The structure of the modern world

The structure of the modern world

The structure of the modern world has allowed cultures and practices to be passed from one region to another through the simple click of a button. The internet and mass media passed through cable television has allowed the aspect of the global village to be a reality in the modern generation. The entire world has been able to share the practices and activities as though they lived within driving distances. One of the easily transferable aspects of modern society has been popular culture. The sharing of what is trendy and contemporary in fashion, music, and art to mention but a few has been made easier. The third countries continue to adapt to the aspects of the global popular culture at a higher rate based on what they deem as acceptable and trendy. The popular culture has been affecting the local industries in the third world. One of the affected industries in the third world country has been the production of the movies that appeal to the local consumers in Nigeria. Nollywood, the Nigeria movies category, has become influenced by the global culture passed through the use of media and international travel of the people in the country thus leading to the adoption of certain factors in the movie production in the country which unfortunately leads to the reduction of the indigenous representation of the community and loss of finances.

The global popular culture continues to influence the third world nation though the transfer on the internet. The internet continues to allow the transfer of the popular culture in western countries to third world countries. The third world countries in Africa and others in different parts of the world have been rapidly adopting the use of the internet through smartphones. As recent research explains, “The continent has evolved from minimal access to fixed-line and mobile telecommunications in the early 2000s to 772 million mobile-cellular telephone subscriptions in 2016 and 240 million individuals using the internet. While still, the lowest globally on both accounts, penetration of digital communications in the African region has experienced the highest worldwide growth since 2005″ (Srinivasan et al. 7). The continued use of the devices in the nations have allowed people to interact with different trendsetters in the global popular culture that allows the third-world users of the internet to be aware and adapt the different culture forming a local form of popular culture in the different nations. For instance, Instagram presents an influencer to express their life and practices on their main page daily. The people vary from musicians, actors, gymnasts, nutritionists, and makeup artists. The different forms of trendsetters are presented to third world users of the application who translate the actions into the daily lives. In the same way, the expectation of what is acceptable changes in the community.

Similarly, the global popular culture is transferred to the third world through international travels that have been made easier with reduced costs and improved transportation technology. In research conducted in 2008, the author explains that the popular culture is transferable based on “the increasing interdependence between popular culture and other arenas of social life” (Grindstaff 2). In that, the interdependence of the cultures results in the transfer of culture from one society to the other. The modern world has become dependent on each other, especially the third world for business, climatic study, and basic tourism. The more people’s lives become interrelated, the increased dependency of one another’s culture becomes rampant. The majority of the third world in which western travels continue to visit is affected, such as Nigeria. Although the local popular culture has been increasing rapidly as expressed in the rise of the artists such as Burna Boy, Wizkid, and Davido, to mention but a few, the western influences continued to increase as viewed in the tourists to the country. In that, the culture transferred in the preferred global popular culture is affecting the quality and theme of movies in Nollywood.

The major change in Nollywood based on the perception of the Global popular culture is illustrated in the makeup, culture, and fashion, among others. In that, although in the past, the preferred outfits for the films were African prints and fashion, the trends in the global culture are slowly acceptable. In the same way, the choice of editing, makeup, and the overall choice od soundtracks are changing in the production of Nollywood movies. Although globalization is opening the world up for African fashion and trends. As the author explains, “The fashion industry is also becoming more Nigerian. Our opinion leaders and officeholders seem to have realized that Africans are better off in African clothing as they now seem to favor Nigerian caftans in favor of western suits most of the time as opposed to what used to be the case a few years ago”( Ugban, et al. 70). In that, the world understands the Nigerian fashion better. However, in the local community, the trends on the outside are influencing the ways in which the actors, especially women, present fashion. The African movies continue to be characterized by global trendsetters such as Kim Kardashian, Jenifer Lopez, and Victoria Beckham, to mention but a few. The change in the expectation of how characters are dressed, dolled up, and the music played in the movies is causing an erosion of the culture in Nollywood. The continued decline in the representation of Nigerian popular culture and the substitution with the global popular culture is affecting the naturality and uniqueness of the movies.

The film industry in Nigeria has been one of the most affected industries in the country by the global popular culture based on the rapid change of the expectations of the viewers. The Nigerian movie industry has enjoyed years of prosperity in the illustration of the indigenous narratives not only to the members of the country but also to the rest of Africa. As an analyst of the movie industry explains, “while it might be acceptable that America’s Hollywood and Indian’s Bollywood are large movie producers, the twenty-first century Nigerian movie industry Nollywood produces about 2000 movies a year which arguably places it in third place on the global film circuit” (Madichie 625). The popularity of movies in the continent has been phenomenal over the years. The actors in the industry have traveled in different parts of the continent to conduct meet and greets as the viewers are interested in understanding them as their idols, as in the same case as the American actors. However, the movies have been predominantly African themed and highlight the common practices of typical Nigerian homes and villages. However, the global popular culture is putting pressure on the producers and actors to change the practice to fit a particular portrayal of international trends. The influence in the media is causing a paradox for the producers who are aware of the demand for the local stories and portrayal of the society and the rising popular cultures across the continent.

The rise of global culture in Nollywood is leading to the fading of the local representation of stories in a manner In which all people relate. The modern change in the trend continues to affect the defining feature in the film industry. Although the “fascination with the occult and all things supernatural has continued,” there is a new demand for the films that abide with the visual representation of the popular culture (Bunker and Cruz 95). The use of the popular culture in the movies produced in Nollywood affects the ability of the supernatural aspect of the movies to be carried as to most of the young communities; it is not cool. The increased global culture of Hollywood in the representation of feminism, homogenous marriage, and other aspects of fashion that are not accepted in the African discourse is expected to be implemented in the media. The increased expectation is putting the producers and actors in a tough position as they struggle with appealing to the modern generation as well as maintaining the aspect which distinguishes the movies from the globally accepted aspect of movie production. In the same way, global popular culture affects Nollywood by reducing funding.

The funding of the majority of the producers is based on the ability to capture a wider audience. Therefore, the conflict in acceptable movie themes and concepts in the community is leading to reduced funding for the movies. As an author expresses as the solution to one of the challenges in funding Nollywood, “Government should revive the corporation and cause it to produce real Nigeria films. A fund should be created to produce films that express the Nigerian dream like it is done in other film cultures” (Ibagere 8). In that, the government should be involved in the funding of the movies that express the culture and history of the nation. However, the majority of the funding for the movies comes from private companies that view a profit in the production of movies in Nigerian. Therefore, in the cases where the profits are not met, the financing also reduces significantly. The demand for ‘modern’ movies that illustrate the global popular culture is causing a dilemma for the producers who seek to make movies that resonate with the community. in the failure of the execution where the movies are considered as being too traditional or too modern has led to the loss of major funding thus causing a stall in the production of movies in Nollywood. The lack of funding is affecting the use of technology and other factors essential in the production of good quality, sound, and overall elements in the movie production.

The difficulty in the balance between economic reality and mass production has become real in the current industry. The popular culture has been presented in the mass media extensively, thus allowing the production process to be affected in terms of followers and viewers. Nollywood is facing the challenge of more people focusing on mass production and media that continue to fill the country in terms of cable television. Different applications and cable channels have made the global popular culture of Hollywood movies to fill the nation, thus reducing the economic benefits of the Nigerian industries. As an author explains, “Many industry specialists now believe that current efforts to work with video streaming companies—such as US-based Netflix (which is seeking to enter international markets), Africa Magic (a Naspers-owned South African Satellite TV affiliate) and Kenya’s Buni.tv—to offer movie streaming services at a fee” (Bellucci and Otenyo 210). As a result of the increased opportunity, private companies such as Iroko in Ghana and Showmax in Kenya have risen. Nonetheless, global popular culture influences companies to include Hollywood images and movies. In the process, the producers and the actors grapple with the reduced income from the mass production and selling of movies in the community. Given that the primary consumers of the content from Nollywood are African nations, the increased competition from Nollywood in the cable and pat media is causing an economic challenge based on reduced sells. The producers in Nollywood continue to struggle with the rise in the global popular culture among the largest market and mass production media across the continent.

Conclusively, the rise of the adoption of global popular culture in third world countries is caused by the use of electronics and the internet, which allows the younger and slightly aged population to determine what is trendy and what is outdated. The rise in popular culture leads to the demands for content that fit with the global popular culture ranging from fashion, makeup, music, and technology expressed in the movies. As a result, the local producers struggle with maintaining the conservative aspect of the movies, which is focused on telling the stories of the African community and practices. The majority of the financing has also been removed from the industry based on the lack of clarity on what is acceptable in modern society. The popular culture from the first and developing nation is leading to the development of mass production and distribution of information and data internationally, thus affecting the market in Nigeria. The Nigerian community is struggling with what is desired by a significant percentage of the market and the aspect of telling African stories. The differentiation and economic scales are a challenge to the advancement of African movies and profits for Nollywood producers. Although the international market becomes receptive of the Nollywood stories on platforms such as Netflix, the producers, and the actors in Nollywood struggle with the rise in the global popular culture influence its major market. Abrupt study and analysis of the Nollywood market need to be achieved and the production of movies that relate to the different popular cultures, both the local and global, to be addressed.