The change mantra: Redefining costuming in Nollywood films

Abstract

There is no gainsaying the fact that Nollywood (the Nigerian Film Industry) has helped Africans, Nigerians particularly, tell their stories from their own  perspective. However, some very important aspects of the filmic genre, like costuming, are given the due attention they deserve. According to Bandura  (1977), the social learning theory is based on the idea that learning occurs within a social context either by observation, imitation or modelling, and  Nollywood films are instruments through which people are shaped and re-shaped: a site where good and evil are intertwined (Okome, 2003). As a  medium of cultural transmission and socialization, Nollywood films intentionally or unintentionally have brought about significant negative changes in  the dressing patterns of Nigerian youths through costuming. This paper tends to expose the adverse effect of flaws in costuming in some Nollywood  films. It also proposes total over-haul of the Nollywood’s objective in order to rebuild and restructure the industry in terms of the moral sensibility of our  youths rather than encourage indecency and moral decadence. The paper concludes on the note that the Nigerian Film Industry should re-adjust in  terms of censorship by rebranding, re-packaging and rerepresenting the good, rich cultural values and image of Nigeria and Africa at large, for the  transformation of our youths.