尼日利亚奥斯卡奖的取消推动了本土语言电影的发展

Nigeria's Oscar Disqualification Fuels Push for Films in Native Languages

Nigeria's Oscar Committee is urging Nigerian filmmakers to make more films in native languages. While some in the country's film industry like the idea of movies in more native languages, others argue that non-English films have limited outreach.

The discussion¹ comes after the U.S. Academy² Awards rejected a Nigerian entry in the International Feature Film category. The Academy of Motion³ Picture Arts and Sciences disqualified the film because too much of it was in English.

Nollywood filmmaker Desmond Utomen hopes to win an Academy Award, known as an Oscar, by making a film in a native Nigerian language.

"It's actually a Hausa-based film, so it's a language film, it's not English. I've done a couple of them in English but, that's actually my first film in Hausa,' he says.

Most Nigerian filmmakers produce English-language movies to reach moviegoers around the world as well as inside Nigeria, where English is the official language.

Filmmaker Darlington Abuda has been working in the country's movie industry, known as Nollywood, for years.

"In Nigeria, if I do a purely⁴ language film, I have made my film a regional film," Abuda says. "It will not get the appeal and audience (response) that it needs in the other parts of the country."

But that may be changing since the U.S. Academy Awards this month refused Nigeria's first entry in the International Feature Film category.

Only 11 minutes of Genevieve Nnaji's Lion Heart - the first Nollywood film by Netflix - was in the native Igbo language. To be considered for the feature film award, at least 50 percent of a movie's dialogue must be in a language other than English.

C.J. Obasi is a member of a Nigerian Oscar committee which was set up five years ago. While the rejection⁵ was criticized⁶ in Nigeria, he believes that Nigeria is on the right path.

"If you look at the bigger picture, you realize that it's a victory in that we made a submission⁷ for the first time ever," Obasi said. "What that does is that it re-positions the hearts and minds of filmmakers as to how we are going to tell our stories moving forward."

Nigeria's Oscar Selection⁸ Committee says the rejection should motivate Nollywood filmmakers to create more movies in the country's over 500 native languages.

But persuading Nigerian filmmakers to turn away from English will be difficult because it is the language that ties the country together.

And, for some Nollywood filmmakers like Jim Iyke, the language used is not the point.

"If someone sits in their living room and decides where my movie should be...or what awards I should get, that is on them," Iyke said. "I've done my job. I've fed the artist in me."

Lion Heart will not be under consideration when the U.S. Academy Awards are announced in February 2020. However, the support of Netflix and Oscar's rejection are already bringing a lot of attention to Nollywood and the work of Nigerian filmmakers.

Words in This Story

category – n. a group of people or things that are similar in some way

regional – adj. a part of a country, of the world, etc., that is different or separate from other parts in some way

audience – n. the people who watch, read, or listen to something

dialogue – n. the things that are said by the characters in a story, movie, play

submission – n. an act of giving a document, proposal⁹, piece of writing, etc., to someone so that it can be considered or approved : an act of submitting something

1 discussion   

n.讨论，谈论；论述

参考例句：

• It is certain he will come to the discussion.他肯定会来参加讨论。
• After months of discussion,a peace agreement is gradually taking shape.经过几个月的商讨，和平协议渐渐有了眉目。

2 academy   

n.(高等)专科院校；学术社团，协会，研究院

参考例句：

• This is an academy of music.这是一所音乐专科学院。
• I visited Chinese Academy of Sciences yesterday.我昨天去访问了中国科学院。

3 motion   

n.打手势，示意，移动，动作，提议，大便；v.运动，向...打手势，示意

参考例句：

• She could feel the rolling motion of the ship under her feet.她能感觉到脚下船在晃动。
• Don't open the door while the train is in motion.列车运行时，请勿打开车门。

4 purely   

adv.纯粹地，完全地

参考例句：

• I helped him purely and simply out of friendship.我帮他纯粹是出于友情。
• This disproves the theory that children are purely imitative.这证明认为儿童只会单纯地模仿的理论是站不住脚的。

5 rejection   

n.拒绝，被拒，抛弃，被弃

参考例句：

• He decided not to approach her for fear of rejection.他因怕遭拒绝决定不再去找她。
• The rejection plunged her into the dark depths of despair.遭到拒绝使她陷入了绝望的深渊。

6 criticized   

vt.批评(criticize的过去式)v.评论，批评( criticize的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The decision was criticized by environmental groups. 这个决定受到了环保团体的批评。
• The movie has been criticized for apparently legitimizing violence. 这部电影因明显地美化暴力而受到了指责。

7 submission   

n.服从，投降；温顺，谦虚；提出

参考例句：

• The defeated general showed his submission by giving up his sword.战败将军缴剑表示投降。
• No enemy can frighten us into submission.任何敌人的恐吓都不能使我们屈服。

8 selection   

n.选择，挑选，精选品，可选择的东西

参考例句：

• We left the selection of the team to the captain.我们把挑选队员的工作交给了队长。
• The shop has a fine selection of cheeses.那家商店有各种精美乳酪可供选购。

9 proposal   

n.提议，建议；求婚

参考例句：

• I feel that we ought to accept his proposal.我觉得我们应该接受他的建议。
• They could not gain over anyone to support their proposal.他们无法争取到支持他们建议的人。