Nigerian teens are using cracked smartphones and everyday recycled items to produce short science fiction movies that have become instant hits on social media
The crew of eight, known as The Critics Company, live in the northwestern state of Kaduna. They use a smartphone, a sheet of green fabric and an old blower to create flying scenes and other sci-fi actions, Africa News reported.
The Critics Company made their first film — “Redemption” — in 2016 after learning how to do visual effects by watching tutorials on YouTube.
Their aim was not to just go viral but to show that kids in Northern Nigeria are doing something different, said Godwin Josiah, one of the teen filmmakers, in a channels TV interview.
“Well the main aim was not for our stuff to go viral, we just wanted people to see that OK there are kids in Kaduna doing something different, so that was just the main aim. So it all of a sudden just happening. It blew our mind and it made us happy,” said Josiah, 19.
The teens have produced 20 short movies so far about superheroes, aliens and supernatural powers.
They plan to take on Nigeria’s multimillion-dollar film sector, Nollywood, which is ranked as the second-largest producer in the world after India’s Bollywood for the quantity of movies churned out.
A funding campaign for the teen filmmakers raised about $5,800 and will be used to upgrade their equipment.
“One of the targets we aim for in the years to come is to make the biggest film in Nigeria and probably beyond,” Josiah said.
“We want to do something crazy, we want to do something great, something that has not been done before, and from what has been going on now, we believe quite well that it is going to happen soon enough.”
