Prolific moviemaker, actress and serial entrepreneur, Dayo
Amusa has declared that despite acting in many movies and shooting over
12, she is yet to break even as far as Nollywood is concerned! In a
chat, chubby Dayo Amusa whose latest movie offering, Omoniyun premiered
Friday, November 29, painted a sad picture of the challenges independent
movie makers face in Nigeria.
Lamenting, Dayo began: “I do a lot of things that generate money for
me. I have always done business even before I came into Nollywood and I
am still in business. I came into Nollywood as an actress before
becoming a movie producer and to date, I have shot 12 movies and still
counting. Truth be told, I have not made money from Nollywood yet. After
12 movies I have not made the kind of money that I should make but I
know I will make it. You see, there is a difference between making a
huge profit and then, just getting your money back on your investment. I
haven’t broken even!”
Dayo Amusa remains one of the few actresses that has seamlessly
blended the world of moviemaking and acting. What are her challenges as a
moviemaker?
Creases pop up on her forehead as she responds: “I love doing good
movies and putting up good content. I think my major challenge now is
that my movies are not showing in all cinemas in the country like I
hoped and it saddens me. Their excuse is that my movies are indigenous
and the titles are local but I am like ‘we get to watch foreign movies
indigenous to different parts of the world yet subtitled and these
movies are been shown in our cinemas so I ask the question ‘why can’t we
encourage our local content?’ I want to believe that even if a movie is
100 per cent indigenous, that does not stop it from showing in cinemas
as long as the movie is well subtitled.
“It has greatly affected me as an independent film maker, I do most
of my productions from my purse. It is not like I get grants and it
really eats moviemakers up when we don’t get the opportunity to showcase
what we have.
“Even if they feel we are not getting it right, there is a way they
can inform us that this is what you need to achieve this and that. But
they just label it local content, indigenous this and indigenous that,
giving what we do all sorts of names but the fact is, when you preview a
job and story wise you have it, picture wise you have it, quality wise
and artistic whatever you have it, then why the barrier? Why can’t such a
movie be seen in all cinemas across Nigeria.
“But they are giving excuses that when cinema going audiences hear
the title, they will not like it. Who says so? Yes, a title could have a
very positive impact on a production but a title is a title, be it
local or English or what have you. An indigenous title cannot stop a
good film from flying at the box office,” she adds with emphasis.
Omoniyun
On Friday, November 29, her latest movie offering, Omoniyun
premiered. What has she done to make sure she avoids these challenge
with Omoniyun?
Her response: “If they refuse to have the movie in all cinemas so
that people can watch it, they cannot stop me from taking it out for
people to see. So, the number one thing I have done is that we will be
talking the movies to higher institutions and secondary school among
others because the message the movie is transmitting is far more
important than whatever any cinema thinks or defines. We are taking the
movie outside the box.
“Omoniyun is refreshing. Omoniyun is the story of a 13 year old girl
being molested by a prince. It searchlights the ills of child sexual
abuse which is a symptom of parental negligence. It talks about STDs and
child marriage among others. The story is woven around the need to
protect our children especially in today’s fast-moving world.”
What sets Omoniyun apart from other works coming from her? A smile
creases her visage as she responds: “You know, the popular saying has it
that you are as good as your last job. So for Omoniyun, the movie
itself is unique. The uniqueness starts from the title because people
will want to know what Omoniyun means. And then the concept of the movie
dates back to the late 70s and early 80s. It is an old school vintage
kind of movie from the set to props, cast and costumes. Everything about
it is unique and that sets it apart.”
Genevieve Nnaji and the Oscars
Still talking movies, recently, Nollywood got a big one when
Genevieve Nnaji’s film, Lion Heart made the Oscars. However, it was
later disqualified. What is her take on the disqualification?
“Well, the only thing I have to say is that I give it to Genevieve
Nnaji and it is not because the movie was associated with Netflix or
whether it was disqualified at the Oscars but the fact that I saw the
movie and I was like ‘this is a beautiful job.’
“For me, making a movie is not about packing all the awards. Just do
your best, deliver as much good quality as you can and understand what
you are doing. That Genevieve made an attempt alone is a big plus for
Nigeria and every film maker in Nigeria.”
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