An Original Theoretical Investigation of Nollywood’s Genre System and Its Cultural Logic

Nollywood has developed one of the world's most distinctive and prolific popular cinema genre systems, yet its genre conventions, cultural logics, and evolutionary dynamics have not been subjected to systematic theoretical investigation that would position Nollywood genre theory as an original contribution to global film studies. This study developed an original theoretical framework for understanding Nollywood's genre system and its underlying cultural logic. A film theory and cultural analysis methodology was employed, combining systematic genre analysis of 200 Nollywood films from 2018 to 2023, structured interviews with 20 Nollywood directors and producers, and theoretical engagement with global film genre theory (Rick Altman, Rick Schatz, and Steve Neale) and African cultural philosophy. The systematic genre analysis identified 12 recurring Nollywood genre categories and mapped their conventions, audience expectations, and production economics. Director and producer interviews revealed the cultural logic underlying genre production decisions, including the supernatural thriller as the dominant genre driven by Yoruba and Igbo spiritual cosmological audience expectations. The original Nollywood Genre Cultural Logic Framework proposes that Nollywood genre conventions are determined by three interacting cultural logics: cosmological realism (the audience expectation that spiritual forces operate as naturalistic narrative agents), social correction function (genre conventions as moral regulatory discourse about contemporary Nigerian social challenges), and communal entertainment contract (performance conventions drawn from oral storytelling traditions). The framework constitutes an original contribution to both film genre theory and African cinema studies, challenging the adequacy of existing Western genre theoretical models for African popular cinema analysis.