On new voices in Nollywood: female agency and value in selected Nigerian movies

Abstract

In recent times female Nigerian filmmakers have integrated an array of counter interventionist measures in their movies in a bid to undercut patriarchy’s narrative primacy. This study investigates feminist responses to toxic masculinity in critical and commercially acclaimed Nigerian films, revealing how three female Nigerian directors leveraged their authentic experiences to demonstrate women’s social capacity without threatening patriarchy directly. The study analyzes how young female moviemakers deploy art as a narrative of struggle against a limiting sexist frame. Based on findings culled from visual research and dramaturgical analysis, the paper explores how three Nigerian movies, Omoni Oboli’s Wives on Strike, Stephanie Okereke Linus’s Dry, and Remi Vaughan-Richard’s Unspoken, pioneer social change through the stories of young people battling to survive in a sexist space. The study focuses on blockbuster Nollywood movies challenging misogynistic narratives, and contextualizes the process through which Nigerian movies construct the identity of the “Other” within dominant discourse.

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