Video Film Production in Nigeria

A Historical Perspective

Abstract

This paper traces the emergence of portable video technology in the early 1970s. It shows the effect of the new technology on the older celluloid film technology. The major effect is that video technology completely supplanted film technology especially in regard to television news coverage. With time, it became clear that incursion of video technology was not limited to the television industry; it dealt devastating blow on the movie film industry. Hitherto, Nigerian, or developing countries' producers, could not afford expensive celluloid film productions, They were liberated by video film production which is relatively much cheaper and more affordable than celluloid production. But the days of the video technology are numbered with the emergence of another technology, the Digital Video Disc (DVD). The effect the DVD will have on the earlier technologies and 011 the entire television and film production industries will be subject of future research.