Canal+, Paris-based French television Company and a subsidiary of Vivendi, has secured ownership of IROKOtv’s Nollywood studio – ROK Film Studios, at an undisclosed amount.
IROKOtv is a Nollywood—Nigerian film industry, on-demand online video content founded by Jason Njoku in 2010. The film company is backed by a $45 million VC. ROk film studios is a subsidiary of IROKOtv that creates original screen contents for the on-demand video platform.
The Studio is based in Lagos Nigeria with Mary Remmy Njoku as founder and CEO. With this new acquisition, Mary will remain in the company as a Director-General. Canal+ will leverage this acquisition to provide Mary with elaborate production resources without altering ROK’s Creative flow.
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Canal+ Chief Content Officer Fabrice Faux revealed that they will provide finance, directorial support, and equipment required to support Mary’s talent. He mentioned that it is not easy to shoot a good movie with a budget of $20,000, which Mary has successfully done. He said they would love her to do the same for Francophone Africa.
ROK has successfully produced over 540 movies and 25 original TV series. The platform has successfully shot good movies that connect with the African audience at a subsidized budget. The deal will still allow ROK room to create its unique content for its parent company IROKOtv and it’s four existing channels which are on DSTV and SKY in the UK.