14 Cultures and Countries That You Didn't Realize Have Their Own Hollywood
Not every film scene on the planet is in the bag for Scientology. Some are in the bag for the Mormon Church or the government of Cyprus.
The First Scene to Borrow the ‘Wood
West Bengal has had a thriving silent cinema scene since 1919, based out of Tollygunge, Kolkata. They produced their first talkie, Jamai Shashthi, in 1931, and an American engineer who worked on it came up with the portmanteau Tollywood.
You’ve Heard of Bollywood. But South Asia Has at Least 17 Other ‘Woods
Bombay, India started using the term Bollywood for its film industry around the ‘60s. But don’t sleep on Pakistan’s Lollywood (the Lahore-based industry active since 1948), the Bhojpuri language Bhojiwood (kicked off by the 1963 state-ordered film Mother Ganges, I Will Offer You a Yellow Sari), the Chhattisgarh-based Chhollywood or the Odisha-based Ollywood.
‘Cool Japan’
The Japanese government saw the “Cool Britannia” trend of the late ‘90s, when everyone suddenly thought the U.K. was sexy for some reason, and said: okay now do us. “Cool Japan” was their chosen term for what turned into a state-funded effort to court weeaboos the world over. Part of that was investment in Animewood (exactly what it sounds like) and Hogawood (“hoga” means “domestic cinema”).
Hills and Rivers
Two of the cooler names have been scooped up by Rwanda and Kenya. The Rwanda Film Festival was founded in 2005, and came to be known as Hillywood (because it’s quite hilly there, you see). Kenya’s film industry dates back to 1952, but with the advent of digital filming technology, local filmmakers have been pumping out highly inventive, low-budget movies. These films are sold alongside global media and electronics on River Road, hence the name Riverwood.
Hollywood North
Not to be confused with North Hollywood, Hollywood North is a cheeky way to say “Canada”: lots of big budget productions try to pass off Montreal, Toronto and Vancouver as American cities to save a couple bucks.
What Is Mormon Cinema, Exactly?
Mollywood is the term for Mormon-related cinema, but it’s meant different things at different times. There were 19 movies in the silent film era that were thought of as Mormon cinema, but they were all made by outsiders about how weird Mormons were. In the ‘50s, BYU’s film department got a major upgrade and started making boring church propaganda. More recently, films like The Land Before Time and Anastasia were directed by a Mormon, and have some light Mormon ethical seasoning mixed in, so some say that counts as Mollywood.
The Mollywood Down Under
The small city of Mosgiel, New Zealand was inspired by the iconic Hollywood sign to put their name in big block letters up on a hill. They don’t have much of a film scene, but according to Wikipedia, “Locals sometimes (though not very often) jokingly refer to Mosgiel as ‘Mollywood.’” Count it!
Somaliwood
Somali cinema has existed since the 1910s, but a youth movement of the ‘90s modernized the industry with comedies, thrashers and animation. The term also, oddly, refers specifically to Somali filmmakers in Columbus, Ohio.
Y’allywood
Georgia’s concerted effort to make itself more affordable and hospitable to production companies over the last few decades has paid off, with everyone from Netflix to the MCU spending lots of time and money there. Not to mention the prolific Tyler Perry Studios.
More Like Bore-ophyll
The town of Borehamwood in Hertfordshire, England has had a thriving television production scene for over 100 years. Because that’s the town’s actual name, the incredibly unimaginative nickname they gave it is “British Hollywood.” Meanwhile, the Buckinghamshire, England-based Pinewood Studios are also a production hub, but the name was a complete accident. The studio predates Hollywood — they just called it that because there are a lot of pine trees there.
Tamalewood
This would have been the perfect name for Mexican cinema, but they went with Mexiwood. Instead, Tamalewood was claimed by the state of New Mexico, as it has started to position itself as a more affordable alternative for would-be Hollywood production studios.
Cyprus Wants It a Little Too Much
The Republic of Cyprus has been producing films since shortly after World War II. But in the 21st century, they’ve tried super hard to position themselves as the Hollywood of the Mediterranean, setting up all kinds of financial incentives. They have some stuff going for them, like good weather and diverse locales. But the country’s desperate marketing wizards have left them saddled with the uninspired name “Olivewood.”
China Could Try a Little Harder, Too
China has the largest film studio on the planet, Hengdian World Studios. It’s been actively under construction since the ‘90s, and there’s so much stuff going on there, they made a documentary about the extras who work there. And they call it — are you ready? — Chinawood.
Sweden Got It Right — Twice
A TV studio in Hallstahammar and a movie studio in Trollhättan have come to be known as Hollyhammar and Trollywood, respectively. A+ marketing. The mind is flooded with images of Norse gods and trolls.
