The Federal Government of Nigeria wants to help the local film industry grow. They are allowing investors to set up small community cinemas without needing special licenses.
This news was shared by Dr. Husseini Shaibu, who is the head of the National Film and Video Censors Board (NFVCB). He made this announcement on Monday in Abuja.
This idea is part of a bigger plan by Hanatu Musawa, the Minister of Arts, Culture, and Creative Economy. They want to make it easier for people to invest in the arts. Dr. Shaibu said this plan will help the government and movie makers make more money and create jobs for young people in Nigeria.
“Not needing a license will help small cinema businesses a lot,” he said. He also mentioned that it will increase the number of movie screens and support local Nigerian films, known as Nollywood films.
As part of this plan, the NFVCB has given temporary approval to an investor to try out a community cinema project for one year. If this test works well, they will suggest more of these waivers to help the film industry grow, especially for local films.
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Dr. Shaibu encouraged film industry people to think about creating community cinemas. He pointed out that this would help bring more people from towns and villages back to the movies. He gave examples from countries like India, where community cinemas work well alongside big movie theaters.
The NFVCB is also looking at ways for small and big cinema operators to work together. They want to give local audiences special movie-watching experiences. To help even more, the board is thinking of lowering the fees needed for showing and distributing films.
Dr. Shaibu called these ideas smart moves and said the NFVCB is committed to working with filmmakers. He stressed the need for filmmakers to submit their films for review before showing them in theaters or online. He mentioned recent meetings in Lafia, Nassarawa State, which aimed to bring the film community together.
“One new rule we are working on is making the film review process quicker,” he said. “Now, it takes only 48 hours to review a full-length movie and just one day for short content like skits and music videos.”
The NFVCB has also started an online submission process to make it easier for filmmakers to get their films reviewed.
The NFVCB was set up by law in 1993. It controls the film and video industry in Nigeria. It checks all films and videos, whether they are made in Nigeria or imported. It also keeps a record of all cinema locations in the country.