacies of these kingdoms, the transatlantic slave trade, and a rich tapestry of ethnic groups, languages, and artistic traditions such as music and textile weaving.
Africa
Africa is the world’s second-largest continent, recognized as the birthplace of humanity with archaeological evidence of the earliest human ancestors. It is home to immensely diverse cultures, languages, and historical civilizations, including ancient Egypt, the Mali Empire, and Great Zimbabwe. Its more recent history is profoundly shaped by the transatlantic slave trade and the period of European colonization in the 19th and 20th centuries.
Kano State
Kano State is a historically significant region in northern Nigeria, known for being one of the oldest major centers of commerce and Islamic scholarship in West Africa, with the ancient city of Kano dating back over a thousand years. It was a central hub of the trans-Saharan trade and later became a prominent part of the Sokoto Caliphate in the 19th century before British colonization. Today, it remains a major commercial and cultural heartland, home to landmarks like the Great Mosque and the centuries-old Kurmi Market.
Kannywood
Kannywood is the nickname for the Hausa-language film industry based in Kano, Nigeria, which emerged in the early 1990s. It is known for producing movies that reflect local Hausa culture and Islamic values, often blending drama, romance, and moral lessons. The industry grew from the popularity of Indian films and local theatrical traditions, becoming a major cultural and economic force in Northern Nigeria.
Hausa language
The Hausa language is a Chadic language spoken primarily in West Africa, notably in northern Nigeria and southern Niger, with a history dating back over a thousand years. It has long served as a major lingua franca for trade and Islamic scholarship across the region, traditionally written in an Arabic script (Ajami) before widespread adoption of the Latin alphabet.
English
English is the official language of England and the United Kingdom, with its origins tracing back to the 5th-century Germanic invasions of Britain. It evolved through Old, Middle, and Modern English, heavily influenced by Latin, Norse, and Norman French, to become a global lingua franca. Today, it is one of the world’s most widely spoken languages and a primary medium for international communication, business, and culture.
YouTube
YouTube is a video-sharing platform founded in 2005 that allows users to upload, view, and share video content. It rapidly grew to become a dominant force in online media and was acquired by Google in 2006, fundamentally reshaping global entertainment, education, and communication.
Netflix
Netflix is an American subscription-based streaming service founded in 1997, originally as a DVD-by-mail rental company. It revolutionized the entertainment industry by pioneering a streaming model in 2007, leading to its current status as a global producer and distributor of films and television series.
Prime Video
Prime Video is a subscription-based streaming service launched by Amazon in 2006, originally as Amazon Unbox in the United States. It has since evolved into a global platform, producing and distributing a vast library of on-demand movies, television series, and original programming.
Yoruba
The Yoruba people are an ethnic group primarily located in southwestern Nigeria and parts of Benin and Togo, known for their rich cultural heritage, including the ancient Ife and Oyo empires. Their history dates back to the first millennium BCE, with the sacred city of Ile-Ife considered the mythological birthplace of humanity in Yoruba cosmology. The culture is globally influential, particularly through its traditional religion, art, and the diasporic traditions of Candomblé and Santería.
Igbo
The Igbo people are an ethnic group primarily located in southeastern Nigeria, known for their rich cultural traditions, including art, music, and the masquerade festival. Historically, they lived in decentralized communities and were prominent traders, with their history significantly shaped by the transatlantic slave trade and the Nigerian Civil War (1967-1970).
Arewaflix
Arewaflix is a Nigerian digital streaming platform focused on promoting and distributing Hausa-language films and cultural content from Northern Nigeria. It emerged as part of the broader “Kannywood” film industry, aiming to provide a modern, accessible avenue for this regional cinema in the digital age. The platform helps preserve and share the region’s storytelling traditions while adapting to contemporary media consumption.
Kanuri
Kanuri refers to both a major ethnic group in West Africa, primarily in northeastern Nigeria and southeastern Niger, and their historical empire, the Kanem-Bornu Empire. This empire was a powerful Islamic state that controlled trans-Saharan trade routes for centuries, from around the 700s to the late 1800s. Today, the Kanuri people maintain a rich cultural heritage, including their distinctive language and traditions, in the Lake Chad region.
Nupe
Nupe refers to both a historic kingdom and an ethnic group primarily located in central Nigeria, near the Niger River. The Nupe Kingdom rose to prominence in the 15th century and was known for its skilled cavalry, intricate brass work, and a centralized political system under the Etsu (king). Today, the Nupe people maintain a rich cultural heritage with distinct traditions, language, and arts.
French
France is a country in Western Europe with a rich cultural history shaped by Celtic, Roman, and Frankish influences. It is renowned for its global impact in art, philosophy, and science, and is home to numerous UNESCO World Heritage sites like the Palace of Versailles and Mont-Saint-Michel.
Arabic
Arabic is a Semitic language originating in the Arabian Peninsula, with its earliest known inscriptions dating to the 1st millennium BCE. It is the liturgical language of Islam and the Quran, which led to its rapid spread and profound influence across the Middle East, North Africa, and beyond. Today, it exists in both a standardized classical form and numerous regional dialects, serving as a primary cultural and unifying element for the Arab world.
