The Nation Newspaper

Tag: NFVCB

  • NFVCB, FVPMAN’s bust of Alaba, a slap on NCC

    FOR decades, any attempt by right owners and law enforcement agencies to raid Alaba International Market Alaba International Market, Ojo, Lagos, in the name of piracy activities was considered a suicide mission.

    I was a witness in 2006, when suspected pirates in Alaba market resisted arrest by mobilizing other marketers who launched a vicious attack on officers of the Nigerian Copyright Commission (NCC) and men of the Nigerian Police.

    The Police arrived the market with the anti-piracy team of the NCC. They had barely gone 30 minutes into the operation when a suspect dealt a police officer a blow in the face. Another brought out a gun and shot an officer in the leg. Members of the team scampered in different directions as stones, bottles and other dangerous objects were hauled at them. The Police abandoned their lorries in the pandemonium.

    The incident occurred on June 12, 2006, two weeks after former Lagos State Commissioner of Police, Mr. Emmanuel Adebayo, assured the then Director General of NCC, Adebambo Adewopo, of full Police support.

    The incumbent government of Muhammadu Buhari’s desire to turn the creative industry to creative economy took a serious look at issue of piracy, and after the last Creative Industry Summit, a collaboration was announced between the Police and a special taskforce set up by the Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed. But just before the committee could settle down for work, the National Film and Video Censors Board (NFVCB) hit a sudden blow on Alaba, by arresting four piracy suspects, and confiscating film titles and replicating machines worth over N50 million.

    The NFVCB raid was carried out by members of the Film and Video Producers and Marketers Association of Nigeria (FVPMAN) who constitute an earlier taskforce, set up by the newly appointed Executive Director of NFVCB, Adedayo Thomas, to fight unauthorized distribution, as well as unlicensed and uncensored films.

    It is instructive to note that the chief players in the recent ambush on Alaba include the NFVCB boss; notable film marketer, Gabriel Okoye, aka Gabosky; Chairman of FVPMAN, Emeka Aduah, and film marketer and lawyer, Nobert Ajaegbu.

    “This is the first time I am seeing a very coordinated raid of these intellectual thieves,” a filmmaker noted.

    It is interesting to know that a consistent raid of Alaba, over a period of five days could be successful. It is also curious, as one would imagine that this became successful the first time the NCC was not involved in the operation. This is lending credence to the popular belief that bad eggs in the Commission may have been acting as informants to the pirates. This feat is a slap on the NCC, and an indication that indeed, it is possible to break the ranks of the notorious Alaba market pirates.

    Not only was the NFVCB able to beat the NCC to its game, the former embarked on a ride that could offend the latter’s mandate, by utilizing its mandate on licensing for distribution, classification and censorship to set a pace for possibility.

    With this eye-opener, the NCC and the larger taskforce of the creative industry should move in swiftly to keep the fire burning. The mandate of the NFVCB is not to fight piracy, but fortunately, the pirated works cannot be taken to the agency for censorship or distribution bid. Thus, the pirates are potential captives of the NFVCB. This can only be more interesting, as the offence of the pirate is multiplied.

    With the bad eggs in the NCC in mind, and the need to keep the anti-piracy moves watertight, the fight can only be sustainable, if the NFVCB man is able to identify the bad eggs in his agency and put them where they belong.

    Stakeholders must be wary of divide and rule antics which the pirates have used to keep themselves on top. There is no doubt that they (pirates) may want to infiltrate the anti-piracy team.

    Actors and other popular faces should support this new energy by speaking against piracy and educating fans on the need to patronize original copies of DVDs alone.

    It can only be a win-win situation for the right owners if this energy is sustained, long enough for the pirates, who are enamoured of this business to seek the legitimate way, deploying their financial and material resources to help the surplus that proper distribution require nationwide, and in fact, internationally.

  • Censors Board Task Force arrests three piracy suspects at Alaba

    Censors Board Task Force arrests three piracy suspects at Alaba

    Three men suspected to be pirates of film and musical works were, early Monday morning arrested in a raid carried out by the newly inaugurated task force on uncensored and unclassified movies by the National Film and Video Censors Board (NFVCB).

    The raid, led by notable marketer and member of the task force, Mr. Gabriel Okoye, aka Igwe Gabosky, took place at the popular Alaba market, leading to the seizure and confiscation of films and replicating machines estimated to be worth over N50million.

    The suspects were then taken to Area E Police Station Festac Town, Lagos, where they were being interrogated.

    While journalists wait for the arrival of the suspects at Area E Police Station, a member of the task force, Nobert Ajaegbu told The Nation reporter that the movement was being delayed because “the market union has been raising all sorts of money to bribe and frustrate the process. But, we are adamant,” he said

    “As I speak, there is still contributions ongoing at Alaba,” he added.

    Some of the movies that were seized include titles such as ‘Ayamma’, ‘Wedding Party’, ‘Three Wise Men’, ’30 Days in Atlanta’, ‘A Trip to Jamaica’, ‘Lekki Wives’, ‘Wives on Strike’, ‘Jennifer’s Diary’, and ‘Fifty’.

    The suspects include, he said, include Ndu Celestine, Okechukwu Ikuagwu, and Austine Ugokwe.

    Members of the task force were said to have swept on the suspects at about 1.30am on Monday.

    The special taskforce was constituted by the NFVCB in June, to checkmate the upsurge of unlicensed and unclassified movies in the country.

    The move was one of the steps taken by the new Executive Director of the Board, Alhaji Adedayo Thomas, who assumed office barely six months ago.

    The feat, according to many, was a subtle approach to minimize piracy of intellectual property in Nigeria.

    Inaugurating the 8-man taskforce at the Ikoyi office of the agency, Thomas said the reconstituted national taskforce against unwholesome movies, was one of the mandates given him by President Muhammadu Buhari “to revitalize the dying dreams of the founding fathers of the film industry, whose shear efforts brought the sector to phenomenal limelight, but have so far recorded pains and tears as a result of the sabotaging works of people bent on crippling the industry.”

     

  • Viewing center tragedy: Censors Board condoles with families of victims

    Viewing center tragedy: Censors Board condoles with families of victims

    The Executive Director, National Film and Video Censors Board (NVCB), Mr. Adedayo Thomas has expressed his heartfelt condolences to the families of the football fans who died at a public viewing centre in Calabar, Cross River state as a result of an electrocution accident.

    Mr. Thomas also commiserated with the people and government of Cross River state, urging them to bear the irreparable loss of the seven football fans with fortitude, and prayed for the speedy recovery of the injured 11 persons currently receiving treatment at the University of CalabarTeaching Hospital.   

    “May the souls of the departed rest in eternal peace,” said Thomas In a statement signed by his Special Assistant, Mr. Pelumi Oludayo. 

    The NFVCB chief, who earlier this month assumed office as the head of the NFVCB, regulators of the film and video sector, as well as exhibition facilities such as cinemas, theatres and viewing centres however disclosed that  plans are being firmed up to standardise viewing centres across the country.

    He said the exercise will include a baseline mapping for a much needed data base, and expose viewing centre operators to new opportunities that will lead to facility upgrades and improved safety for the benefit of all viewing centre clients across Nigeria. 

  • NFVCB raid uncensored movie outlets

    NFVCB raid uncensored movie outlets

    Continuing in its bid to combat illegal sale and circulation of uncensored movies in the State, the National Film and Video Censors Board, on Thursday, December 1, raided some unlicensed video sales outlets in Lagos,
    It was gathered that some of the outlets raided were in the business of selling pornographic movies which is against the laws set by the board.
    While the NFVCB is against pornography, Joseph Ejike, Head of Monitoring and Enforcement, Abuja, stated that “It is a criminal act and anybody arrested pornographic films will be prosecuted. This particular outing has been on since last week, we’ve gone to many shops within Lagos state, Ogun state, and Oyo state. Most of the outlets were not licensed, some of them were closed and sealed, some the operators were arrested and detained, some the goods or the films were confiscated and some of them are actually charged to court,” he stated.
    He however disclosed that there are ongoing plans and corporation with the Nigerian communications commission (NCC) on how to curb online porn stores and illegal film distribution.
    “Presently, there is what we call the National Enhanced Exhibition Distribution system (NEEDS) which is part of the program that the board is doing now to be able to bring this set of people on board to regulate them and those who do not succumb will be sanctioned,” he added.
    Joseph further stated that there is no hiding place for culprits as agency will be on the lookout for uncensored outlets.
    The raid, which started from the North Central Zone before moving to the South South region, will also be touching South East, North West and North East regions, Joseph revealed.

  • NFVCB bans Fifty Shades of Grey

    NFVCB bans Fifty Shades of Grey

    A few days after its cinema release, the National Film and Video Censors Board (NFVCB), has banned the movie, Fifty Shades of Grey, from showing in Nigerian cinemas.

    The much-talked-about flick which showed in most major cinemas in Nigeria in its first week of release has been removed from list of movies showing in Nigeria cinemas, in compliance with the directive of the regulatory authority.

    Only recently, the Kenyan Film and Classification Board banned the film which has been rated as one of the most anticipated movies of the year.

    The movie is a 2015 American erotic romantic drama film directed by Sam Taylor-Johnson with screenplay by Kelly Marcel. The film stars Dakota Johnson as Anastasia Steele, a college graduate who begins a sadomasochistic relationship with young business magnate Christian Grey (Jamie Dornan).

    The film premiered at the 65th Berlin International Film Festival on February 11 and had a wide release on February 13 by Michael De Luca Productions, Trigger Street Productions, Focus Features and Universal Pictures.

    After premiering at a fan screening in New York City on February 6, Taylor-Johnson announced that two sequels will be made, with the first to be released in 2016.

  • Censors Board approves 79 films in September

    Censors Board approves 79 films in September

    In line with its avowed resolve to always attend to the censorship of submitted movies without delay, the National Film and Video Censors Board (NFVCB) has verified and approved a total of 79 movies for the month of September.

    Eleven of the movies approved are feature length films for cinema exhibition, while 68 are for home viewership.

    Consequently, there has been a marginal improvement of nine films over the 70 movies approved in August.

    In a release by Caesar O. Kagho, Acting Head, Corporate Affairs,NFVCB, the approved movies for home viewership place Yoruba language contents in the lead with 31 movies, English language with 20 movies, Hausa with 16 movies and Bini with two movies.

    The NFVCB requires that all approved movies are to be released with their respective consumer advisories of imitable technique, strong languages, violence, drug abuse, sex and fetish rituals.

    Four movies were classified “15”, five movies were classified “18”, one classified “G” and one movie was classified “PG” for the cinema exhibition. They include : Into The Storm (English),  Lucky(French), Drive Hard (English), Sin City : A Dame To Kill (English), Freemason (English) , The Hundred Foot Journey (Indian),  No Good Deed (English),  If I Stay (English), Finding Fanny (Indian), The Maze Runner (English) and The Rover (English).

    Among the movies for home viewership, 29 have “15” classification grade, 38 classified “18” for adult viewership, one “12” and one “PG” ( Parental Guidance) for both adults and children accompanied by a known adult.

    The “PG” approved film is Dazzling Mirage (English), while the “12” rated movie is Never Again (English).

    Among  the “15” rated movies are Abin Dariya (Hausa), Abubakar Sadiq (Hausa), Adebomi (Yoruba), Amarya De Ango(Hausa),  Be My Guest(English), My Faith My Virginity (English),  Oyenusi (Yoruba), Ope (Yoruba),  Omo Onile (Yoruba), The Perfect Plan (English), The Appointment (English) and Sarah (Hausa).

    The “18” rated movies include  Agbo lboji (Yoruba), God’s Will (English), Boyayyar Gaskiya (Hausa), Caught In The Act (English), Eje Tutu (Yoruba), Hassana Da Usaina (Hausa),  Hand of God (English), Iran (Yoruba), Iboju (Yoruba), Ujadu (Bini), Tears Of A Mad Woman (English), Omo Olufa (Yoruba) and Owo Epo (Yoruba).

  • Censors Board partners Ghanaian, Ugandan film authorities

    Censors Board partners Ghanaian, Ugandan film authorities

    In its bid to checkmate cross-border trafficking of illegal movies, the National Film and Video Censors Board (NFVCB), has entered bilateral relationships with the Ghanaian and Ugandan film authorities.

    In one of such moves, the NFVCB has sent a list of censored Nigerian films to the president of the Ghana Cinematographic Exhibition Board of Control (GCEBC).

    The document, according to Caesar Kagho, Acting Head, Corporate Affairs, contains 306 movies that were approved between January and June 2014.

    The list revealed that 25 films were approved in January, while February, March, April, May and June had 66, 74, 44, 35 and 62 films respectively.

    In a similar development, a three-man team of Ugandan officials were in Abuja last week, to understudy the regulatory operations of the NFVCB as a way of improving film regulatory mechanism in their country.

    The group also observed the board’s field operations, as they move around some licensed movie distribution outlets in Abuja.

    Kagho said “the initiatives are in line with the Patricia Bala- led administration’s efforts towards developing the Nigerian film industry and Africa in general.”

     

  • NFVCB approves release of Half of a Yellow Sun

    NFVCB approves release of Half of a Yellow Sun

    •Screening date to be announced today

    The long wait for the release of the big budget movie, Half of a Yellow Sun, has finally ended as the National Film and Video Censors Board (NFVCB), at the weekend, approved it for viewing in Nigeria cinemas.

    In a statement by the Board’s spokesperson, Caesar Kagho, it was listed among 77 other films that were given approval.

    In a chat with The Nation, Kene Mkparu of FilmOne Distribution, one of the marketing companies for the movie, said a new date for the cinema release would be announced today.

    “We will make an announcement today because we want to make sure that everything is ready, including all the elements that need to get involved, the cinemas that will show it, the materials, the marketing personnel and all that. We just want to have a clear picture; then, we will give a date later this afternoon.

    On whether or not the online release of the film will affect its cinema release, Mkparu said: “It is the producers that will be in the position to answer that. However, it is not released online in Nigeria or in Africa; so, anybody who tries to get it online in Nigeria will not succeed. It is geo-tagged. There is nothing to worry about it being available in Nigeria. It will only be available in Nigeria, first and foremost, in the cinemas.”

    According to him, Half of a Yellow Sun has not lost its creative essence, even with the editing and re-mastering of the movie, which was said to have set the movie back by N20m. “We made some editing, but we are happy. Between the Censors Board and us, we maintained the creative essence of the film. We still satisfied what the Censors Board wanted, in terms of editing. To the audience, the creative essence of the film is there,” Mkparu added.

    Directed by Biyi Bandele, Half of a Yellow Sun, an adaptation of Nigerian writer Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s novel of the same title, stars Academy Awards nominee Chiwetel Ejiofor, Hollywood star Thandie Newton and A-list Nollywood actors.

  • NFVCB writes exhibitor of Half of a Yellow Sun

    It appears the coast for the release of the much-anticipated Biyi Bamdele’s flick, Half of a Yellow Sun, an adaptation of Chimamanda Achidie’s novel of the same title, is not yet clear, as the National Film and Video Censors Board (NFVCB) has, once again, written to the exhibitor on the status of the movie.

     Acting Head, Corporate Affairs, Caesar O. Kagho, in a release, said: “The NFVCB restates its position that the movie is not banned as speculated and that the Board has dutifully exercised due diligence consonant with section 36 (1) (b) of NFVCB Enabling Law ACT 1993, CAP N40 LFN 2004, which stipulates that “a decision on a film shall ensure that such a film is not likely to undermine national security.”

    The release further stated that the Board had duly communicated the exhibitor of the movie in a letter dated May 27, 2014, explaining the status of the film and requiring the distributor “to expunge/edit some clearly stated objectionable aspects of the movie.”

     According to him, “Once the areas highlighted are resolved, the NFVCB, as a regulator, shall communicate a rating of the film as may be deemed appropriate.

    “The actions of the Board are a routine procedure that is not specific to any production, but primarily taken within the ambit of the law, underpinned by the superior logic of safeguarding overall public interest.”

    Kagho further stated that since the Board communicated the exhibitor over the issue, there had not been any response that might facilitate further regulatory actions.

    He said: “It will be recalled that the NFVCB, as the movie industry regulator in Nigeria, approved 35 movies in the month of May 2014 alone, applying similar procedural processes.”

    The $10million movie has made history as the first African movie to get international release dates in countries like the UK, US, Australia, Portugal, Middle East and New Zealand. It is also the first Nigerian movie to be premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival in Canada.

    Half of a Yellow Sun movie stars Oscar nominee and BAFTA award winner Chiwetel Ejiofor, Thandie Newton, Onyeka Onwenu, Genevieve Nnaji, OC Ukeje, Anika Noni Rose, Joseph Mawle, John Boyega, Wale Ojo, Tina Mba, Zack Orji and Hakeem Kae-Kazim. It was directed by UK-based Nigerian playwright Biyi Bandele and produced by winner of an OSCAR and three BAFTAs, Andrea Calderwood, and Yewande Sadiku , an investment banker.

  • Censors Board approves 43 films in April

    Censors Board approves 43 films in April

    THE National Film and Video Censors Board (NFVCB) has verified and approved 43 films for the month of April.

    According to the Film Censorship and Classification Department (FCCD) of the NFVCB, 19 films were in English, 14 in Yoruba, seven in Hausa, two in Ibibio and one in Bini languages, respectively.

    There was only one ‘PG’ category film, The Return of Baby Oku in America, an English language film, among the 43 that were approved.

    Sixteen movies were classified “15”, including “Pretty Liars” (English), “A Thousand Kisses” (English), “First Cause” (English), “Woli Agba” (Yoruba), “Bebi Pu Lofa” (Yoruba), “Ijoba Osekan” (Yoruba), “Ruwan Zuma” (Hausa), “Bugun Abuja” (Hausa), “Da kaizan  Gana” (Hausa) and “Ebun Akoko (Yoruba).

    Also, 26 were classified “18”, including “Anwo  Ino” (Ibibio), “Anwo Ino 2” (Ibibio), “Baba Babi” (Yoruba), “Baba Were” (Yoruba), “Asake Oni Bread” (Yoruba), “Baba Rana” (Hausa), “Badurwa” (Hausa), “Har Da mijina” (Hausa) and “Egbo-Eziza” (Bini).

    For movies classified “15”, the consumer advice is imitable technique, strong language, violence and sex.  For those classified “18”, the consumer advice is ritual, imitable technique, fetish practices, strong language and drug abuse.

    Other approved movies include “Spirits  and Dogs” (English) “Kubayashi” (Yoruba), “Ojokoja” (Yoruba), “United Apart” (English), “The Harvest Season” (English), Jaiye Ogo” (Yoruba), “Discussion Continues” (English) etc.

    According to the NFVCB, the classification categories range from PG 18.