Occult African Films as a Reflection of Resurrection Stories: A Socio-Cultural Perspective on Cameroonian and Nigerian Video Films

Abstract

The African religious landscape is partly characterized by a plurality of vibrant neo-Pentecostal and charismatic movements. Many of these movements are founded, led or influenced by perceived gifted individuals who claim to have had a firsthand experience with the spirit world through diverse mystical or paranormal means. Some of these means include near death experiences or resurrection from the dead. Although some research works have examined the relationship between the narratives of these gifted individuals and the socio-political discourse in Africa, very little attention has been devoted particularly to how their descriptions of the spirit world and the afterlife affect or reflect cinematic production in Africa. This paper seeks to fill this gap in knowledge through an examination of the ways in which resurrection and near death stories driving charismatic Pentecostalism are reflected in some Cameroonian and Nigerian video films. Using secondary sources and a qualitative content analysis of relevant films, the paper specifically attains two main objectives. In the first place, it examines how Cameroonian and Nigerian resurrection stories describe the spirit world and affect the popular culture in Cameroon and Nigeria; while in the last place, the paper examines how these stories are particularly reflected in Cameroonian and Nigerian films.

Keywords

• The Spirit World
• African Belief System
• Spiritualism
• Nollywood
• Collywood
• Cinematic Code
• Occult Movies

Diriliş Hikayelerinin Bir Yansıması Olarak Afrika Okült Filmleri: Kamerun ve Nijerya Video Filmleri Üzerine Sosyo-Kültürel Bir Perspektif

Öz

Afrika dini manzarası, kısmen canlı neo-Pentekostal ve karizmatik hareketlerin çeşitliliğiyle karakterize edilmektedir. Bu hareketlerin birçoğu, ruhani dünya ile çeşitli mistik veya paranormal yollarla doğrudan bir deneyim yaşadığını iddia eden, yetenekli olarak algılanan bireyler tarafından kurulmuş, yönetilmiş veya etkilenmiştir. Bu yollar arasında ölümden dönüş veya ölümden sonra dirilme gibi deneyimler bulunmaktadır. Bazı araştırmalar, bu yetenekli bireylerin anlatıları ile Afrika’daki sosyo-politik söylem arasındaki ilişkiyi incelemiş olsa da özellikle onların ruhani dünya ve ahiret tasvirlerinin Afrika’daki sinema üretimini nasıl etkilediği veya yansıttığı üzerine çok az çalışma yapılmıştır. Bu makale, karizmatik Pentekostalizmi yönlendiren diriliş ve ölümden dönüş hikayelerinin bazı Kamerun ve Nijerya video filmlerinde nasıl yansıtıldığını inceleyerek bu bilgi boşluğunu doldurmayı amaçlamaktadır. İkincil kaynaklar ve ilgili filmlerin nitel içerik analizi yoluyla, makale iki temel hedefe ulaşmaktadır. İlk olarak, Kamerun ve Nijerya’daki diriliş hikayelerinin ruhani dünyayı nasıl tasvir ettiğini ve bu hikayelerin Kamerun ve Nijerya popüler kültürünü nasıl etkilediğini incelemektedir. İkinci olarak, bu hikayelerin özellikle Kamerun ve Nijerya filmlerinde nasıl yansıtıldığını ele almaktadır.

Anahtar Kelimeler

• Ruhani Dünya
• Afrika İnanç Sistemi
• Spiritüalizm
• Nollywood
• Collywood
• Sinematik Kod
• Okült Filmler

Kaynakça

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