Why my movies mostly depict African culture —Kunle
Afolayan
How far have you gone in your battle against piracy?
Well, l have left it to the authorities
hoping that they will do something serious about it, after the peaceful
demonstration we had sometime ago, a new set of industry people also had
another meeting at the Lagos State House of Assembly, led by Desmond Elliot,
who is now representing on both sides. I think they had a meeting with
the distributors and also had with some of the filmmakers. However, we are just
waiting on the government to do something.
Have you recovered the debt incurred
from your last movie, ‘October 1’?
Well, because it’s a long time venture,
we haven’t, but once the distribution platform and market get better, then we
can release the original DVD and other necessary materials on the film but
without that, I don’t think anybody can make money from the DVD market
Why did it take you so long to release
the DVD?.
Well, it didn’t take long because it’s
barely a year that we released it in the cinema that the film was
officially released in October and the way distribution is structured, we go to
cinemas, we do VODs, we do online platforms, but DVD is usually the
penultimate and we are about getting to that stage and it is not also about
replicating DVD and chunking it out, we need to strategise and put the
marketing model in place. These are all the things we were doing and also
trying to fix a date for the release before the film got pirated.
Don’t they have gatekeepers at the
cinemas because the belief is that the film was pirated from the cinema, or
where else do you think it got pirated?
Well, that question will have to
be put to the cinemas because if there is any evidence that it was pirated from
the cinema, then the cinema can be held liable, but there are so many
other media through which films can be pirated. For instance, the process
of sending the films to some of the awards or festivals the copy can be
leaked. There are several ways to piracy, it’s just left for one to do all that
he can to protect his content.
Last year you said you were relocating
your family to Ghana, are you still bent on that or was it just a
joke?
It was not a joke, you know if you do a
lot of work, it is a necessity for you to benefit from the work you do,
while you should enjoy some level of comfort, but here it’s like the
reverse is usually the case, you don’t get to enjoy what you labour for because
a lot of things are not properly put in place, so for me, it’s about comfort.
But now that we have a change in government the hope is very high and I believe
change is definitely at hand, maybe it’s the beginning of revolution.
Looking at your last movie written by
Tunde Babablola, how do you come about interpreting the story in terms of
make-up, cast and all other materials for the movie?
Well, that’s what makes you a film maker
and a director, I visualise and sometimes I give an idea about the kind of
story I want to write and after the first wrap has been written, we go
through it and have series of discussions with the writers on your vision and
for the very first day you start picturing ideas on how the story will be.
You can now call other experts to put in their own ideas. But what makes
you a director is the fact that you can bring all these people together to your
own world and you guys will make it up
Talking about your lead role in October
1, Prince Aderopo, you do not always feature popular actors in your movies, why
is this so?
First of all, before you give a
particular role to a character, you need to see the person’s image, then
you consider other characteristics, for example the role of Aderopo
depicts someone who is good-looking, educated and the first
graduate of his town, and for that you need someone who can do the
accent of an educated Nigerian in the 60s and an accent which is close to that
of a Briton. So it’s rare to get that kind of people if you look through most
of the actors we have today, it is either they have American accent or they
blend American, British and Nigerian accents together, so you will not even
know what accent they are speaking. The lead role in ‘October 1’, Demola,
is someone I’ve known from Adam and I know he has the charisma to carry out the
role perfectly because he studied in the UK and his accent was perfect
for that role, and also, I am not about using a popular actor, I am more about
a character’s talent. Right now in my career I think it’s more about the
production company where I work which is Golden Effects and when
people realise that the production is coming from Golden Effects,
they will rather go for it than me putting a known face on the poster, so we
have been able to build a pedigree and it is really working for us.
You are set to produce another movie,
The CEO, how is the experience like, especially that you are working with the
likes of Angelique Kidjo and other talents from across Africa?
Well, it is part of the intention to
project Africa to the world. It has been a whole new experience bringing
together people from Ghana, Uganda, Morocco and even from the Caribbean
together. I learnt a lot from my father and I know that if we do not tell our
own stories, other people will tell our stories and sell them to us. We are in
the post production stage and hopefully, it will be released soon.
Do you have lots of friends in
Nollywood?
Yeah, I do I have friends and colleagues
but they are not many.
It is being said that there is disparity
between you and some of the Nollywood actors.
Well, not really, I think it’s just a
case of interest, because we totally operate in different models, and because
of this it is most times likely that our paths will not cross, but it doesn’t
remove the fact that when there is a gathering where all of us need to come
together, we do come together to play and all that, but when it comes to work
you do what you believe in and the others will do what they believe in
that is what it is because for me, it’s about my work, so there are
no disparities.
Looking at some of your movies you still
drive at preserving the African culture, Nigerian culture and the Yoruba
culture is this deliberate or you just find yourself in it?
Well, it is deliberate, that is who I am
because I can’t sell the British, American, Greek or Italian culture. I can
only sell what I know and what I am part of so that when questions are being
raised, I will be able to defend and justify my work. It is more of being proud
of who you are, and that is what I do and for posterity and the sake of
the unborn children. We need to start documenting all of these things because
to a large extent the culture is fading; children are not speaking our
languages anymore.
What is your relationship with Mr Tunde
Kelani?
Well, Uncle TK is someone I grew up knowing.
I met him on my father’s set and while I was a young boy, he was one of those I
could reach out to as I started with my career as an actor. I was
with him in the movie. Saworoide which was released over fifteen years ago and
till date, we are still close. He is a mentor, father, colleague and a friend.
Have you ever felt like giving up on the
job at any point in time?
It comes up, but I am not giving
up making films, but maybe giving up making film in Nigeria. But even if I make
films outside of Nigeria, I will still do films that will represent
Nigeria, it is possible that I can be in Ghana but I will create stage and
settings that will look like that of Nigeria, invite actors to play the
role of Nigerians. This environment, to a large extent, is
frustrating for filmmakers and a lot of entrepreneurs are trying to break
boundaries and all of that, but we are still here.
As a filmmaker who is always busy,
how do you work with being a husband and a father?
I spend quality time with my family,
especially my kids and you can see some of these on the social media, We play
basketball, I fly kite with them, we go out, I do things that an average father
who stays with their children every day cannot do. And those are the things I
believe will give them memories of me even when I am not around. Also, I open
their horizons to what I am doing, because they know a lot about films and
before I travel I inform them earlier and they are proud because they know it’s
not that he just leaves home as he likes and comes back whenever he likes.
Do you want your daughters to be
actresses?
If they like the career, I will support
whatever they decide.
How frustrated were you to have dumped
banking for filmmaking?
Well, I was not frustrated as a banker,
because I started banking through administration and I have put that
knowledge to use, because to a large extent, it relates to the business aspect
of what I do now, so I was not frustrated. I did that beat and when it
was time to move, I moved.
In the next few years, what would you
like to be said about Kunle Afolayan?
It is all about the work. I will just
like to be remembered for my good work and I will like to put a structure in
place, so that I can influence lots of young ones out there to be the
best that can be.
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