Anti-Piracy: Union Bank, Spring Bank Partner Nollywood

The much hyped Association of Movie Producers Week has come and gone, though not without leaving some mark. A colourful road show was held just before the main event.

The highlight of the impressive week-long event was when Union Bank of Nigeria PLC listed out their partnership plans with Nollywood. The deed was a N1billion movie package for the association. Spring Bank also came up with another N1billion movie partnership package.

Nollywood producers such as Norbert Ajaegbu, Zack Orji, Franca Brown, Stanley Okoronkwo, Emeka Rollas, Chinasa Onyechere, Sam Azubuike, Emem Isong, Paul Obazele and their supporters marched from Winnies Hotel Surulere, all the way to the National Theatre wearing yellow T-shirts, carrying banners and drums. The banners were carried the message: No More Piracy.

From the producers' view, piracy is the biggest problem facing producers, and the AMP week was an avenue to address this problem and probably proffer solutions. One of the producers, Mr. Okechukwu Ogunjiofor, who produced the first Nollywood film, had expressed disdain for piracy.

According to him, piracy was what pushed him into the production of TV soaps instead of home movies. The producer of popular TV soaps such as Cyberia and Rough Edges lamented that, “from 2002 to 2003, when I saw the danger that the movie industry was heading into, whereby I make movies that are good, but I do not get my money. Yet those who are selling the movies are riding cars and building houses, I turned to TV series”.