Mount Zion Movies Ministries as a Religious Infrastructure Lessons for Film Producers

Abstract

Mount Zion Movie Ministry (MZMM) is a Christian-based movie entertainment industry in Southwest Nigeria. It produces Christian dramas and skits that impose religious marks, and places value on cultures and activities of those who are not Christians. The producer of the MZMM purposefully assigned religious signifiers to entertainment infrastructure. This affects individuals and relationships beyond the fold of Christianity, thus reflecting entanglements and disentanglement that take place between Christian marked and unmarked configurations. This study explores how MZMM has affected Christian perception of sacrifices to divinities, family members who are not Christians, and Christians who are not Pentecostals or Bible professing. There appears to be a considerable level of disruption that affects relationship entanglement between Christian and non-Christian family members, among colleagues with different religious backgrounds concerning engagements with traditional rites and customs. This study draws the attention of professionals and teachers to the way religiously marked arrangements mutually facilitate and transform broader landscapes of action and relation. This study sheds light on instances where the MZMM acts as a religiously marked infrastructure that connects multiple groups to the same belief and affects relationships with non-Christian groups in a religiously pluralistic society in Southwest Nigeria. This challenges film producers and professionals to be objective in their production.