Abstract:
The study assesses the image of the female gender as characters in Nollywood home video films. Nollywood is chosen for investigation because it is currently the second largest producer after Bollywood and above Hollywood in the global film industry rating. The study is conducted in Benin-City, Edo State, Nigeria. The city is conducive for the investigation because it is a vibrant centre of culture and film production. Using the content analysis design as methodology, scenes from twenty (20) home video films are purposively sampled to test the four generic frames – dressing, source of sustenance, purpose and occupation - constructed as basis for assessing how the image of the female gender is portrayed in Nollywood productions. Content analysis is appropriate as design because the objective is to investigate the manifest content of media messages. Holsti’s Inter Coder Reliability Formula is used to ascertain inter coder reliability, while the Chi-square goodness of fit is calculated with the aid of SPSS 16.0. Findings reveal that in 74.6% of the scenes x-rayed, the female gender is presented as characters dressed indecently or in semi-nude appearances. Other findings reveal that 90.1% of the scenes present the female gender as characters dependent on the male gender for survival and consequently stereotyped as pleasers of men (85.4%). A final finding reveal that in 90.1% of scenes x-rayed, the female gender is portrayed in domestic worker roles. The study recommends, among others, that regulatory agencies should provide effective policy guidelines for movie producers in respect of storyline, plot construction, characterization and thematic content. In this way the dignity of womanhood and the image of the female gender can be promoted, while at the same time projecting Nigerian and indeed African tradition and cultural values.
