Moreover, Ethiopian films began modernizing in the 2000s, implementing Amharic, but due to wide home video and DVD distribution, they are often frustrated by copyright infringement in the presence of piracy.

Despite recent developments, the Ethiopian film industry continues to lack quality compared to modern world cinema and has a low budget amateurish style.

[citation needed] The cinema of Ethiopia was introduced in 1897,[2] two years after the first world film was projected on December 25, 1895, in Paris.

Berhanou Abebbé wrote in the 2003 article Annales d'Ethiopie that a Frenchman introduced the first cinematic artifacts in Ethiopia in 1898, sold to Italian minister Federico Ciccodicola [it].

Berhanou quoted the French historian Merab, in his Impressions d'Ethiopie (1922), "people apparently didn't like to entertain themselves."

Pankhurst, a distinguished historian published his book Economic History of Ethiopia in 1968, further elaborated that the Armenians were attempted to project by 1909–10, but only attracted by temporary interest and soon abandoned it.

Chris Prouty noted that Ethiopia and Eritrea as the only country in Africa indifferent to foreign films.

Most of renowned figures responsible for recognition of Ethiopian films internationally are Haile Gerima, Salem Mekuria, Yemane Demissie, and Teshome Gabriel.

These include imposing license, expanding film schools, taxations, increasing equipments, and helping filmmakers to encourage production in culturally and diversify background.

However scholars such as Aboneh Ashagrie and Alessandro Jedlowski argued that the Ethiopian films may qualified to international premiere because of filmmaking preference in amateurish style and differ from foreign norms.