Film making and insurgency in North-east Nigeria: The Born in the Evening experience

Abstract

The art of film making has turned to be a global culture. Its dynamic has continuously leveraged on the indigenous activities of any given place to  produce films that are peculiar to such people. The outbreak of Boko Haram insurgency in the Northeast Nigeria since 2009 has affected all human  activities including film making. Major towns and cities in the region have been drastically reduced as survivals quickly resort to safe regions of the  country for safety. There is mass exodus of crème of the region in other to secure their life. Schools, churches, mosques and other business activities are  greatly on the decline as practice and patronage is not encouraging. Poverty, diseases, low interest in education, early marriage, and domestic  negligence are paramount in the religion. On the other hand, the climatic conditions of the region are not favourable to film makers unlike the weather  conditions in the Southern part of the country. There seems to be total abandonment of the area by film makers as a result of the insecurity that has  beclouded the area. It has become difficult to tell their stories not to talk of shooting it within the environment where this terror is being unleashed. In  view of these numerous challenges, this paper approaches the problems through experimentation with Born in the Evening, a film about the issues of  the region and shot in the region. It sees film making as one of the possible solutions to the numerous problems that have bewildered the Northeast.  This paper presents film as a tool to reviving their consciousness. It also debunks the overblown notion that there is no reasonable life in the area.  Beyond these, it presents practical solution to film makers who may wish to embark on a project in the Northeast.