Cite this article as: Salihu, M. & Ohaja, E. U. (2025). An Analysis of Aesthethic Differences between Hollywood and Kannywood Films Zamfara International Journal of Humanities, 3(1), 142-156. www.doi.org/10.36349/zamijoh.2025.v03i01.015
AN ANALYSIS OF AESTHETHIC DIFFERENCES BETWEEN HOLLYWOOD
AND KANNYWOOD FILMS
Murtala Salihu
Department of Mass Communication
Zamfara State University, Talata Mafara
&
Edith Ugochi Ohaja Ph.D
Department of Mass Communication
University of Nigeria, Nsukka
Abstract: Using a qualitative content
analysis method, this paper analyses aesthetic differences between two
Hollywood films (The Protector, The Objective) and two Kannywood films (This Is
The Way, Duniya Makaranta) by juxtaposing aesthetic elements of the two film
industries in terms of approaches to production, acting, special effects,
culture, plotting, camera work, graphics, setting, taste, and Computer
Generated Imagery (CGI). The paper was anchored on formalist film theory to
establish a justification for human intervention and technological manipulation
during film production in order to make the content appealing to the viewers.
Findings from the study showed, among other things, that Hollywood employed
more aesthetic elements in film production compared to Kannywood even when
older Hollywood movies were compared with newer Kannywood productions. The
findings also showed that technology like CGI which reduces cost and makes the
inclusion of challenging scenes in films stress-free and sophisticated camera work
which makes scenes very visually appealing were non-existent in Kannywood
films. The paper, therefore, recommended that Kannywood needs to set aside
enough money in its budget for the acquisition of sophisticated filmmaking
equipment in order to favourably compete with Hollywood. This will help the
industry deal with problems like insufficient lighting, inaudible audio and
blurry pictures that mar Kannywood movies.
Keywords: Aesthetics, Films,
Filmmaking, Hollywood, Kannywood
Introduction
Aesthetics,
as a philosophical concept, is a significant issue in film production from
Hollywood, Bollywood, Nollywood to Kannywood and it serves as a yardstick for
measuring creativity in filmmaking. The concept of aesthetics reves around
principles for appreciating beauty and taste. Ohaja (2023, p. 1) states that
“beauty refers to what is pleasing, attractive and sensually appealing while
taste refers to what is preferable and acceptable.” Therefore, aesthetics is
concerned with the study of beauty and taste that appeal to the human senses in
making the content and structure of such media as books, newspapers, magazines,
films, journals and billboards attractive to the audience.
Linking these definitions to the notion of
film aesthetics, it pertains to the examination of film and its characteristics
that captivate and engage the audience. Film aesthetics can also be defined as
the study of the standards of beauty/appeal employed in the creation of a film,
as well as an assessment of their impact on both the cinematic work itself and
its viewership. Adenugba (2007, p. 3) further avers that “aesthetics in film
include such filmic elements as storyline, acting, dialogue, lighting,
camerawork, music, costume, make-up, scenery, editing, montage, etc.” These
elements when properly coordinated in movies will better explain the message
contained in them to the satisfaction of the viewers.
Supporting
these views, Udomisor and Anaya (2014, p. 12) affirm that “the aesthetic
presentation in films enables various intending messages and actions to be
passed to the viewers.” This is because viewers are usually captivated by the
aesthetic presentation in films they watch. Hence, films, whether Hollywood or
Kannywood, need different artistic displays in their various scenes to conform
to the ideas the scripts intend to convey.
Therefore, the purpose of this study is to
analyse aesthetic differences in Hollywood and Kannywood films in areas such as
acting,
special effects, culture, plotting, camera work, graphics, setting, taste, and
Computer Generated Imagery (CGI). To this
end, four films, namely, The Protector
and The Objective from Hollywood as
well as This Is The Way and Duniya Makaranta from Kannywood were
selected for analysis. In the long run, the paper provides possible solutions
to the problems militating against the proper application of aesthetics during
film production by the two film industries.
It
is an indisputable fact that Hollywood is the world's biggest film industry
that produces the most expensive and most profitable films (Hildenbrand &
Farias, 2019). In other words, Hollywood has been able to maintain a high level
of influence over the development of other national cinemas, both culturally
and commercially (Kim & Brunn-Bevel, 2020). Parkinson (2012) as cited in
Ezepue (2021, p. 3) claims that “this predominance will remain unchallenged for
a long time to come. In urban geography, the position Hollywood occupies would
be described as a world or global city—that city with predominating influence
over continental and worldwide economies that might be gentrifying.” Hence,
Hollywood will continue to serve as a role model for other global film
industries.
Because
of the predominance of Hollywood in global film industries, some scholars
believe that comparing any other film industry to Hollywood is an anomaly
(Haynes, 2016; McCall, 2012) thinking that the differences in standard and
professionalism are obvious. However, this paper contends that such comparisons
continue to be a motivating factor among filmmakers who constantly aim at
global best practices, standards and quality by imitating Hollywood genres,
performances, narratives and indigenising its artistic displays. No wonder,
Parkinson (2012) categorically states that without Hollywood, there would be no
Bollywood, Lollywood (in Pakistan) or Nollywood (in Nigeria).
Moreover,
the paper also sees the need for such comparison in order to provide academic
interpretation emanating from analysing the two film industries. This will
provide the meaning behind the meaning of the films we watch by analysing
elements of beauty and taste. The paper intends to objectively present Hollywood and
Kannywood through the lens of the selected films as a mode of comparison
regarding their application of aesthetics during filmmaking with a view to
highlighting areas for improvement where necessary.
Statement
of the Problem
The rapid growth and development of any
society is partly dependent on the popular functions of mass media to inform,
educate, enlighten and entertain the audience. These functions are frequently
observed by film industries within the context of portraying such aspects of
society as military power, economic power, politics, religion, family, love,
and widespread issues ravaging the world like social vices, poverty, community
rivalry and corruption. Without
doubt, film industries in the world like Hollywood, Bollywood, Nollywood and
Kannywood have risen and grown through aesthetic quality displays during film
production. Unfortunately, many studies on Hollywood and Kannywood films gave
much concentration on the impact of the content on the viewers, often ignoring
the vital aspects of film aesthetics. This has created a gap in knowledge which
this paper aims to address.
To
this end, this paper analysed the aesthetics in two
Hollywood and two Kannywood films (The
Protector, The Objective, This Is The Way and Duniya Makaranta) and juxtaposed the aesthetics of the two film
industries in order to compare them by considering approaches to production and
other aspects of film production (Peter, 2022). In its literature search, this
paper was unable to trace any previous study which attempted to make such a
comparison.
The paper advanced the argument that
portrayal of aesthetics in these films provides the valuable artistic
ingredients that make Hollywood and Kannywood films acceptable to and
appreciated by viewers at home and abroad. In other
words, the paper describes how far contemporary Hollywood and Kannywood films
have gone in the utilisation of aesthetic elements like setting,
acting/casting, use of camera, lighting, costume, make-up, editing, graphics,
culture, plotting, CGI, and music to convey their message.
Objectives
of Study
The
primary goal of this paper is to examine the significance of aesthetics in
filmmaking and describe the extent to which it is considered in film
production. But specifically, the study aims to:
1. Ascertain
the level of aesthetic application by the Hollywood and Kannywood films
analysed.
2. Describe
aesthetic differences between the selected Hollywood and Kannywood films.
Literature Review
The
concept of film aesthetics
Guyer (2004, p. 15) explains that Alexander
Gottlieb Baumgarten first used the term "aesthetics" to refer to a
branch of philosophy in 1735. According to Lawal (2017, p. 75), “aesthetics is
an ideal enterprise in the arts which is used to evaluate, judge and interpret
artistic consumptions. It is not alien to Africa as well as other climes of
Europe, America and Asia” but is a generic concept used in arts, engineering,
science and social science. Ohaja (2023, p. 1) also makes an appreciable effort
to define the concept of aesthetics by drawing ideas from previous scholars.
She cited the works of Marchior (2013) who affirms that the word aesthetics
reves around “perception through the senses, the definition of beauty, judgment
of taste, the truth content of artwork and its relationship physical,
psychological, economic reality”. However, Ohaja (2023) further cautioned that
aesthetics is not a static discipline that is easily described and categorised
due to constant transformation which our societies undergo. In other words,
“the discipline is eving and prone to reflect the peculiarities of the
environment in which it is studied” (Ohaja, 2023, p. 2).
Film
aesthetics, as a subset of media aesthetics, is concerned with the study of
film and the elements that make it appealing to viewers. It is also known as
the examination of the aesthetic systems used in the production of a film and
the evaluation of how they affected the film and the viewer. According to
Adenugba (2007, p. 7), “film aesthetics seeks to investigate the physiological
and psychological principles of film elements and their effects.” Adenugba adds that, “aesthetics has been acculturated by film
makers to denote ingenuity in film production.” Adenugba (2007) continues by
classifying the aesthetics of a movie as its plot, acting, dialogue, lighting,
camera work, and music. The other elements are montage, editing,
scenery/location, costume and make-up.
In
a survey conducted by Obi et al. (2022) entitled, “Perception of
Aesthetic Elements in Nollywood Video Films by Students of Three Selected
Universities in Southeast, Nigeria,” the authors explained how Tarvainen et
al. (2015) categorised film aesthetics into two categories: film narrative
and film style. Story, plot, characters, and theme are examples of narrative
devices, while colour, sound, framing, and editing are examples of style.
Congruent with this assertion, Bordwell and Thompson (2004) believe that
devices both narrative and stylistic contribute significantly to a film's
overall aesthetics.
In
another study conducted by Ohaja (2008) entitled, “According Primacy to Reality
as a Strategy for Increasing the Appeal of Nollywood Films,” the author focused
on the narrative aspect of film aesthetics, namely, how to make cinematic story
telling in Nollywood films more appealing to viewers. The study asserted that
Nollywood films were generally shallow, sentimental, and packed with overacting
and superstition made to appeal to low-income people. This, at the time, made
elites and rich people in Nigeria to look upon Nollywood films with disdain
believing that they were not meant for them. The study explored and juxtaposed
from literature the realist and escapist traditions in dramatic productions
dating back centuries and consequently, emphasised the need for Nollywood
movies to prioritise realism over escapism in order to appeal to audiences of
all socioeconomic classes.
On
the other hand, Ebewo (2011) which appraised the Nigerian film industry
highlighted many stylistic shortcomings in the techniques and technology used
in its productions as shown in this long citation from the study presented by
Obi et al. (2022, p. 154):
In some films, the editing is poor.
Techniques used to signal a transition from one location to another, such as
the dissolve and superimposition, are blatantly abused, and the timing of the
shots is wrong. Lighting is another crucial element that, used creatively, can
shape, or embellish an image and have a psychological impact on the audience.
Unfortunately, the Nigerian industry lacks basic lighting equipment, and in
many video films, very high, or very low lighting affects the quality of the
colour.
Based on the aforementioned, in this paper we
investigate all those aesthetics elements employed by Hollywood and Kannywood
film productions which invoke not only beauty, but also meaning and taste.
Brief History of Hollywood
The
establishment of production facilities in South California during the second
decade of the 20th century marked the beginning of Hollywood as we know it
today. The film industry was founded by several filmmakers who relocated their
operations from New York in search of a more consistent climate for year-round
filming, and, of course, to avoid fees imposed by Thomas Edison, who owned many
patents on the filmmaking process. The Californian film industry migrated to
Los Angeles, as filmmakers' production capabilities grew (Hidenbrand, 2019).
Therefore, Hollywood film industry was named
after a Hollywood neighbourhood town located in Los Angeles, California in the
United States of America. History has it that the first film produced by
Hollywood industry was in 1908, The Count of Monte Cristo (Hollywood,
2018). Since then, Hollywood continues to increase its reputation,
affluence and fame. With the introduction of movies with sound, Hollywood
producers in each year produced thousands of such genres as action movies,
musicals, romantic dramas, horror films and documentaries distributed across
the globe. Accordingly, Hollywood movie stars became highly idolised and
celebrated by millions of fans.
The
dominance of Hollywood over US territory and beyond demonstrated the financial
viability of the film industry. The technology that resulted, in particular
CGI, has today provided one of the most significant technological shifts in
Hollywood history since the introduction of sound. Epic crowd scenes can now be
produced quickly and affordably. Thanks to computers, unlike in the days of
classic Hollywood, when productions like 1959's Ben-Hur would have required thousands of extras. Hollywood movies
are now so dependent on computers that entire movies can be made without
actors, as seen in a movie like Final
Fantasy (Hidenbrand, 2019).
While
Hollywood has been celebrated for offering abundant entertainment, its products
have also been flayed for debasing morals, glorifying violence and taking up
too much of viewers' time that should be used for productive activities
(Hollywood, 2018). The debate on Hollywood movies' appeal or otherwise
continues, hence the present study that examines the use of aesthetic elements
in two of such movies.
Brief History of Kannywood
The elegance and development of Hausa home
video popularly known as Hausa films in Nigeria started about three decades ago
with films such as Shehu Umar and
other televised Hausa drama series (Abdulrahman, 2006) to cater for the Hausa
speaking people, majorly domiciled in Northern Nigeria and some West African
countries like Niger Republic, Ghana, Togo, Cameroon and Sudan. McCain (2012)
states that the name Kannywood for the Hausa film industry was first coined by
a publisher, Sanusi Shehu Danaji, in Kano, an ancient city in Northern Nigeria,
in 1999. Before its emergence, television drama series (usually broadcast at
night) which featured such legendary actors as Samanja, Bariki Malam Mamman,
Tambaya, Hankaka and Kassimu Yero, were the only sources of modern audio-visual
entertainment in Hausa land, which covers a large part of Northern Nigeria.
(Abdulaziz & Odili, 2010).
The
Hausa home video industry, popularly known as Kannywood, is growing rapidly,
producing, circulating and gaining prominence not only in its base, the
northern part of Nigeria, but also, in neighbouring Hausa speaking communities
in other West African countries. It also extends as far as the Sudan in the
horn of Africa. Maikaba (2017) asserts that the name Kannywood is a combination of Kanny, from Kano, and wood from the global attachment of
“wood” to Hollywood, Bollywood and Nollywood. As at the time of conducting this
study, there is no exact record of films produced by Kannywood industry.
However, Larkin (2004, p. 299) reports that “in 2001 alone, two hundred Hausa
videos were released, easily making this one of the most vibrant forms of
African media.” More than a decade later, over 1,000 film companies were
registered with Kano State Film Makers Associations alone, not to talk of other
registered companies throughout Northern Nigerian states such as Kaduna,
Plateau, and Nasarawa (Chamo, 2012).
Despite
increasing proliferation of Kannywood films, the Kannywood industry has been
the “subject of criticisms and condemnation from different angles of society
mostly from parents, moralists, cultural and religious groups and academics”
(Maikaba, 2017, p. 98). Jibril (2004) explains that much of the debates and
controversies centre on the artistic and moral quality of Hausa films and their
presumed negative socio-cultural effects on the predominantly Islamic society
of Northern Nigeria.
Maikaba
(2017) specifically notes that the critics accuse Hausa film makers of dumping
the vast and rich sources of storylines in Northern Nigeria and plagiarising
Indian films' storylines. Adamu (2010) as cited in Umar (2013) notes that, in
addition to Indian storylines adaptation, Hausa film producers in the late
1980s also use Littattafan Soyayya (love story novels) to serve as storylines
of their films. The problem with love story novels is that most people accuse
them of corrupting the moral values of young people and married women by
exposing them to romance and other immoral behaviour that contradict Hausa
culture and Islamic beliefs in general.
However,
scholars like Ibrahim (2019, p. 87) call for Nigerian academics to understand
that Kannywood is worthy of study: “One may study it for its historiography,
economics, aesthetics values, language use, media and cultural values, among
others.” Thus, this paper responds to this call by studying the aesthetic
values of Kannywood.
Theoretical Framework
This study is based
on formalist film theory, which is based on a method of film production that
relies heavily on human intervention and technological manipulation to make the
content appealing to the viewers. The theory was propounded by Hugo Munsterberg,
Rudolf Arnheim, Sergei Einsterberg and Bela Balazs in the 1920s (Dudley, 1976).
It capitalises on manipulating technical
elements of a film such as lighting, music, sound, makeup, set design, props,
use of colour, shot composition, and editing. According to Ohaja (2023),
formalist theorists believe that art should create a better and more
entertaining version of what exists in society because they consider reality to
be random and unstructured and thus in need of much human interference to make
meaningful and pleasurable content out of it.
Formalist films have flamboyant aesthetics.
Their directors are more interested in expressing their personal perception of
reality than how others might perceive it. Formalists are also known as
expressionists because their self-expression is as important as the subject
matter. The formalist cinema is largely a director's cinema in which the
narrative materials have been heavily manipulated, and the visual presentation
is stylised. The story is used to express the filmmaker's personal obsessions.
Formalists are more concerned with the beauty or power of their images than
with their realism.
Formalist film theorists, in contrast to
realist theorists, think that the art of cinema is possible because a movie is
different from everyday life. The way a sculptor shapes and moulds clay is how
formalist filmmakers shape and mould the images we see on screen. Their method
of making movies emphasises their capacity for manipulating narrative and
emotion. Therefore, formalist filmmakers are primarily concerned with the style
of the film rather than rendering the reality of it.
It is clear that realist and formalist film
theories complement one another when examining both of them. No movie can be
entirely formalist or realistic. Both theories have elements in movies, which
strengthen the plot's themes. A realistically based movie has the advantage of
allowing you to focus on what is being shown to you, rather than how, due to
the clarity of the shots and subjects.
The formalist theory is relevant to this
study because all the four films under analysis in this paper possess directors’ intervention and technological
manipulation in order to entice viewers as a result of using more
advanced lighting, editing, special effects and shot selection techniques.
Because these techniques captivate the audience, the emotional connection that
they feel is quite strong.
Research
Methodology
This study compares and contrasts the
aesthetics of two Hollywood and two Kannywood films respectively by
employing qualitative content analysis method. The paper accomplishes this by
comparing the aesthetic components of the two film industries. Qualitative
content analysis is one of the numerous qualitative methods currently used for
data analysis and interpretation (Schreier, 2012) in order to enhance
comprehension of a situation or topic, as opposed to providing statistics to
validate or refute the researcher's hypotheses, as quantitative research does
(Adeleke & Ohaja, 2022; Ohaja, 2003).
Qualitative content analysis can, therefore,
be referred to as "the systematic reduction of content, analysed with
special attention to the context in which it was created, to identify themes
and extract meaningful interpretations of the data" (Roller &
Lavrakas, 2015, p. 232). One advantage of this method is that it allows
detailed examination and evaluation of content directly by the researchers
rather than depending on the views of respondents. Also, like other research
methods, it allows the researcher to make use of information gathered from
relevant review and to apply it during analysis of the films under study.
Moreover, the study used purposive sampling
technique. Purposive sampling, according to Wilson & Umar (2019, p. 5),
“refers to a form of sampling procedure that inves selecting elements based on
the researcher’s judgment about which elements will facilitate his or her
investigation.” To this end, four films were purposively selected, namely, The Protector (2019), The Objective (2009), This Is The Way (2019) and Duniya Makaranta (2019) all from the
action genre. These four films were selected because they belong to the same
genre and also the films are freely accessible on YouTube without payment of
subscription. The ability to access the four films free of charge on YouTube
facilitated the conduct of this study.
The data collected emanated from watching the
selected films and consulting relevant literature. The four films were watched
repeatedly in order to gain a better understanding of the whole contents in
accordance with this study’s core objectives. Thus, the films were watched more
than three times between March 2nd to March 15th, 2023.
After watching the films for several times, key areas determining aesthetic
differences between the Hollywood and Kannywood films were identified and thus
selected for final analysis. In order not to make the work unwieldy, the
aesthetic elements compared varied between the pairs of films examined.
Synopsis
of The Protector (Hollywood) and
This Is The Way (Kannywood)
The film titled The Protector was
directed by Tosca Musk in the year 2019, and it was produced in the English
language. The cast of the production included notable actors such as Emma
Catherine Rigby, Rachel Allison, David Bamber and Louise Bangay. Based on the
narrative, Camille Logan, an actress and heiress faces a risky predicament as a
consequence of her father's ill commercial dealings. Camille fought hard to be
independent and happy because she did not want to be held responsible for her
father's actions in protecting her or for the man he chooses to work as her
bodyguard.
Upon exerting considerable effort to attain
independence and happiness, she becomes cognisant of the dangerous predicament
she faces because of her father's unscrupulous commercial dealings. Camille
readies herself for the actions her father would undertake in order to ensure
her safety, grappling with a mixture of wrath and apprehension. Nevertheless,
she found herself unprepared for the unexpected arrival of a former SAS shooter
who suddenly enters her life. Jake Sharp finds himself trapped in a state of personal
torment. He previously experienced a lack of focus during the execution of his
responsibilities, leading to detrimental outcomes in both his personal and
professional spheres.
Accepting the position as Camille Logan's
bodyguard was hardly the kind of distraction he needed from his demons. Women
and Jake do not get along, but guarding the heiress appears to be the least of
two evils. However, Jake quickly realises that Camille does not conform to the
societal perception of her. The woman exhibits warmth and compassion, evoking a
calming effect on others. His duty to guard her gradually becomes more than a
well-paid job, no matter how much he fights it.
This Is the Way is the story of Hisham Nasir, a determined
young lawyer, who rescues the father of his ex-girlfriend, Fadila, from the
Nigerian anti-corruption agency, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission
(EFCC) net in an exciting and unbelievable way. Initially, the father separated
Fadila and Hisham, simply because Hisham was from a poor family background.
Fadila was later on forcefully married to someone from a rich family who did
not really love her but married her because of her father’s riches. As such,
the marriage was punctuated with series of problems which finally resulted in
divorce.
The
subplot featured Dr. Bello; a university lecturer fond of sexually harassing
female students. The lecturer was doing this with impunity simply because he
was an ally to the vice-chancellor of his institution. However, nemesis caught
up with Dr. Bello when certain female students gathered enough evidence against
him and reported the matter to the police. Finally Dr. Bello was dismissed from
his job and imprisoned.
The film
was done in English language as directed by Falalu A. Dorayi in 2019 with stars
such as Fadila, Dr Bello, Aliya and Zad. The story teaches moral lessons about
life’s struggle, segregating the poor, public funds embezzlement, marital
infidelity, indecent dressing, sexual abuse, kidnapping and other social vices.
In addition, the film showcases fluent spoken English for the viewers.
Discussing Aesthetic Differences between The Protector and This Is the Way
a. Storyline/Plot: The Protector did justice to its storyline compared to This Is the Way. Every scene in The Protector walks towards one plot of
protecting Camille from the beginning to the end. In contrast, This Is the Way did not concentrate on a
single plot of saving Fadila’s father from the EFCC. The film ended up
equivocating within the scenes without showcasing serious efforts done by
Hisham in securing out of court settlement with the EFCC. Only one scene was
shown where Hisham and EFCC officials signed relevant out of court settlement
documents. The film ended up dividing its attention to other scenes that did
not build up to the main storyline of the film like infidelity, sexual
harassment, kidnapping and so on.
b. Setting/Scenery:
Setting, also known as scenery, refers to the environment in which an action
takes place. Setting aids the audience's understanding of a film’s story, just
as an event occurs at a specific location and time in real life. The Protector showed congested places
like a bar, highways, an airport, theatres, where serious encounters took place
in order to run away from security operatives while protecting Camille from
harm. Beautiful cities of the United Kingdom like London, Liverpool, Bristol,
Manchester and Oxford were the places where the film was shot. This made the
story look more realistic compared with This
Is the Way that portrayed only repetitive and specific areas inside the
city of Kano. Such settings as the EFCC office, police station, hospital and
court chambers did not succinctly depict the status of such official government
buildings. They were poorly improvised to represent the said venues.
c. Special Effects: Explosions, bomb blasts,
gunshots, car crashes and infernos are all examples of fully utilised special
effects in The Protector. Normally,
protecting someone does not come with ease, and as such there was a lot of
commotion and destruction of cars, buildings and properties in a bid to protect
Camille. However, not much special effects are noticed in This Is the Way with the exception of sound emanating from slapping
Fadila. In addition, The Protector
indicated the power of technology where Jake used remote control to open the door
of his car from afar which resulted in the killing of six car snatchers. On the
contrary, in This Is the Way, Hisham
and a girl child pupil of primary school were inved in a car accident, but
there was no special effect to portray the real occurrence of the accident. A
single scene only portrayed when an accident was about to occur and abruptly
migrated the viewers to the hospital bed where the victims were receiving
medical attention. Movies nowadays give much emphasis to special effects. As a
result, the Hollywood studio system has a special effects unit that is in
charge of planning, carrying out, and recording special effects. Computerised
special effects are used in various film genres to create scenes and actions
that cannot be produced or captured naturally.
d. Cultural portrayals: No doubt, This Is the Way Kannywood film reflected
the culture of Hausa speaking people of Northern Nigeria, In the film, there
was the issue of forced marriage between Fadila and Abdulaziz as against her
preferred suitor, Hisham. The mode of dressing reflected Hausa culture and Ali
Nuhu constantly criticised his daughter for dressing indecently (when she
merely wore foreign/Western dresses) until she changed her mode of dressing to
look like a Northerner. Other cultural issues portrayed in the film include
Islamic mode of greeting, marriage solemnisation and prayers. In contrast, The Protector featured non-traditional
and immoral acts like Camille’s father’s ruthless financial dealings,
hooliganism, bombings, nudity, night club attendance and killings. Therefore,
the film’s depiction of events seemed to cast a negative image on Western
culture.
e. Computer Generated Imagery (CGI): CGI is
associated with mise-en-scene. CGI assists in resolving the most challenging
issues or aspects of filmmaking. Computer graphics can sometimes be used to
accomplish challenging scenes and actions. The outcomes can be astounding and
lifelike. The Protector featured most
bomb blasts, shootings, reckless driving while running away from police,
jumping from the airplane and driving on top of the river through CGI or
simulation. In comparison, no single use of CGI was noticed in This Is the Way.
Synopsis
of The Objective (Hollywood) and Duniya Makaranta (Kannywood)
The Objective was directed by Daniel Myrick in 2008. The actors
include Jonas Ball (Benjamin Keynes), Chems-Eddine
Zinoune (Abdul), Mike C. Williams (Trinoski), Sam Hunter (Sgt. Cole), Matt
Anderson (Hamer) and Jon Huertas (Sgt. Degateau). The plot reves
around CIA Agent Benjamin Keynes recalling some mysterious incidents he
encountered when he led a Special Forces team through the mountains of
Afghanistan in search of an Afghan cleric Mohammed Aban. Aban developed a
triangular object in the desert in the 1980s that killed American soldiers in
Afghanistan.
First, they are ambushed by gunmen who
kill a member of the team, Trinoski. The team fires back, killing several
gunmen, but when they go to check the bodies, they have vanished. That night,
the team hears a helicopter approaching at night but cannot see it. They try to
signal the helicopter because their radio is not working. The noise abruptly
stops as the helicopter, still unseen, appears to be directly on top of them
(something that shouldn't be physically possible).
The team members become worn out, frustrated, and
confused as they continue on foot with their mission through the rocky,
desolate landscape when they come across a cave. While guiding the team on the
search, the local man Abdul is surprised to see a valley different from what he
knew before and therefore the team loses its way. The next morning, Abdul warns
Keynes that they are dealing with something that is beyond human conception; he
then commits suicide by stepping off a cliff.
The
remaining soldiers then confront Keynes and demand to know the truth as the
team moves forward. Keynes shows them a thermal imaging camera recording and
informs them of the true motive of their mission A triangular object in the
desert is depicted in the thermal video. It lifts off the ground with three
(supposed) men, including Mohammed Aban. This triangular object killed some
American soldiers who were on peace-keeping mission in Afghanistan. The CIA had
been monitoring the object since 1980 and sent Keynes and his team to go and
investigate further.
Duniya
Makaranta was directed by Kannywood veteran director,
Falalu A. Dorayi. The film uses Hausa language to tell a story of a wayward
boy, Adam A. Zango, who is the only son of a very rich business man in Kano.
Adam, the main male character, is a very naughty boy who associates with bad
friends and enjoys himself with the millions of Naira he usually steals from
his father’s coffers. All advice given to him by his parents, relatives and
acquaintances prove abortive. This results in serious hypertension for his
father because of constant troubles from his only son. In the long run, his
father and mother lose their lives in a plane crash on their way to Egypt where
his father was going for routine medical attention.
When the news of the death of his parents
broke, Adam went into jubilation thinking that the time has come for him to
have full control of his father’s assets. Unknown to Adam, his late father was
indebted to many banks resulting in selling off all his belongings in order to
offset the bank loans. Finally, Adam is left with nothing from his father.
Consequently, all his friends desert him and he is left full of regrets over
his actions, especially to his parents in the past, but it is too late. Adam
comes to realise the full lessons of life in this world (Duniya Makaranta
in Hausa language) where the film derives its name. Adam reaped what he sowed
and thus had to start life anew by selling recharge cards in order to earn his
livelihood.
Discussing Aesthetic Differences between The Objective (Hollywood) and Duniya Makaranta (Kannywood)
a. Acting: The
Objective portrays professional acting more than Duniya Makaranta. In The
Objective, CIA agents Keynes, Degateau, Hamer, Trinoski, and Abdul, their
Afghan guide, performed their roles expertly. Abdul's mother also performed
admirably in her spoken English, portraying herself as someone of Arabian
origin when she pleaded with her son not to accompany American soldiers because
they would kill him. Abdul, on the other hand, ignored her warning because he
desperately needed a better pay which he would get if he worked for the
Americans. However, Duniya Makaranta
portrays unprofessional acting by Adam’s friends, bank officials, policemen and
so on. His friends overacted while evicting him from their houses, the bank
officials did not dress corporately while the policemen appeared dirty and
thin.
b. Camera work: There is professional execution
of camera shots in The Objective unlike
in Duniya Makaranta. Although The Objective was produced in 2008, but
it surpassed Duniya Makaranta which
was produced in 2019 (11 years later) in terms of camera work. The composition
of shots (aerial shots, close-up shots, extreme close-up shots, medium shots,
long shots and extreme long shots) contributed to the telling of the story.
Aerial shots of Afghanistan’s mountains and deserts contributed to the
aesthetics of The Objective. In
contrast, Duniya Makaranta did not
portray professional execution of different shots. It mostly featured close-up
shots, long shots, medium shots and extreme long shots. Throughout the film,
there was no aerial and extreme close-up shots. This violation of shot composition rules by Duniya Makaranta resulted in an
aesthetically unbalanced picture composition.
c. Taste:
Duniya Makaranta film featured social
life and vices like alcoholism, stealing, nudity, drug addiction, body tattoos,
sexual advances, disrespecting parents, gutter language by Adam and his friends
while enjoying themselves at night clubs. This goes contrary to the popular
culture of decency in Northern Nigeria. Certainly, this is the reason why some
people subject Kannywood films to series of criticisms and blanket
generalisation of promoting immorality (see Maikaba, 2017). In contrast, The Objective decently portrayed life of
American soldiers who professionally executed CIA mission in Afghanistan. This
is in consonance with the popular culture of military power, hegemony and
superiority of Hollywood films.
d. Graphics: In film production, writers blend
words and photographs to visually convey a message to the viewers. According to
Adenugba (2007, p. 21) “graphics is the art and profession of selecting and
arranging visual elements—such as typography, images, symbols, and colours—to
convey a message to an audience.” The opening graphics, which list the names of
actors and other notable crew members, the production company, and occasionally
the prologue and closing credits, are all considered to be part of the aesthetic
of a movie today. Font clarity and boldness, 3D effects, computer animations,
and simulation/display patterns are all examples of graphic aesthetics. The Objective aesthetically used much
more graphics with amazing panoramic scenes of mountains, night and daybreak,
skies, streams, rivers, wildlife, and hilly terrain of Afghanistan. The film
also used American English subtitles to add explanation to viewers who are
non-Americans. In contrast, Duniya
Makaranta used British English subtitles and the names of the production
crew was beautifully written in the opening sequence and end credit. Apart from
this, Duniya Makaranta did not use
much graphics during its production to showcase tourist attraction centres of
Kano and Northern Nigeria in general. The film also did not show luxury hotels,
expensive cars, Falgore forest, Kano Zoo, dams, beaches, renowned restaurants,
shopping malls and relaxation centres to depict real enjoyment by Adam while
squandering his father’s money.
e. Music: Duniya
Makaranta incorporated both traditional and modern music to portray how
Adam was enjoying the riches of his father. For instance, Adam showcased
extravagant life during his birthday where he invited his friends, girlfriends,
different music artistes and celebrities. To this end, different Hausa pop
music and dances were played during the ceremony. Moreover, Duniya Makaranta also featured Hausa
rural folk music played by praise singers who were trailing Adam in the markets
and Kano streets, praising him in their songs. This induced Adam to spray money
he stole from his father on them. In contrast, The Objective did not use much music since it is an action film
that portrayed life of American soldiers who were executing a CIA mission in
Afghanistan. As such, there was more music in Duniya Makaranta than in The
Objective.
Discussion of Findings
Findings
of this study revealed that both Hollywood and Kannywood films apply certain
aesthetic elements in their film production. In
addition, the findings described how contemporary Hollywood and Kannywood films
have utilised aesthetic elements like acting, special effects, culture, plotting,
camera work, graphics, setting, taste, and CGI, using the selected films
studied for illustration. This finding is congruent with the
postulations of formalist theorists. Formalist film theorists believe that the
art of film production should yield outputs that are different from real life.
Therefore, formalist filmmakers shape and mould the images we see on screen in
the same manner as sculptors shape and mould clay. In other words, their
approach to filmmaking emphasises their ability to manipulate narrative and
emotion. The four films examined in this study inved directors’ intervention
and technological manipulation in order to attract the attention of the viewers
as a result of using graphics, camera work, advanced lighting, editing and
special effects, among other aesthetic elements.
Findings
also indicate that Hollywood employed more aesthetic elements in film
production compared to Kannywood. In other words, the portrayal of aesthetic
elements is more apparent in The
Protector and The Objective
(Hollywood) than in This Is the Way
and Duniya Makaranta (Kannywood). As
part of their tradition, there is usually ample utilisation of aesthetic
elements like good acting, setting, special effects, camera works, graphics and
in recent decades, CGI, in Hollywood films. For instance, The Objective (Hollywood) which
was produced in 2008 surpassed This Is
the Way and Duniya Makaranta produced
in 2019 (eleven years later) in terms
of aesthetic application. This deficiency can be traced to lack of modern
filmmaking equipment and trained personnel to operate such equipment where they
exist (Ebewo, 2011; Haynes, 2010; Ukala, 2008).
However, in terms of other aesthetic elements
of culture, findings reveal that Kannywood surpassed Hollywood in portraying
them. This Is the Way film showcased
the culture of Hausa speaking people of Northern Nigeria and their Islamic
beliefs exhibited in modes of greeting, prayer, dressing and marriage, among
others. On the other hand, The
Protector featured life styles like gangsterism, arson, nudity and
nightclubbing. These may not accurately represent the entirety of Western
society.
Due to the
foregoing negative activities, the findings indicate that Hollywood violated the
aesthetic element of taste. And so did Kannywood even when the films were
propelled by didactic motives of discouraging the vices and indecency portrayed
in them as seen in Duniya Makaranta. Although the film featured social
life, alcoholism, stealing, nudity, drug addiction, body tattoos, sexual
advances, disrespecting parents and gutter language by Adam while enjoying the
riches of his father, it was a depiction of the wayward and irresponsible life
the film was teaching against but critics still hammer such films as promoting
immorality and vices for including such negative scenes (Jibril, 2004; Maikaba,
2017; Umar, 2013,) which go contrary to the popular culture of decency in
Northern Nigeria. As Ohaja (2023, p. 7) explains, “the history and culture of the consumers of media
content are very important in media aesthetics because what is considered
acceptable and pleasing in one culture may be seen as an abomination in
another.” Hence, the different expectations on the application of aesthetic
elements that portray the daily lives of the characters in the Hollywood and
Kannywood movies.
Conclusion and Recommendations
The success of every film industry, including
Hollywood and Kannywood, largely depends on ample utilisation of aesthetics
during film production. Film
aesthetics, as a subset of media aesthetics, is all about studying elements of
film that capture viewers' interest and fancy. It also refers to the
examination of the aesthetics systems used in the creation of a motion picture
and an assessment of how they influence both the film and the audience. So far,
this paper has succeeded in analysing some aesthetics elements employed in
Hollywood and Kannywood film production which invoke not only beauty, but also
meaning and taste.
The
paper has established that depiction of aesthetics in these films make
Hollywood and Kannywood films appreciated by viewers. Results from the study
also indicate that Hollywood surpassed Kannywood in terms of aesthetic
application. Therefore, in order to meet up to the challenges of utilising
aesthetic elements by Kannywoood, the following recommendations have been made:
1. In order to correct the aesthetic flaws
and technical errors that make Kannywood movies less impressive than Hollywood
ones, the Kannywood film industry must act as soon as possible to address such
aesthetic deficiencies uncovered by this study in order to avoid the same fate
as indigenous cinema, which thrived in the 1970s before dying in the late
1980s.
2. Moreover, Kannywood filmmakers should give
the issue of production value their full attention, looking at the fact that a
large majority of their films are still lacking in both technical and aesthetic
advancements. Hence, it is important for Kannywood to focus on well-written,
high-quality stories.
3. Kannywood needs to set aside enough money
in its budget for the acquisition of sophisticated filmmaking machinery in
order to favourably compete with Hollywood. This will deal with problems like
camera works, insufficient lighting, inaudible audio and blurry pictures that
rear their ugly heads in Kannywood movies. To help the industry develop, the
Nigerian government could contribute by eliminating import taxes on filmmaking
supplies and equipment like cameras, and sound equipment.
4. Additionally, Nigerian governments might
create a number of industry-related intervention funds that indigenous
filmmakers could freely access whenever the need arises.
5. This list of recommendations would be
incomplete without mentioning the importance of professional training and
re-training for Kannywood directors, actors, cinematographers, and production
crew. This is due to the fact that many filmmakers are not properly educated in
the art and science of filmmaking, which has a significant impact on the
quality of films and works produced. Education is critical, and it is
desperately needed in Kannywood so that producers and directors can make better
films than they have in the past.
6. Finally, Hollywood should pay attention to
criticisms about the moral debasement potential of their movies and give more
room for family-friendly movies and those promoting good causes. Thankfully,
such movies seem to be making a comeback through independent studios as the
moral crisis and degradation of Western society continues.
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