Nollywood Babylon

One of the most compelling projects at this year’s Sundance Film Festival was Nollywood Babylon, a movie about Nigeria’s film industry (after Hollywood and Mumbai-based Bollywood, it’s the third largest in the world but has the highest volume). With Lagos as the backdrop and against a soundtrack of ’70s African underground music, the documentary highlights passionate producers and directors (with Lancelot “Da Guvernor” Imasuen as a special treat) as they put together popular low-budget stories that frequently include drama and voodoo. Written and directed by Montreal’s AM Pictures partners Ben Addelman and Samir Mallal, the team behind the documentaries Discordia and Bombay Calling, the movie does a fantastic job of making viewers feel like they’re on site at the colorful sets. Showing an industry that creates 50 films a week is no small feat and well worth a watch.