The second largest film industry in the world after Hollywood, Nigeria’s vibrant film industry has experienced a steady rise between the 1990s and the 2000s, capturing global audiences and streaming giants like Netflix and Amazon. What started as a grassroots movement with low-budget productions has grown into a multi-billion-dollar industry with a financial value of over $6.4 billion. Nollywood is one of the fastest growing movie industries in the world, providing countless employment opportunities and showcasing Nigeria’s culture on a global scale.
A vital part of Nigeria’s thriving entertainment industry is the process of film distribution. It’s the machinery through which the art meets the audience, the process a film must go through before ending up on our screens. While the steps involved can be a bit obscure, it is beneficial to understand the film distribution process—to help filmmakers move their work from creation to as many screens as possible, locally and globally and for audiences to gain an insight into the booming industry.
At its core, film distribution is about finding the right channels to give a film visibility while generating revenue. In Nigeria, that landscape is still taking shape, as distribution is fragmented across independent cinemas, broadcasters, streaming platforms, and more.
The surge in Nollywood’s popularity has been greatly facilitated by partnerships with international streaming platforms such as Netflix, Amazon Prime and Showmax, which have provided Nigerian filmmakers with unprecedented access to international markets, allowing them to reach millions of viewers who might otherwise never have discovered Nollywood.
Bolstered by the COVID-19 pandemic which forced viewers to look to more isolated viewing experiences, these streaming platforms have not only boosted viewership but have also contributed to raising the production standards in Nollywood, as filmmakers now have the resources to tell their stories with higher-quality cinematography and sound.
With films such as The Wedding Party and October 1st seeing massive local success, cinema attendance has managed to evade obscurity in light of online streaming platforms, especially in the aftermath of the pandemic. Post pandemic, the global film industry suffered a loss of at least $7 billion due to the shutdown of cinemas, as at the first half of 2020. Last year, however, the cinema industry grossed about ₦11.5 billion (representing a 60% increase from 2023), and a major contributor to the success of these films are the distributors that get them on our screens.
Releasing a film in cinemas creates buzz. It gives the project a certain prestige, potential for critical acclaim and awards recognition and the cinema run can also foster curiosity, pushing audiences toward streaming the film after the fact. Distributors are specifically important in cinema releases because they have the network and connections necessary to get the produced film seen. They are registered content providers to cinemas and can easily get confirmation from the companies willing to exhibit a film. Companies such as Film One, Blue Pictures and Cinemax act as distributors, while companies like Silverbird, Ebony Life and Nile Entertainment act as exhibitors because they have the screens required to exhibit the content given to them by distributors.
In countries with more developed film industries e.g. America, film festivals and screenings are key places for film agents and distributors to approach filmmakers and offer to distribute films which have made an impression on them. In Nigeria, whose film industry is a niche space with limited infrastructure and little revenue, the process is reversed. With a mere 300 cinema screens serving over 200 million people in 2024, our film infrastructure pales in comparison to other countries’ such as India and America, who boast over 9000 and over 40,000 screens respectively. Thus, Nigerian filmmakers often have to approach distributors themselves to get their films on the big screen; unless of course, you’re an industry heavyweight with enough of a reputation that distributors know your name guarantees box office success.
While high production value and great storylines are attractive qualities in any movie, for most filmmakers, there are two things which determine the interest of distributors; star power and genre. Nollywood is very star driven and films with easily recognisable faces like Nancy Isime, Timini Egbuson, Funke Akindele are likely to attract distributors because they are projected to perform better. Similarly, movies of certain genres are more likely to see mainstream success – horror titles for instance haven’t done well in the past few years, but action, comedy, and drama are the top-performing genres in Nigerian cinemas, so distributors will gravitate towards such films.
When a distributor expresses interest in a film for cinema release, the next step is discussing licensing and contracts. Generally, this is performance based, and profit is split between the producers, the distributors and the exhibitors. Films are typically given a three-week window to meet a certain performance threshold, during this time, they are afforded peak viewing times, to increase their chances at success. Producers and exhibitors typically split the profits 50\50 in the first week that the movie shows in the cinemas. In the second week, the producers’ profit share drops to 45 percent and the exhibitors will take 55 percent . The rates continue to decline as the weeks go by, with the exhibitors taking around 70 percent of the profit. Owing to the high running costs incurred by the exhibitors (rent, staff salaries, equipment and maintenance costs), they take on incremental profit. So while they might make more money from the film’s cinema run, this balances out in the long run. Additionally, films make most of their profit in the first three weeks as viewership diminishes by the week. Depending on contractual specifications, the producer then splits their earnings with the distributor, who will usually get about 15-20percent of the earnings the producer has made.
The typical run period for a film will also depend on the contractual terms, but after the period has elapsed, exhibitors might keep showing the film if it performs phenomenally well because this makes the most of the film’s profitability.
The role of a distributor is slightly different in streaming distribution. The streamers have all the control and data. Here, distributors function as aggregators/agents, offering filmmakers insight on the best deals possible while providing streamers with a catalogue of work to choose from. The rather fragmented nature of the Nigerian film industry with different avenues of consumption (cinema, streaming, broadcasting) and the relatively low trust between streamers and the larger film industry, makes streamers often only want to deal with one company as opposed to several middlemen.
Generally, there are three ways streaming models interact with films; commission, acquisition and licensing. With commission, the streamers directly fund and commission producers to create the film which will then be available for streaming exclusively on their platform e.g., a Netflix original. When a streamer acquires a film however, the streamers pay producers for an already produced film, effectively buying the right to stream the film. Licensing can either be exclusive or non-exclusive. An exclusive license means that the streamer has acquired the distribution rights to a film, gaining the exclusive right to show the film on their platform within a specific territory or for a certain time. A non-exclusive license will mean that while the streamer has the right to show the film on their platform, other platforms are not excluded from showing the same film.
Local streaming platforms like IrokoTv and Showmax Africa typically follow the same format, with distributors acting as aggregators/agents, the only difference being the price point i.e., the cost of production which is usually lower.
As Nollywood navigates an increasingly digital and fragmented media landscape, the role of distributors has evolved from simple gatekeepers to strategic partners, especially in the streaming space where data, trust, and streamlined catalogues drive decisions. Though often unseen, distribution remains a vital force that connects films with audiences across cinemas, platforms, and continents. For Nollywood to sustain its global rise, investing in smarter, more unified distribution strategies will be key – not just to reach the world, but to thrive in it.
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