Digital technology and Nollywood film industry

Abstract

Film also known as the 7th Art is a medium for education, information and entertainment which has over the years undergone a series of technological  innovations. This paper examines the evolution of cinema from the ‘silent era’ to the ‘new age era’ characterized by a trajectory of innovations and  improvements due to technological developments. The paper adapts the Diffusion of Innovations Theory (DIT) propounded by Everett Rogers in 1962 to  assess the extent to which innovations in digital technology have altered the old traditional film production landscape. The paper seeks, among others, to  determine and highlight the significant areas technology has impacted on the development of motion pictures globally with particular emphasis on  the Nigerian film industry popularly known as Nollywood. Our major point of interest is on the roles, impacts, challenges and prospects of digital  technology in the areas of production, distribution, marketing and exhibition of films. By using the assumptions of DIT which seeks to explain how, why,  and at what rate new ideas and technology spread. The paper further reviews relevant literature and some empirical results from scholars to justify its  claims. We are able to establish in our findings that digital technology is the driving force of film development which has contributed enormously to  world cinema. Furthermore, the rapid development and emergence of Nollywood film industry as the second largest producer of films in the world next  to Bollywood of India is attributable to the emergence of digital technology.