Veteran Nollywood actor Francis Duru has attributed the growing prominence of Yoruba filmmakers and actors in Nigeria’s film industry to what he described as the Yoruba community’s stronger culture of collective support and promotion.
Duru made the remarks while reflecting on the history of Nollywood and the roles different ethnic groups have played in the development of Nigeria’s film industry.
According to him, Igbo entrepreneurs and filmmakers played a major role in the home-video revolution that drove the emergence of modern Nollywood in the 1990s and early 2000s, but failed to consolidate their influence.
“The Yorubas epitomise the saying, ‘Charity begins at home.’ We need to learn from them. If you don’t protect and project your own, who will do it?” Duru said.
“We [Igbos] created Nollywood, but if you go to Netflix today, you hardly see one movie that speaks of Igbo heritage. But the Yorubas, on the other hand, created opportunities for themselves and utilised them.”
Duru blamed what he called an “individualistic mentality” among some Igbos for the failure to build a stronger collective presence in the industry.
“Igbos failed to learn because of their individualistic mentality. You think you are the big man, so you are self-centred. But you forget that a time will come when you need to be expansive,” he said.
The actor urged Igbos to identify emerging opportunities and invest in projects that promote their history, culture and prominent personalities.
“You need to be proactive and ask yourself, ‘There is a new market space; why am I not there?’” he said.
Duru recalled that many of the early players in Nollywood came from trading backgrounds and recognised the commercial potential of home-video production.
“Most of the persons who pioneered Nollywood were mere traders. So, you created something, and some people saw the gold in it, got together, called their people who have the ‘do’, and they invested in it. The Yorubas protected their own,” he added.
He advised Igbos to view the success of Yoruba filmmakers as a lesson rather than a reason for resentment.
“Don’t get angry with them. These are people who saw their own and protected their own. What happened to you? Igbos have many great men in Nigeria,” Duru said.
The actor also criticised what he described as the limited number of films depicting the lives and achievements of prominent Igbo figures.
“When was the last time you saw the epic of one of these great men? We have great writers who are now writing for the Yorubas,” he said.
Duru further alleged that some Yoruba filmmakers had drawn from Igbo stories, citing the film *Ahamefuna* as an example.
He maintained that the Igbo community could strengthen its presence in Nollywood by working collectively to develop and promote stories rooted in its history and cultural heritage.
