YNaija.com has come into possession of a letter written by one of the top executives of ‘Half of a Yellow Sun’, making an impassioned plea for the movie to be approved by the Nigerian Film and Video Censors Board. The film, based on the novel by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, is based on the Nigerian Civil War from 1967 – 1970, during which more than a million people died.
“Please we need your help with dealing an issue that we’ve been managing with the Nigerian Film and Video Censors Board for over a week now,” she wrote in the letter.
It would be recalled that the movie was scheduled for release on Saturday, 26 April 2014, before the board gave notice of a delay. Following the news, social media has been awash with speculation – some have said it is due to the steamy sex scene between lead actors Chinwetel Ejiofor and Thandie Newton, while others have pointed to fears about the movie leading to violence across the country.
In a media statement issued by the producers on Friday however, no reason was given for the delay. “The highly anticipated release of Half of a Yellow Sun in Nigeria has been postponed due to delays in obtaining certification from the Nigerian Film and Video Censors Board for the public release of the film,” the statement said. “Subject to obtaining the certification of the Board, the film is now rescheduled for release on 2nd May 2014.”
When contacted, the spokesperson, Adeola Ojedokun insisted there is no problem. “The rumours are wrong,” she said yesterday. “The Censors Board is still reviewing the movie and its delay has nothing to do with the sex scenes or the civil war message in the movie.”
However, the letter from the top executive directly contradicts that statement, making it clear that the issues are serious and come from the top shelf of the censor’s board.
“It is now clear to us that they have reservations about allowing Half of a Yellow Sun to be released to the public in Nigeria, as they have delayed the Film’s certification,” it. “Consequently, the Film’s public release which was planned for today has been postponed to next week.”
The reason, according to her, is that the movie is seen as too “political” and a dangerous narrative about the civil war.
“I understand that the DG of the NFVCB, in particular feels that the Film may be too “political” and remind people about the civil war…,” she added. As you have seen the Film yourself, you would have noted that in reality, the Film is about the relationships between the 4 principal characters against the backdrop of the civil war. It is a story of love, forgiveness, betrayal and redemption.
“FilmOne, our Nigerian distributor is working with the team at the NFVCB to get them to rate the film and authorize the public release in Nigeria, but I understand the DG herself has strong reservations.”
Efforts to reach Yewande Sadiku, executive producer of the movie have been unsuccessful as her phones were off at the time of filing this report. When we contacted her husband and partner, Muhtar Bakare, he responded with a terse “I have no comment.”
No longer at ease
The censor’s board spokesman, Caesar Kagho has told the AFP that there were “regulatory issues” with the film but that it wasn’t “officially banned” – the ‘regulatory issues’ were not explained.
Calls to the Director General of the Board, Patricia Bala have not been answered at the time of this report, as well as text messages and an email. Kagho’s phone has also been switched off.
The director of the film, Biyi Bandele has however expressed frustration over this development. Speaking with the BBC’s Focus on Africa, he said censors board saw the movie seven months ago, and made no.
“What’s frustrating is we have not received a formal letter from the board telling us we’ve been banned, or that we’ve not been banned,” he said, adding that Nigeria needs to see the film. “One of the reasons Nigeria is more divided today – 40 years after the end of the war – than it was before the war started, is because we have refused to talk about the elephant in the room.”
However, a senior official at the Censors Board explained the situation to us on condition of anonymity. “The matter is simple, and if you are a reasonable young man you will understand,” he said over the phone this morning. “This is a dangerous time. The World Economic Forum is coming, girls have been kidnapped in the North, and there is insecurity in the land. Have you seen the film? Is it not our job to ensure films don’t cause chaos? No one in governments wants to be responsible for anything has happens now. The poor woman (Bala) is just trying to protect herself. All this noise won’t change her mind, unless a higher authority steps in.”
This is the latest in a long string of unfortunate events for HOAYS. Called “terribly boring” by the Daily Mirror, it has received a slew of negative reviews.
“The film adaptation of Half of a Yellow Sun, the novel by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, reduces a complex and powerful story to a Nigerian soap opera,” said the Telegraph. “It’s essential TV-movie dreariness continually makes you want to walk out. Everything seems off-target, minor, as though the story (which is at times unforgivably unclear) isn’t being dramatised so much as merely acted out and hurried through,” the Financial Times added to the mix.In addition, it has struggled to get a major distributor with deep influence across the North American and European markets. According to reports the movie is now available in just a little over 10 cinemas in the UK, and has taken in less than $150,000 in two weeks.
The producers had counted on Nigeria’s market to give the movie a push. Last week, Oscar nominee Ejiofor visited Nigeria to kick off a public relations blitz alongside very well attended film premieres at the Silverbird Cinemas sponsored by corporates including Etisalat and Arik Air.
Season of anomie
This latest impediment appears to have shocked many expectant Nigerians.
“While the Nigerian Civil War is well within living memory and a scar that cuts deep, especially in southeastern Nigeria, censorship of the film is not the way to go,” said Jeremy Weate, a culture critic and co-founder of publishing house Cassaca Republic. Along with removing history from the curriculum, it appears that Nigeria has a developed a phobia for its past. Without a sense of their own history, young Nigerians are growing up with little sense of themselves and their cultural and historical heritage. How then can they feel confident about the future, with no grounding in the past? What lessons can be learned, if none can be gleaned from what has taken place?”
Ike Anya, a writer with close ties to Adichie and Bandele was one of the first to break the news of delay on social media. “I think it’s a shame that the film is being delayed in Nigeria, its primary audience,” he said. A celebration of Nigerian talent, made by Nigerians, funded by Nigerians largely, and telling our story at a time when we complain of how the West tell our stories. Last week when I watched it in London, an Englishman turned to me and said Nigeria is very beautiful. Nigerians deserve to see this film now and add it to the backdrop of the national conversation taking place now at the national conference.”
For, Lola Shoneyin, award-winning author of ‘The Secret Lives of Baba Segi’s Wives’, this is a much deeper problem “I hope this is not just another demonstration of disdain and disregard for our recent history,” she said. “We haven’t recovered from the announcement about the removal of History from the school curriculum. It is important that Nigerians muster the courage to revisit national tragedies such as the Nigerian Civil War because the current state of affairs shows that we didn’t learn any lessons.”
A person close to the thinking in the administration but sympathetic to the film puts the issues in perspective: “The storyline for HOAYS is not only igbo-centric but it also subtly undermines the illusions we have painted for ourselves about that war,” he said. “As the Boko Haram threat rocks our nation to its foundation, Nigeria will rather bury its head in the sand than confront more ugly truths. I have said it since the elite-fueled opposition blitz began in 2011. The events that led to that war and the subsequent compromises are the elephant in the room. Those who the compromises are designed to favor will do all that they can to ensure that the elephant stays ignored.”
Aliyu Tanko, of the BBC Hausa service, seems to corroborate this. “More than 40 years after the end of the war, the subject remains extremely sensitive in Nigeria,” he is quoted as saying. “Some fear the film, which is seen as sympathetic to the Biafran separatist cause, could stoke up ethnic tensions.”
Interestingly, this story about the Igbo people is being told by the Yoruba executive producer-duo of ex-bankers Sadiku and Bakare. Added our source at the censor’s board, “And then soon people will remember that the madam is a Northerner.”
I do not come to you by chance
While Nigerians wait to see this billion-naira-budget film – with inspired performances by Nigerian cast including Onyeka Onwenu and OC Ukeje – it continues to be watched around the world, with distribution in the UK, US, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Portugal, and the Middle East. The first Nigerian film to have achieved wide distribution in many countries, it will be seen in the United States from May 16 and has also been invited for a screening at the United Nations in Geneva on the 28th of this month.
“We believe not allowing the legal public release of the Film in Nigeria will send very negative signals about the prospects of investing in the film industry for projects on this scale,” the letter added, point to the larger implications for a country seeking an expansion in non-oil sectors. “It will also jeopardise the investments of all our investors, including the Bank of Industry. Without appropriate funding, Nollywood filmmakers will not be able to elevate their craft. Given the keen public anticipation of Half of a Yellow Sun, we also believe that not allowing the Film legally will only allow illegal operators to release their version to meet the public demand.”
Weate agrees. “The full version of the film now becomes a lucrative business opportunity for DVD pirates and damages the chances for future investment in films in Nigeria with higher production values,” he said. “How ironic that this is taking place just after the rebasing of the Nigerian economy highlighted the significance of the film and entertainment sector! ”
While Nigerians are up in arms, at least on social media (“a bid to hide our identity from us,” said Isaac Oladipupo, a publisher, on Twitter today), there are those who believe any campaign to force the hand of the government might not be helpful. “I believe that the best approach will be to authenticate the true situation on ground before coming up with any campaign that may be counter productive,” says Blossom Compere, who is a noted social media expert.
This certainly mirrors the conciliatory tone of the film’s producers, distributors and publicists, all with an obvious eye on the money. But director, Bandele has clearly chosen a different tack.
“It is seriously shocking that someone would presume to be this arbiter of what Nigerians want and don’t want to see,” he said to the New York Times. “To say the way to heal is not to talk about it is disingenuous.
“We went out of our way to reassure the government that we were not trying to stir up trouble. The ironies in this are just so many. It is just surreal.”
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Update: The spokesperson of the censors board has replied our inquiry: “Please text your email address as a statement will be out shortly. Thank you.”
Update: An official of the Censors Board has called to inform us that Half of a Yellow Sun was submitted for censorship and classification, but “never waited to get feedback so they actually broke the law by screening without a censorship and classification permit for the NFVCB.”
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