Entertainment industry has contributed greatly to Nigeria’s economy — Actor Nonso Diobi

Award-winning Nollywood actor, Nonso Diobi, said the Nigeria entertainment industry, popularly referred to as Nollywood, has contributed in no small measure to the growth of the Nigerian economy.

Diobi stated this during a press conference heralding the 10th year of the Inside Nollywood International Film Festival & Awards (INIFFAA) 2024-themed “Celebration of Original Expression” which will hold from Thursday 15th to Saturday 17th February, 2024 at the Shehu Musa Yar’Adua Centre, the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Abuja.

Diobi, who is also the Festival Ambassador, said INIFFAA was designed to bring on board a creative economy that everyone will be proud of. He said the Festival will be an entertainment cum business summit which will open Nollywood’s rich content to the world through international collaboration.

“I’m sure you are certainly surprised to see me involved in an endeavour like this. There’s been a lot about me that has been in the making and I knew when the time was ripe, I was going to step out and tell the whole world what we’ve been up to. First of all, the theme for this year’s festival is ‘Celebration of Original Experience’ and that is what we have been doing in the entertainment industry; the movie, the music, the comedy, the media.

“We have become so powerful that we inspire a lot of countries around us, a lot of countries beyond the shores of Africa to embrace their own original expression. We have been seen by the world because we have been telling our stories. I’m one of the people that have been in the industry for decades and I’ve seen how we have grown so fast and we have come of age. I believe that the time has come for us to open up our market to the world. We are ripe for international collaborations, we are ripe for other huge networks.

“We are bringing creative economy on board. The Festival is all about how entertainment works. It is going to be an entertainment summit. The summit however will be different because we are the core Nollywood people and I can’t wait seeing us going to the next level. In this Festival, we are now finally bringing the age-old conversation that has been long avoided, the creative economy,” Diobi told Tribune Online.

Founder & CEO, Inside Nollywood, Muoma Obinna, said the event will be a gathering of who is who in the make-believe world as corporate partners, investors, exhibitors, sponsors, ambassadors, film industry experts as well as art and film enthusiasts.

While assuring the participants of swell time which among others will include international film premieres, engaging panel discussions, live music performances, master class and industry workshop and awards night, the INIFFAA boss said the Festival will contribute significantly to empowering Nigeria and Africa’s creative and entertainment industries and also honouring pioneers in the industry.

“For the past 10 years, Inside Nollywood has been at the forefront of promoting authentic and original stories. For the past 10 years, Inside Nollywood has been the power hub analysing the quality of productions, analysing the data of premieres across Africa and Nollywood as a whole. And for the past 10 years, we have been the bridge between government and practitioners.

“Now from 15th, it’s not just going to be about movie festival, it is celebration of our own achievements. It is celebration of how we have propelled Inside Nollywood and how we have changed the narrative of Nollywood since 2014. We are also proud to announce that we have key stakeholders coming from the US, Germany, South Africa to come and listen to our producers who have great ideas that need investment. We have attracted a lot of investors that are willing to sponsor Nollywood project to the next level,” Obinna stated.