₦airaland Forum

[EDIT: WHoa, Gdon! EOTRS is looking good! However some of the voice acting still needs work- I'm sure you'll find talent once someone bankrolls the project. The audio/mixing also needs work- I'm sure you'll find tutorials on the net, etc. I hope the screenplay and dialogue is good! The idea to use igbo accents is excellent! Static backgrounds should be a distraction, but you seem to do a good job of keeping them in the background. Great work!]



The problem is simple.

In Nigeria, no-one pays for intellectual property

even the rich will consider anyone that pays for music or video as stupid or wasteful

when people see my original dvds, they give me a look that says 'whats your problem, is your money weighing you down?'

They will brandish a  dvd with 24 episodes of overcompressed, fourth-stage transcoding that they bought for N100 at Opebi with pride and relish, believing that they got a good deal, even though the discs are full of misssing episodes and poorly synchronized audio.

They will claim to 'love' a particular series or to be the series' 'biggest fan' but will NEVER spend any money on the original.

Even if it is presented to them at half price, or a quarter of the price, as long as a N50 pirated copy exists, they will rather get that even if the quality is terrrible.

I have friends who have sworn never to watch a movie at silverbird cinemas until the price becomes the same as the pirasted copies that flood the streets prior to theatrical releases. People who are deadly serious.

This is why I am pessimistic about the success of any creative endeavour that does not fall into the categories below:

Printed works - Novels, comic books. Pirated copies are not so widespread, and copying for friends is nontrivial.
Music - Downloading and copying is widespread, but radio licensing fees and live performances are where the money is made.
Television - Advertising revenue from TV is the only way you can make money from video.

As you can see, since radio and TV are basically controlled by the govt and corporations, your only real options for 'revolutionary' entertainment are Novels,comic books and live music. Since live music is basically useless without advance 'marketing' via radio, it leaves us with just novels and comic books. Since Nigerians do not have a culture of comic reading, the barrier to entry is higher so,

, write a novel.

The landscape is indeed bleak. Until someone convinces NTA that a cartoon will be watched by people that attract high-cost advertising, no cartoons for y'all.

(You realise I didnt mention Nollywood. I'm sure someone will bring that up in defense. Well, do so, I am interested in hearing things from that angle)

Macross zero was amazing. especially part III with the assault on the aircraft carrier. Awesome!

I'm a bonafide macross fanatic. I watched robotech back in the day and it changed something in me,

Right now I'm not sure there's a TV/video/movie macross that I haven't seen. Ive seen em all! Well, except for a *few*,

Sadly, it is true.

But then, most people would call all northerners 'hausa' or 'mallo' or 'gambari' or some other generic term.

Its all just a prejudiced, racist attitude- the 'they all look the same to me' mentality.

Nigerians find it hard to accept that they are probably the most prejudiced and racist people on the planet- they sneer at and look down on EVERYONE, Arabs,chinese, other africans, other Nigerian tribes,indians(this one is horribly prevalent), all except whites, who they worship as though they were gods (except when it comes to scamming them. The prevailing idea is that 'oyinbos are intelligent but not "sharp"')

Bigrovar

Please do not misrepresent the facts. Creative did NOT invent the click wheel. Apple did, and they have patented it, which is why no-one else can use a click-wheel type interface on their MP3 player.

Creative didn't even invent the portable MP3 player.

It's not always the person that 'copies and perfects' that succeeds. Microsoft is failing with the Zune at the moment. The only way they will succeed is if their innovations (wifi, etc) become successful.

Also, MS operating systems are hacked because they are insecure and porous. Unix and Mac OS can also be hacked but it requires much more sophistication than windows. I know because I have worked in systems security and have done these things.

hmmm. So you didnt like the PT. Shame about that.

How did you find episode 3? That was the redeeming part of the PT in my opinion,

Lots of people hated revolutions because it needed you to use your head before you could 'get' it.

Matrix 1 was a work of genius because even a dullard could understand it, and it had a way of making you feel smart because you did!

However Matrix 3 tried to cram too much in, and a lot got lost in translation. To make matters worse, the plot seems to have been too deep even for the writers themselves, and they made some grave errors that kinda take the thrill away once you finally solve all the riddles.

Matrix2- lets just say the action was amazing- taking everything done in and since matrix 1 to the extreme. However there wasn't much else, and the needless tie-ins to ETM were just unnecessary, considering enter the mtric was a poor game

Its a bad dump, dude. Corrupt audio. Go get a better copy of the game, its all over the 'net.

I'd have said buy an original, but thy are nowhere to be found,

What are u doing playing UT anyway? Get UT2004 and play THAT instead!

@echowords

try to enjoy ff12- it has been called best rpg of 2006 bla bla bla. Personally, it puts me to sleep, but thats because Im always so tired when i get back from work. I'd rather do BATTLE with gof of war.

Pity u sold your 360. Ps2 graphics look like crap when you go back, you know,


@Azanor

To get ff6, you should look for a SNES rom site and download final fantasy THREE. dont bother asking why, just do it! remember, FF3 on SNES is FF6. Do NOT get FF3 on NES. If you go for FF6 what you are getting is a patched japanese ROM, and since the game was released in english officially, they never patched it to english, onlyother european languages.

FF7- well, it may be good, but all Im saying is that the hype was just too much. I cant appreciate it now, because it apparenmly does not age as well as the SNES games- ps1 graphics look like crap but SNES graphics are nice and cute.

if your fiancee is AA, then no matter what, you have nothing to worry about.

If he is AS, then you should go check yourself out.

If you were SS, you would know by now.

If you have never had malaria before, you might be AS.

Just go get checked.

Many of us have encountered RPGs in one form or another, such as final fantasy, dragon quest etc.

We've also played action adventure games that are not really RPGs, such as Zelda, castlevania, and so on.

What are your favourite RPGs? and which ones do you despise the most?

The RPG game that gave me the best time of my life was Final fantasy 6 on the super nintendo, also known as final fantasy 3 in some places. The music was sooooo atmospheric, and the story was almost a word-for-word copy of a novel I was writing at the time, but never finished. It was as if the game designers read my mind! Since the heroine of the novel was based on a girl I knew in real life, I felt a real connection with Terra, the main character.


The RPG i hate the most, well, there are many horrible RPGs out there. In fact, in the RPG world, there's more bad than good. There are so many contenders for worst RPG ever, but honestly none has been so unbelievable worthless and useless as , jesus christ I forget the name. Once crappy gameboy game. Dragon sword or something. Kai, when I remember the name I will update my post,



Other notables:

Best pure RPG with no story :final fantasy 1

Most time wasted on a useless labor of love: Breath of fire 2

First runner up for top RPG: Chrono trigger

Most dissapointing: Phantasy star 2

Most mind-numbingly hard:Breath of Fire

Most ' i don't understand the hype': Final fantasy 7

Valium RPGs (put me to sleep whenever I play): Final fantasy 10, final fantasy 12

Most satisfying combat: Secret of Mana

Most Wicked smiles on face while playing: Jade Empire

Most postponed (I swear I will start playing it soon): Star wars knights of the Old republic

Second most postponed (I am sure I will never play this one): Secret of Mana 2

Most sought after(I searched for and chased this game frantically for 7 years but it eluded my grasp. Now I have it and have gottten bored after the first disc.): Final fantasy 9

Yes o!

can u imagine

she's even among those that included him in the contest

now she comes along and calls him ugly! Hmmmmmmmmm!

omo eko, I hope say you no dey secretly trip for this guy ooooooooooooo 

small time now she go talk say na cute-ass include am 

omo eko if u intended to yab chiefoh what u have done instead is made many female nairalanders come on here and proclaim their undying love for him! Which would NEVER have happened otherwise !     D boy's head must be swelling to balloon size now!

Welcome to the wonderful world of PSP's!

Hope you like technology 'cos theres a lot of fun to be had!

I'll start a new thread to help out on psp issues.

Thank you.

it seems only those of us who are close to actual sicklers, or are sicklers ourselves, are able to give the one sensible answer to this question.

All that talk of love, devotion, etc is PURE BUNK AND BULLSHIT. If you feeel you oove yourselves, then go for sterilisation operations and kuku ma have no children ever ever ever. Better than playing with peoples lives in the name of God knows what.

AS+AS = EVIL

Don't do it! Dont even consider it! Never! In your life!

TobAddy,

it

should


never


happen


PERIOD

you are taking a gun with four slots in an empty barrel, loading one NOT with a bullet but with a poison dart filled with a DEADLY disease, sppinning the barrel and holding it to the heads of ALL your children , one by one.

YEAH BRAT! YOUR MOM AND ME COULDNT HOLD OUR AGGRO SO HAVE AT YE! ONE OUT OF FOUR SAYS YOU DIE A LONG, PAINFUL AND EXCRUCIATING DEATH WHILE BEING DENIED LIFE'S GREATEST PLEASURES!

Such people are insensitive and devilish. Strongly in love my arse. Go tell a sharia court u are 'strongly in love' with the Emir's wife when u were caught fornicating, shogbo?

Ok, I know a few people who love Star Wars should be lurking on this forum.

If you love star wars and don't mind discussing it on Nairaland, just respond to this post and list the star wars movies/books/comics/cartoons that you have played along with some general comments! Also if u feel you hate star wars, reply all the same and state your reasons!

Lemme get the ball rolling:

Movies-

episode i- phantom menace
episode ii- attack of the clones
episode iii- revenge of the sith
episode iv- a new hope (saw this first when very young. Loved it!)
episode v-empire strikes back
episode vi-return of the jedi

Books-

Dark Lord: the rise of darth vader
I, Jedi
Shatterpoint
Thrawn trilogy I: Heir to the empire
thrawn trilogy II: Dark force rising
Novel adaptation: A new hope by George Lucas

Comics-
Star Wars Legacy 1-7
Star Wars: Jedi vs Sith Trade compilation
Tales of the Jedi - scattered issues
Star wars: Twilight

Anime:
Clone wars seasons 1/2/3 (excellent)

Ok, I've revealed my arsenal, now others, shoot!

Yeah, i think your dreddlock idea has much potential if u exploit the whole politics/oil money corruption angle. And with foreign oil companiesminvolved, theres a big opportunity for a sci fi angle.

Remember my suggestion about the oil companies funding the research though! The nigerian govt funding the research is SOOOOOOO far fetched!

Jesus christ!!!!!!

See Fight! Chiefoh chill out, u wan kill d girl? lololol!

@omo eko, I hope u know calling a guy ugly when he is obviously winning the 'fine boy' contest by a LOOOOONG margin is a sign of bad taste!

I hope u are finer than his girlfriend or ehm,  your insults may just backfire. Better go delete all ya internet pictures sharpsharp!

Thats why if a guy wants to insult a beauty queen he calls her a slut, not an ugly b!@tch!

Alrighty, let's take these one at a time,

a) Targetting and scenario:

Somewhere along the gline, gd was concerned about the fact that anti-heroes or heroes that do not live up to the standards of selflessness or moral high-ground taken by the traditional costumed characters would be poor role models for children.

My response was 'what is your target audience?'

ie, if we target young children, will we turn a profit? Since young children cannot generally afford these comics, the answer unfortunately is No. Unless of course we can get a sponsor to subsidize us, in which case we end up with another supa strikers or,  (sorry bout this, ) Indomitables.

So, we are not targetting the kiddies. Who then are we targetting? busy adults who would be ashamed to be seen with comics? Hell no. We target the 17-25 age bracket- the University students who have lots of free time and cash to burn. Now do THESE guys need role models in comic books?

I sincerely hope the answer is No. At that age no-one should be imitating superman.

What adolescents want, when they read, is something that seems 'mature' and 'realistic'. Apart from ultra violence and gobs of half-naked women, this generally means characters doing 'what you would expect any normal person to do' in certain circumstances. Given the atmosphere in our country and the culture/mindset, An altruistic character or a crime-fighter is the very depth of unrealistic unbelievable nonsense. Similarly, planet-scale events would likely not be appealing because, unlike the united states, we are not socialised to think of ourselves as the centre of the world. Nigerians think of nigerians before  Nigeria, and leaving Nigeria before thinking about the World. Our stories should reflect our culture and mindset.

I like using anime as a focal point for these discussions. I have a friend who lives in japan and tells me about th atmosphere there and the way things are run. Funny enough in most manga and anime you can see this nicely represented. How many manga superheroes are selfless crimefighters defending the world? Almost none. What do we have instead?

Naruto: Struggling student trying to be the best in his class. In japan the secondary/tertiary eucation system is rigid, cutthroat and ruthless. A single failing grade is the diffeence between lifetime employment in a prestigious company and humiliation, disgrace and shame to your family name. Students are driven to pass as though it is life and death. The parallels with naruto are chilling.

Kenshin: Former killer trying to atone for his past life by protecting the innocent. Seems pretty altruistic until you discover the samurai actually has a deathwish and wishes to be KILLED protecting the innocent. Classical tragic traditional tale, of course rife with martial arts/japanese traditional environments/dressing/surroundings.

Gundam: Soldiers fighting on opposing sides of a war, neither of which is clearly good or evil, but both demanding of great sacrifice, with the only real evil being technology capable of mass destruction. Practically all mech anime can be lumped into this world-war-2-parallel universe.

You can see that the japanese have done a good job of adapting the medium of comic books to their environment and society. The abundance of supernatural/shinto/buddhist elements in manga should be indicative of the fact that unlike us, they have found a way of making their traditional mysticism interesting.

A nigerian comic involving sea kings, magic, otehr worlds, sacrifices of unborn children, etc doesnt HAVE to be set in the past, doesnt HAVE to be full of bare footed dirty villagers spitting on cowries, doesn;t HAVE to look like our revolting home movies. Comic books allow the imagination to break free of boundaries, and produce an ideal ssetting that doesnt HAVE to be accurate, but is certainly appealing.

Do you actually believe that ancient chinese temples were as grand, spotless and colorful as they appear in CTHD or wuxia films? Do you believe that teh greeks and spartans had such grand and glorious armour, rilliant palaces and amazing fighting skills as they do in 300, Troy and so on? DO you believe that samurai kept long hair like kenshin, used complex strategies and skills with the rigid ode of honour shown in classical samurai/ninja films? NO! they were all dirty barefooted people scrabbling in the dirt like anyone else.

Watch a kurosawa movie to see what teh samurai really were like. Watch Alexander to see what the ancient greeks were reallly like (for the most part, still some oje here and there). Its all NOT DIFFERENT from us. But it is rmanticised for entertainment. Why cant we do the same? Just because it hasnt been done doesnt mean it cant be done. In fact, its a great opening for what CAN be done.

Then there's the Scifi vs Magic angle.

The truth is, we arent scientifically inclined in nigeria. Little real research comes out of here, and noone has any interest in science. People will take their pastor's word over their doctor's any day, and debates on evolution and religion will always devolve into illogical sentimenta;l mishmashes of nonsense. That is because, as a people, we are much more inclined to the magical, the mystical, the fantastic. Just like the japanese. Name ONE hardcore science fiction japanime/manga that doesnt include pure JAZZ at some point or another. Ghosts, spirits, demons, Kappa, these appear even in their scifi, and japan is a hi-tech society. In naija most people dont even know how to use a computer. People believe that mobile phones use witchcraft. I was in a kombi bus one day when someone advised the conductor not to answer his phone at a filling station. Everyone agreed, and the general consensus on the reason was that the phones operate using the wind, and the wind brings fire. Yes, go figure.


(b) Heroes

If you compare it to the 4400, then you are correct, and I stand corrected. However if we lump them both together, what we have is an original take on familiar character archetypes.

The take is original because when a superherio is concieved and created for a costumed-action-figure story, the character is designed as a fighter, someone that will be able to go up against reasonable odds and do abttle in a reasonable interesting fashion. The powers shown in the 4400 and heroes are however, chosen in the context of providing an engaging, dramatic tale in the veins of 'the x-files'.

The girl that heals for example, is not like Logan. Logan had to be outfitted with adamantium, animal senses and reactions in order to be a capable fighter. Ms bennet on the other hand is NOT equipped to fight anyone. she cant run superfast, she can't backflip and use karate kicks.

Hiro's form of teleporting isnt the 'bamf' type that NC uses, which is expressly intended as a plot device to facilitate some interesting and fast-paced battles. retracting nails to cling on walls and night vision make him the perfect stalker-hunter character. Not Hiro. Hiro's teleporting is used to add more intrigue to the story- to  allow the *writers* to transcend time and space.

Petrelli flies. So? what happened to the laser eyes, invincibility, invulnerability, super vision,  ever wondered WHY petrelli doesnt fly so often? because flight isn't so cool without a few of those extra traits. And it certainly isnt a great tool for combat.

and so on.

Heroes is a human drama about people with extraordinary talents. The 4400 is an x-files derivative with an abundance of human subjects. Notice that in the 4400, the powers are usually more blatantly used as plot devices- a man who can make others see their future, a woman who can make others confront their worst fears. These are NOT the same old powers recycled. These are original and interesting takes on the idea of superpowered human beings as a whole.

Similarly, look at Naruto. Many ninjas have 'jutsus' that correspond, in a similar loose fashion, to comicbook superpowers. But doesnt it seem silly to equate Naruto to mr. Madrox or Kimimaro to Marrow? It all just dosnt gel.



(c)  Yes and No. I am based in Lagos but currently am out of town.

(d) I write computer programs. However I used to write a lot when I was in school. Ive written a few novel-length treatises that I still keep on me, and quite a few of my friends used my scripts as the bases for comic books- all done in a strictly hobbyist fashion of course.

@TOH

hmmm.

I see. Thanks, that'll be all.

@moondust, hey there!

Please read the posts for more indepth answers to your questions. I'll put a few lil summaries here though:

1) issue of targeting has been discussed above
2) issue of supernatural vs science fiction has been discussed above

As for the issue of the unoriginal nature of the Indomitables, dont worry, you dont need to defend them to us. I know in a 1,000 years you would never have come up with such a lame idea if not constrained by the wishes of your sponsors/publishers. Thats why I said I cant wait to see what you come up with once you have freed yourself from the shackles, hopefully indomitables will make enough cash to enable that. Ive seen your art and by God you're good.

Heroes is highly original. We'll discuss that later after these other issues are cleared up. (just wanna hear what u have to say *AFTER* reading our discussions) Please dont let anyone give you that BS about there being no original superheroes/powers. If u take that from them, they will stifle your innate creativity, which was surely what led you to criticise their ideas in the first place.

@gd

Now THIS is more like it!

As an artist, youll have to consider the art direction and exactly what hook you are going to use to draw in the audience.

As a story writer you will have to figure out how you can restructure the story to fit into a monthly /weekly paperback format, and how you will be able to write in some 'enemy of the day' filler in order to allow the series gain momentum before you start with the rollercoaster that leads up to the finale.

Once you come up with a suitable formula, you can sketch up a draft pilot and before you know it, things will be moving quicker than you can imagine!

@michelin.

* Advising her to dump him is a trivial solution. Implementing the solution is not easy at all, but the solution is given without any knowledge of the circumstances, any history of the relationship, and any skill or experience in handling such problems. If you are against trivial solutions, you shouldnt give a cut-and-dry answer. Someone who has gone through this before and knows the potential complications of merely 'dumping' the husband is in a better position to give a solution, ne?

* On the issue of societal solutions- I advocated seeking advice from married couples. That is not the same as using the legal system or whatever. THEY will be in a beter position to say whether or not she should go to court, or whatever. Then there's the option of marriage counselling. Marriage counsellors do not have simplistic solutions- like I said they have advanced degrees in the psychology behind these things. They are experts and their solutions are anyhting *but* trivial.



@TOH

I am adressing you and michelin because you disagree with my position that the problem needs to be solved by qualified people, that I do not claim to be among. Others gave their opinions, which are accounted for in my original blanket statement (only accept solutons from married people above the age of 25) . If someone above 25 and married comes on and says 'DUMP HIM!!! DUMP HIM!!!' who am I to argue? If sisimose who is obviously married comes on and says seek professional help, who am I to argue.

Humility is a requirement for the aquisition of wisdom. For your own personal betterment, you need to be able to accept that there are areas in life where the solutions are not as simple as they seem to be, and you may not be the authority. If you check my posting history you will see the vigour with which I mdefend my points of view in areas where I am an authority. However in the case of marital infidelity, I know I am not an authority, so I keep my mouth shut.

Do you think I am an idiot for having this point of view? Do you feel differently? Please explain to me why you feel you are qualified to profer a solution. Are you married and over 25? If not, what experiences have you had that support your position? Kindly share.

You need to be sure who you are targeting.

If you want to give the kids a role model, do they have the pockets to pay for what you want to give them.

in the 80s superhero cartoons and transformers survived because of toy sales.
nowadays the flash cartoons survive due to video game sales and sms/ringtones/targeted advertising plus DVD compilations.

Will kids buy comics here in 9ja? How many kids do you know that collect comics the way we used to? How many parents will regularly buy comics for their young kids?

You are aiming at the University students and Secondary school students who are far ahead of the whole 'role model' thing. They want entertaining stories, not preachy morality tales.

Yeah Grafikdon I kinda like your new direction. Some of the names (wazobia??!?!?!? trinity) sound a bit cheezy but I know these are all just first-draft off the cuff shenanigans- you'll improve them, Im sure. The family-centric tone is more Nigerian and believable. Yes, I like it much more now! But beware lest it become another agbara-nla with angels vs demons (demons being traditional culture). I'm sure such a story will sell, but you'll eventually be railroaded into producing another glorified jehova witness tract masquerading as a proper comic book. I think leaving the western spirituality aspect out for now will be smart- or you could incorporate it as a parallel storyline, ever present but not directly interfering with the main supernatural story. For example our heroine could have been a not-so-devout-but-definitelty-church-going christian before her transition, and now she kind of wonders whether all this is happening to her because she only went to church to flaunt her wealth and chase potential boyfriends. Her husband could be a truly devoted christian who is oblivious to her current plight- and distressed at his son's apparent apathy to his attempts to make a good christian out of him, and his stubborn refusal to stop reading all the traditional paraphernalia he has been studying and shady traditionalists he associates with. The boy could be a torn/conflicted figure, b

but ignore me. I dont want to hijack your creation. Do your thing and lets appraise it after the fact!

Jesqueen:
I MUST SAY YOUR QUITE AGGRESSIVE FOR A CHINESE.  YOU HOLD YOUR GROUND QUITE WELL.  TOO WELL.

Why did u say that?

She's probably saying that because in the past japanese/english/other non-African ladies have come on here asking for opinions about their Nigerian boyfriends, and were easily convinced that their boyfriends were lying cheating two-timing b@st@rds that would dump them and head for nigeria to marry a nice local woman (read: themselves) any moment REAL SOON NOW

but you seem to be agressively defending your boo and unwilling to be cowed into submission. lololol! Hope the guy is worth it. A friend of mine is an English teacher in Japan and has a japanese girlfriend he's thinking of marrying. You should see what he has to go through, with all the advice he gets (he cut-and-pastes during our yahoo chat sessions). However his family is not only in support of him, they are encouraging him to do so quickly   because he's the only guy in the family that seems ready to settle down, lololololol! (They are also not based in Nigeria. Whole family lives in the UK while he is in Japan)

Bottom line- treat him like you would any other guy, but get to know his family and what they think of you for real. They are the only people besides him that matter.

centos is nice.

its RHEL but free.

Linux is nice, but in 9ja where everything is pirated anyway, theres no reason to recommend linux to anyone

People are lazy and dont want to think about using their computer.

If u recommend linux to users (not computer geeks) they will hate you for it when their powerpoint emails don't open on doubleclick.

Personally I love linux. However I also love games. Since games require full power, I always run linux in a VM, and windows as primary.

As for vista, sorry TP, ive heard too many horror stories about vista's performance to consider it at the moment. I will move up after the first service pack, just like I did with XP. For now XP is fine.