Documenting Nigerian Narratives!
Nigerian documentaries serve as an alternative route for filmmakers to tell our stories and put out our narratives for the world to see.
In a symbiotic relationship, the global streaming platform (Netflix) has also not relented in its effort to provide a platform for those stories to be aired to a global audience.
Here are six Nigerian documentaries you should check out on Netflix:
1. Awon Boyz
Awon Boyz takes a close look at the lives and passions of the men and boys who hustle or run with gangs on the streets of Lagos. Shot in Monkey village, Opebi, Oshodi and New Afrika shrine, it aims at humanizing Lagos street boys against the typical narrative of them as miscreants, nuisances and louts.
It also showcases their struggles, ambitions, dreams, fears, peculiarities and everything that makes them as human as everyone else.
2. Afrobeats: The Back Story
The documentary features Nigerian music pioneers like Kenny Ogungbe, Dayo “D1” Adeneye, Paul “Play” Dairo and some other prominent figures in the industry. They dive into the rise of Afrobeats, the Nigerian global music phenomenon.
The 12-part documentary series by Ayo Shonaiya is Netflix Nigeria’s first-ever music documentary. This is a must-watch for all bona fide music fans.
3. Marked
Marked explores Nigeria’s cultural practice of inscribing tribal marks, as well as their origin and meaning as symbols of identity, beauty and spirituality. Travelling through 20 states in Nigeria, the director Nadine Ibrahim and her team explore a vast number of cultural identities and the probable reasons behind scarification.
The documentary highlights cultural tensions, national cohesion, ethnicity, self-worth and health rights. It is currently streaming on Netflix.
4. Skin
This Netflix documentary produced by British-Nigerian actress, Beverly Naya, explores the gap between dark-skinned and light-skinned ladies in Africa. Set in Lagos, the documentary throws light on colourism, skin bleaching and contrasting perceptions of beauty.
The hour-long documentary features a wide range of professionals from doctors to photographers and celebrities like Bobrisky.
5. The Making Of A King
In this documentary, Kemi Adetiba and other creatives behind the popular movie “King Of Boys” discuss the franchise’s challenging and inspiring journey towards making Nollywood history.
It takes the audience behind the scenes as the cast and crew members talk about the making of the highly anticipated “King of Boys” and its sequel.
6. Journey Of An African Colony (The Making Of Nigeria)
This is a 7-part series that was released to mark the 60th anniversary of Nigeria’s independence. It is based on two books; Possessed: A History of Law & Justice in the Crown Colony of Lagos, 1861–1906 and A Platter of Gold: Making Nigeria—by the retired Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice in Lagos State, Olasupo Shasore.
He narrates and produces the documentary which overviews the history of colonization, slave trade and independence in Nigeria.
#Unsolicited is a segment for reviews, opinion pieces and professional perspectives for various industries. This edition features 6 must-watch Nigerian Documentaries on Netflix.
