| In 2004, a studio power play changed Nigeria’s film industry forever. As the 92nd Academy Awards are handed out in Los Angeles on Sunday, lovers of Nigerian films worldwide will be mourning what could have been. Three months ago, Nigeria’s first-ever official entry to the foreign film category — Lionheart, which is also the nation’s first Netflix original — was ruled ineligible because it’s predominantly in English. Even though Lionheart’s road didn’t end in Oscar gold, its journey to the screen was an epic one. And it begins, curiously, 15 years before the film was even released — with a blacklist that rocked Nigeria’s film industry, aka Nollywood. That upheaval may have helped it become the second most prolific film-producing community after India’s Bollywood, and its indie filmmakers are increasingly getting a moment in the spotlight. | 
