Entertainment One has announced the iTunes debut of the dramatic thriller on Nigeria’s Niger Delta, Black November, which was also made available in theaters and other platforms from January 9, this year.
[su_quote cite=”Akon”]We believe that there is a growing global audience for African-themed feature-length motion pictures that showcase rich multi-layered stories driven by strong social undertones[/su_quote]
The movie focusing on the Niger Delta in Nigeria was written and directed by acclaimed Nigerian Jeta Amata (The Amazing Grace), Black November stars Mickey Rourke (The Wrestler), Kim Basinger (L.A. Confidential), Anne Heche (Six Days Seven Nights), multiple Grammy-Award nominated recording artists Akon and Wyclef Jean, Sarah Wayne Callies (“The Walking Dead”) and Vivica A. Fox (Kill Bill: Vol 2).
“We believe that there is a growing global audience for African-themed feature-length motion pictures that showcase rich multi-layered stories driven by strong social undertones,” Akon said amid the release of the thriller on iTunes.
In the thriller, a volatile, oil-rich Nigerian community wages war against their corrupt government and a multi-national oil corporation to protect their land from being destroyed by excessive drilling and spills.
To seek justice, a rebel organisation kidnaps an American oil executive and demands that his corporation end the destruction and pollution.
Inspired by true events, Black November is the gripping story of how a community rises up and takes drastic measures to make sure their voices are heard.
“We are thrilled to have Entertainment One as our partner. They have provided a well-supported platform so that this riveting story is given a broader reach and impact,” Jeta Amata says. “I am confident that this film will inspire others to reach beyond their borders to forge cross border partnerships in order to usher in more thought-provoking films.”
BLACK NOVEMBER is fiction based on actual events of the struggle of the Niger Delta community against their government and a multi-national oil corporation to save their environment from being destroyed by excessive oil drilling.
The title derived from the month in which activist Kenule “Ken” Saro-Wiwa was executed in 1995. He was a Nigerian writer, television producer, environmental activist and a member of the Ogoni people, an ethnic minority in Nigeria. His homeland in the Niger Delta was targeted for crude oil extractions in the 1950s, which caused severe extreme environmental damage from petroleum waste dumping. He became the spokesperson and president of the Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People (MOSOP).
Saro-Wiwa led many non-violent campaigns against the operations of multi-national petroleum industry as well as the Nigerian government, who was reluctant to enforce regulations. At the peak of his non-violent campaign, he was tried by a special military tribunal for allegedly murdering the Ogoni chiefs at a pro-government meeting. He was then hanged in 1995, provoking international outrage and resulting in Nigeria’s suspension from the Commonwealth Nations for over three years.
Amnesty International and the Centre for Environment, Human Rights and Development recently announced a compensation payout of oil giant Shell. This is an important victory for the Niger Delta victims. In six years, two major oil spills destroyed thousands of livelihoods in the Bodo area causing legal action in the UK. This has driven Shell to make an out-of-court settlement to compensate the affected community. The money will be split between individuals and the community.
Black November, which is yet to be rated runs for 96 minutes.
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