Actor Deyemi Okanlawon has explained why YouTube is quickly becoming the venue of choice for Nigerian filmmakers. In an interview with Channels Television, Okanlawon highlighted the challenges of movie theater distribution, particularly for small filmmakers.
“Taking a film to the cinema, it’s really difficult for an independent filmmaker, especially if you’re starting out. There are so many things that you’ll find as obstacles. So, it’s not really to their advantage,” the actor stated.
“That’s why you find now that there are a lot of people who are serious filmmakers, but they are now gravitating towards YouTube. It’s very democratised.
“Nobody’s standing in your way. There’s no politics of, are you a popular producer? Are we giving you enough showtimes? Are you spending enough money on your marketing so that we can now decide whether your film is worthy of attention in cinemas?”
His comments are indicative of a larger trend among Nigerian artists who are choosing direct web distribution over big streaming services and conventional movie releases.
Even though his 2023 movie, All’s Fair in Love, made over ₦130 million in theaters, Okanlawon disclosed that the profits hardly paid the cost of production. He clarified that just a small portion of overall ticket revenues goes to the filmmakers.
He said, “Your profit is totally different, right? So now you’re looking at how much I spent? How much did I make? And remember that the entire N130 million cinema ticket sales wouldn’t come to just the producer,”
“It is split up between the cinema and the government, who take its taxes. You’re going to get about 40% of that amount. And for me, I’ll tell you, that didn’t cover my costs.”
