Nollywood 2009: Those missing in action


Before now, these acts ruled the airwaves like a colossus.Okay, may be that is an exaggeration but they used to have such a visible presence in Nollywood on and off screen and of course they made plenty of news headlines. Now,we hardly see them.Most of them are no more in the news and if they manage to pop up somewhere in newspapers and irrepressible soft sell magazines it is for the wrong reason.
Here is the list of entertainment personalities missing in the thick of the action in 2009.

Dakore Egbuson: Yes, she can act and has this good aura that made her likeable. She was the new face, the critics of Nollywood wanted and her down to earth attitude gave her a plus. Dakore was not vain unlike many Nollywooders. With abundant talents and likeable personality Dakore did not fly beyond the sky as predicted and this year she missed plenty of Nollywood action. Instead she is said to be working on a TV programme and music that has reached advanced stage. And she has been in the news for her relationship with Harry Akande’s son Olumide whom many alleged has been responsible for her not acting that much. Let’s hope 2010 will finally be her year.

Chidi Mokeme: Chidi Mokeme is an actor that has gone full circle. He is an actor, presenter, TV anchor, and model and now he sells sex toys. What a 360 degree man. Chidi has been obviously missing in action for the past two years and he doesn’t seems to care, who will if you have to sell toys that make a bevy of beauties throng your shop. Lest we forget, Chidi was in Omotara Johnson and he was awesome.

Lilian Bach: The very attractive actress might not be on the A-list in her days but she has a presence you can’t ignore. At a time, she started acting in Yoruba flicks too and did we love her? Oh yeah and would love to see more of her but she is conspicuously missing in action in 2009. Her missing in action is by choice not that she doesn’t get offers. However she did a movie with Teco Benson this year and we hope that would be her re-launch pad in 2010.

Pat Attah: The lover boy of Nollywood came back to Nollywood in 2009, but he is still not as active as the word active. He is still missing in action in 2009. He was in ….. but that still has not helped matters. Pat would not have made the list, if not that he came back to Nollywood. Perhaps he came back too late because he missed plenty of the action.

Saint Obi: Saint Obi has every reason to be on top of his game. He is fine and can act like the word act but he is missing big on the screen. Saint Obi is said to be getting busy running his production company as the young actors seem to have taken over.

Shan George: Shan George was not in the thick or thin of the action. She was missing in the whole of the action. She made the news twice, one she was in the news for dating another younger man (any big deal?) and when she collaborated with some foreign people to produce Zebra. Anyway we heard she has also finished work on her musical work, if that is true we might see lots of this actress in 2010.

Fred Amata: Thanks to Celebrity Take 2, Fred Amata would have been lost in the crowd in 2009. He was almost invisible until he was named as one of the contestants in the highly popular TV reality programme, Celebrity Take 2. He has been making lots of noise and that made him a bit visible but some of us are not fazed. Fred was still not involved in the real action of Nollywood. We can’t remember a title of one of the movies he did this year. Our bros was seriously missing in action.

Nkiru Sylvanus : Not until we saw her in commercial TV advert and her name propped up as the Vice President (South East) of the Actors Guild of Nigeria, Nkiru was nowhere to be found. She missed the Nollywood action and it was pretty obvious.

Benita Nzeribe: Benita has been perpetually missing for years now and she is still missing. May be now that she is PRO of one of the AGN factions things will pick up for her and she would be.

Baba Suwe: His case is understandable. He was down for health reasons and lost his wife along the line. We doubt if Baba Suwe featured in anybody’s movie this year but he did produce his own movie, Baba Jayejaye. We want to tell you for free that the movie is one of the flicks many are looking forward to in 2010.

Chioma Chukwuka: She is the good girl with no scandal and she can act. But somehow, this year wasn’t just Chioma’s year. She got a Globacom deal as one of its ambassadors but she was obviously missing in the action on the big screen and even the Glo advertorial doesn’t seem to favor her.

Pete Edochie: The grandfather of acting, Pete Edochie must have lost out to the poor movies being produced now. Aside from the news of his kidnap, Pete Edochie was missing in action. Majority of what we have now are movies that have jettisoned the traditional setting and that is what daddy seems to be very at home with.

Olumide Bakare: He is hard and tough in movies and there are very few people that did not like this man in movies. Olumide Bakare can dramatize everything but this year he did not see much of drama. Bakare’s face was missing in movie jackets and posters.

Bisi Ibidapo Obe: With grace and figure that make men drool, Bisi Ibidapo Obe should always be number one but her schedule seems to obstruct the flow of things. She was said to have secretly married and shot her own movie. We did not see Bisi’s face in any movie this year. She missed lots of things but doesn’t seems to care.

Bimbo Oshin: We cannot really say what is responsible for Bimbo’s absence this year but her marital status seems to be the reason many throw around. We learnt that her husband has to scrutinize everything before she considers any offer and since the man is not always around, it might be one of her challenges and motherhood might be another reason. Bimbo is missing in action and very missing.

Source: http://nigeriafilms.com

How Money, Infidelity Destroy Marriages In Nollywood


It is no longer news that most marriages involving Top Nollywood actresses have hit the rocks for one reason or the other. While a lot have been speculated on why these marriages fail, a recent investigation has revealed that top on the list are money and infidelity as well as quest for sexual satisfaction and the search to maintain the high profile bestowed on them by stardom which has led many of them into marriages of convinence and most times, they jump out of the relationship as soon as they go in.

Some of the victims of the broken marriages include:

Monalisa Chinda:- Hers is the latest marriage break up in Nollywood. It was alleged that the reason for the break up of the marriage of the top actress with her ex-hubby, Dejo Richards is money.

According to our source, the Rivers State-born actress, who had particularly been the bread winner of the household could not handle the heat of her wealth, part of which comes as Globacom ambassador and decided to let loose what she has been holding together over the years. Her marriage produced one beautiful daughter.

Ngozi Ezeonu: This top actress packed out of her matrimonial home many years ago on account of her husbands alleged unfaithfullness as he dumped her for another woman whom he pregnanted.

It was also gathered that before her husband's extra marital affair, she had been allegedly linked with a handsome young actor whose bed she was said to be warming.

Fred and Agata Amata: The handsome actor, producer and director and TV presenter and wife, have always served as a case study of Nollywood couple whose marriage hit the rocks as a result of infidelity. Though, they attribute the break-up to irreconcilable differences, a close source has it that the actor terminated the marriage due to the wife's infidelity while he had also been involved in extra-marital affairs. One of who is a top actress and ex beauty queen.

Stephanie Okereke:- This A List actress is said to be very happy with her divorce as she sees her self as being better of without her ex-footballer husband, Chikelu Ileoanusi.

The reason for their breakup is attributed to financial problems as she took charge of putting food on their table which nearly ruined her financially. Our source also revealed that the screen diva found out that all the stories the ex-hubby told her about himself before they got married were all lies.

Encharia Anunobi-Ekwu: Although, she wanted her marriage with Charles Ekwu to last, the ex-hubby had other plans as he depended on the actress for his own welfare and that of the family until he was caught red-handed making love to their 13-years-old house girl.

She made the actress to file a divorce suit. Revealing the reason for the dissolution of the marriage, the actress said, “it has not been easy because I have always been responsible financially in sustaining the marriage, we have been living in the house I secured as a spinster even after marriage because of the love I have for him.”

Clarion Chukwura: She is one actress who has married two husbands but not with any of them today. She has laid the blame for her failed marriages as the prize she has to pay as an artiste.

According to her, she has realised the fact that men come to them because they are stars and move on immediately they realise that artistes are ordinary people.

Chiege Alisigwe: The breakup of the marriage of this top actress is said to be based on extra-marital affairs. The actress, who was married to a UK-based businessman alleged that the man had other relationships, unable to bear it, she came back to Nigeria to continue her life until she met her second husband last year, an Enugu-based police officer.

Shan George:- She first got married as a teenager but left the marriage after giving birth to two boys, she later married a US-based guy, Tony Nwosisi, but she later found out that the man was married to another woman who had given him children at the time of his marriage to Shan, so she decided to quit the marriage for good.

Apart, form these actresses who have suffered broken marriages, there are others who are single and eager to hook a husband by all means, they include Ibinabo Fiberesima, Genevieve Nnaji, Rita Dominic, Uche Jumbo, Dakore Egbuson Lilian Bach, etc.

Source: nigeriafilms.com

NOLLYWOOD AND ITS ENEMIES

The minister of communication; Mrs Dora Akunyili certainly tops the list of Nollywood Bashers. Every time she talks about Nigeria’s problem, she is quick to attribute it to Nollywood. All Nigeria’s image problems lies with the fact that we’re making Juju films, she couldn’t be more wrong. In the past few years, Nollywood has produced mostly love stories, I would even welcome a movie bordering on rituals just for a change. Yes we had our session of rituals. It’s the way it works; one person starts a trend, succeeds, everyone else follows till someone else breaks the trend. Hollywood is particularly guilty: They came with NEXT and PREMONITION and DÉJÀ VU etc, and then for a while, the Directors all visited Africa, LAST KING OF SCOTLAND, BLOOD DIAMONDS, CATCH A FIRE etc. Now they’ve all gone surreal: TIME TRAVELLER’S WIFE, GAMER, 2012 etc.

Mrs. Akunyili is minister of information, an extremely sensitive position, before she can inform people, she must first be informed. All she needs do is grab a few copies of Nigerian movies from Idumota or sit facing Africa Magic for a few hours and she’d know a bit about Nollywood. It’s a bit embarrassing every time she makes a statement in error. In a recent statement, she blames Nollywood for the movie District 9. She says if we had been making movies about how Nigerians contributed towards ending apartheid, then District 9 may not have been made. Is she for real? The director of District 9: Neil Blomkamp clearly stated that he believes most of the crimes perpetrated in SA are by Nigerians, he’s probably never seen a Nigerian film.

Nigeria’s infamy is from corruption and internet scam, nicknamed yahoo, yahoo. And that’s the image she’s trying to clean, where does Nollywood come into the matter? Only recently, Amnesty International just accused the Nigeria police of extra- judicial killings stating that they ‘kill at will’. Someone will probably blame Nollywood for this development.

Even if we were making juju films as claimed, is this why my green passport is scanned a thousand times by immigration officers outside the country or why the guy in the bus in Germany shifts beside me uncomfortably, clutching his bag tighter. Or why the shop attendant in Dubai immediately becomes more alert when I mention that I am Nigerian. I bet they don’t even know we have a movie industry in Nigeria, all they remember is the number of crimes that have been perpetrated by Nigerians in their country. Why then is Mrs. Akunyili bent on blaming Nollywood? Only months ago, she asked Nollywood to help her rebrand Nigeria, now she turns around to rebrand Nollywood

The minister would do well not to tongue lash the Arts for it is the Arts that has saved Nigeriá’s face and given us global recognition. It is Uwem Akpan’s book that was selected by Oprah for her book Club, Asa who has gained acceptance world wide, I personally heard her on radio Leicester, Femi who has been nominated for the grammies, Chimamanda Adichie who has won several international awards, Lancelot Imasuen who has been featured on CNN and Genevieve Nnaji who was featured on Oprah.

But it is not only the minister that hates Nollywood. There are several websites dedicated to just spew venom on Nigerian movies and particularly at more successful producers. Most members of these sites are Nigerians in the diaspora or more specifically, Nigerians in the United States. Someone summarised their problem as beef(Nigerian English for envy) We succeeded where they couldn’t. We didn’t wait for them to return home with their Harvard or nursing degrees(not sure how nursing would help develop the country), we went ahead and produced an industry out of absolutely nothing. With most of us self-taught, we wrote scripts with candles, powered equipment with generators and made movies that have left the world gaping. How did we do it? Everyone is seeing the opportunities and potentials, except these set of Nigerians. South Africa, realising that winning the Oscar(Tsotsi) is not the all and all, have decided to go Nigeria’s way by creating Jollywood which they say will compete with Nigeria’s Nollywood. Ghana’s Gollywood is also following closely behind with the full support of their Government.

I was invited to a film makers workshop in Berlin based on a Nollywood script. The participants couldn’t believe my script had been shot as a feature film, they all wait for grants, grants that may never come and their dreams will be buried with them but in true Nigerian style, we found a way out without waiting for the Western Messiahs to come lead us right.

Nollywood has given me as a writer, a platform to be heard. I am privileged to write both screenplays and literature, while I enjoy both, in writing literature, my audience is mostly Western and I am forced often to look back to be sure that they are following me as I paint my dear continent black but with Nollywood there’s a freedom to be you.

Nollywood has also contributed towards bringing back the middle class in Nigeria. An average practitioner lives comfortably, travels round the globe, most times without having to pay for tickets.

While this profession will always attract its fair share of criticism, for most of the critics, it’s not aimed at bettering the industry, it’s sheer envy and hatred, they would give their left arms to see it fail so they can continue to feel justified for some of the conditions they live under abroad. Loads of them have tried to do it ‘better’ and few if any have succeeded so far.

While some movies make you cringe, some send you reeling with laughter or with tears. I choose to celebrate those ones.

Apart from Joy Isi Bewaju’s review of Guilty Pleasures and Molara Wood’s review of Figurine, a lot of what you read online is sheer balderdash. Ini Edo’s hair didn’t match her figure or Mercy Johnson should go learn how to kiss. These for movie reviews?

I read several reviews of Clint Eastwood’s ‘Invictus’: Some by critics and some by viewers. It left me with a prayer: Lord send us some intelligent critics in Nollywood. Chikena!

Story by www.nigeriafilms.com

Actress Caroline Johnson Is Dead!


Actress Caroline Johnson, who was down with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (Cancer of the blood), and received overwhelming support before, during and after her operation in India, has died.

The mother of three,who acted as Uju in popular Christian soap ‘Heaven’s Gate’, passed on at 5:30PM yesterday (Wednesday December 16), after suffering a relapse.

Her husband Tony told www.nigeriafilms.com early this morning that his wife was ‘very okay’ until last Saturday when she ’suddenly took ill’.

”It started again on Saturday. By Sunday she was unconscious. We had taken her to the hospital (St Mary’s hospital in Omole, Lagos) where she was transfused and revived”

”She was bleeding from her mouth and nose and under the skin” Mr Johnson told www.nigeriafilms.com.

Caroline was placed on artificial Oxygen.

By Tuesday she got really better, her husband says. ”They were planning to discharge her on Thursday (today), and i even told her i’ll get her a wheelchair so we can go to the Redemption Camp”.

”Unfortunately, she broke down again on Wednesday morning”.

”She was tired”, Tony says, telling www.nigeriafilms.com that her last statement was: ”I have finished the Book”.

Before leaving for India, Caroline Johnson went through endless chemotherapy and blood transfusions at the Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LASUTH).

Her illness was diagnosed in October 2008 – she was at the time, five months pregnant with her third child (whom she gave birth to, prematurely, on December 17, 2008).

She is survived by her husband Tony (they were married for seven years), and their three kids: Omolayo, Imisioluwa and Oluwatise (who clocks 1 today)

The late Caroline attended Ifako International Secondary School in Lagos and studied Mass Communication at Moshood Abiola Polytechnic, Ogun State.

Story by www.nigeriafilms.com

Death Scare: Adewusi Assures ANTP Members


Former Ewi exponent, Mr. Sesan Adewusi a.k.a. Tantolorun, has assured members of the Association of Nigerian Theatre Arts Practitioners (ANTP), that there shall be no mysterious deaths in their fold in 2010.

Speaking against the backdrop of an alleged prophecy that death will reign supreme among ANTP members in 2010 by a Lagos pastor, Adewusi, also popularly known as Baba Oloyin Original, said the prediction was aimed at causing confusion and making members to run helter skelter to the pastor’s church.

He recalled that a popular prophet has been advising the Ooni of Ile-Ife, Oba Okunade Sijuade, to pray for his health since the monarch ascended the throne in 1980, but in the contrary, the monarch has continued to wax stronger.

“If any prophet wants to use fake prophecy to attract undue publicity in order to gain more members, he is free to buy advert space in any of the newspapers in the country. I like to assure ANTP members that the same prophet once failed, when he targeted fuji musicians,” Adewusi stated in a statement issued from his Iyesi, Ota, Ogun State office.

He said juju music maestro turned evangelist, Dr. Ebenezer Obey Fabiyi, once waxed a record for a prophet, who was predicting doom for juju musicians, saying it was back to the sender.

Adewusi posited that the motive behind these fake prophecies was to ensure that theatre arts practitioners rushed en masse to his church for spiritual help and that the prediction of doom was meant to scare ANTP members into submission, fear and subsequently, do such pastor’s bidding.

He noted that the incessant auto crash incidents involving theatre arts practitioners could be traced to their cars, especially sport utility vehicles (SUV) that most of them now ride.

He advised them to read Psalm 140 and pray regularly.

Story by http://nigeriafilms.com

STUFF WE'VE LEARNT FROM NOLLYWOOD

1. Every problem you have is spiritual.
reply: not just Nollywood movies, even in Church. Everywhere. Its like this: you have a headache, and the situation becomes a spiritual attack.

2. In every romance movie, someone must die.
reply: sometimes I wonder what kind of fairy tales Nigerian movie producers /script writers read.

3. It is possible to hit a person without actually touching them!
reply: that one na Jaz ba?

4. Anyone who gets hit by a car dies immediately.
reply: even though the car is going slow-motion. Worse, camera men even film car tires.

5. Poisoned food always tastes better. reply: always

6. The best way to make money is by visiting a 'Babalawo' / joining a cult / sleeping with rich men.
reply: sleeping with rich women nko? There is nothing like hardwork + persistence in Nollywood.

7. One of a pair of twins (identical or not) is born evil…reply: between drama and horror movies, which is which?

8. There is never an end to your suffering, except death! reply: Now Your Suffering Continues

9. With a pastor … all things are possible.
reply: The easiest profession in Nigeria is armed robbery or Pastorship.

10. A movie can be titled anything… such as:
*The boy is mine,
* Face me, I face you
*Two rats,
*Spanner,
*Calculator,

reply: the title usually explains everything. In fact, after seeing the CD cover, you don't need to buy the movie. Add the title and the CD cover together and you have watched a Nigerian movie.

11… You are in love… you want to take your girl out, the best place
you take her to is…
*Mr. Biggs/Tantalizers: where you'll most probably see an ex while
feeding each other.
*The beach: where it is imperative that you ride a donkey and carry her playfully.
*Or the best: take her to buy some new ugly clothes.

reply: there are usually not more than 5 people inside Biggs/Tantalizers, and the ex is always sitting prominently. Talking of buying clothes, usually I might just fast forward. I cant imagine 20minutes of film inside a shop – when its not a bad-guy hostage situation.

12. An Igbo movie has been made if:
* You visit a Babalawo
* A fleet of cars is shown off at regular intervals for a total of half
of the movie time.
* Kanayo 'O' Kanayo is in the movie. Pete Edochie is there too!
* To get rich it is mandatory you join a cult .

13. Sometimes the title has absolutely nothing to do with the movie and other times, once you read the title and see the poster you know it all!!! (Also the soundtrack gives you a headache because it just narrates the whole story repeatedly – so much for suspense and intrigue!)
reply: this makes me wonder what the Nollywood stakeholders are really up to. Have you watched a Nigerian movie and you ended up asking yourself if the movie was ever reviewed? if any other person apart from the actors / directors have watched the movie before its released to the public?

14. A love story has not been produced if it does not have one or two of the following actresses-
* Stella Damascus
* Stephanie Okereke
* Genevieve Nnaji
* Omotola Jalade
* Rita Dominic

reply: and worse, its the usual story lines

15. The police are extremely 'efficient' unlike their counterparts in real life.
reply: not only are the Police extra-efficient in films, their uniform is always new and ironed.

16. It is permissible to wear very dark shades at night!
reply: dark shades at night, sweaters in broad daylight / Nigerian weather?

17. When you are shot in the chest, it really doesn't matter;your head will be bandaged! Same for your legs!
reply: its like this: someone is shot in the head, and the next thing is a hospital scene where the persons legs are in a POP cast

18. When advertising a movie, you really should shout because… people are deaf?
reply: worse, they plaster a bus with posters and start driving around town.

19.. When you are extremely poor, you will still be able to afford-a
beautiful house, very good furniture, T.V., nice clothes, but you won't be able to send your kids to school.
reply: and then junior will come and ask mommy, 'you mean we don't have food in the house'?

20. Most especially in Yoruba movies, your gateman must be inefficient and comical. He MUST dress like a freak, be rude to all your visitors and never mind his business.
reply: and this idea of bowing down to everybody? even to strangers?

21. At the end of a three-hour movie you'll be reminded that THIS IS JUST THE BEGINNING…WATCH OUT FOR PART 2!
reply: not just 'watch out', its 'stay tuned'

22. An actor announces his death as he slowly dies- “You killed me” “I'm dying” “I'm dead”
reply: and then he dies.

23. In a case where a person is on his death bed, he/she must cough till they die.
reply: wahala dey for Nigeria o.

24. Every ghost must wear a white cloth and have powder unevenly distributed on their face.
reply: which makes me to wonder whats the difference between angels and ghosts. One's the good guy and the other's the bad guy.

25. No matter the type of movie…TO GOD BE THE GLORY….
reply: even if na juju fill the movie, its still To God be the Glory.

DISCLAIMER- no hard feelings abeg..

Story by http://nigeriafilms.com

ION FILM FESTIVAL: Hollywood Celebrities Head to Nigeria for the 6th Annual ION International Film


Superstar actress Daryl Hannah, Pras a member of the legendary Grammy Award winning group 'The Fugees' and Gian Carlo Esposito distinguished star of numerous movies including "Twilight" opposite Paul Newman, "Derailed" with Clive Owen, Spike Lee films, TV and Broadway, joined by Bollywood Stars Nandita Das, Nandana Sen, and Film maker Madhu Mantena are all bound for Port Harcourt, Nigeria to attend the 6th Annual ION International Film Festival.

Each year, ION is held in a different international location in an effort to promote global awareness and unity. ION moved from Hollywood in 2007, to Dubai, UAE in 2008, will be hosted in Nigeria in 2009, travelling to Istanbul, Turkey in 2010.

The ION International Film Festival has chosen Port Harcourt, Nigeria for its diversity, rich culture and talented filmmakers. The Film Festival hopes to provide not only Nigerian filmmakers the opportunity to showcase their talents to a wide array of people but also independent filmmakers from across the globe.

ION international Film Festival is a touring festival dedicated to promoting independent film, documentary, animation, original screenplays and music videos. It honours and promotes individuals for their outstanding achievements, while encouraging new artists to emerge.
Caterina Bortolussi of Omcomm Limited, producers of the festival, said in interview with CNN, "People in Port Harcourt have an energy that I have never experienced before and for too long it has been showcased like a place of conflict and extremely insecure. The time has come to shift the focus from the bad news to the good news, to the light of the Niger Delta.... the positive initiatives that are taking place in this corner of the world."

Daryl Hannah said : "The ION Film Festival makes a serious commitment to supporting thoughtful, innovative, provocative, funny, intuitive and out of the box projects and stands out in the world of film festivals."

Giancarlo Esposito will be Chairing an Actor's Studio on the 12th of December in Port Harcourt, bringing with him a wealth of experience and knowledge garnered from an illustrious and glorious career.

Pras who will be showing "Skid Row", a documentary that chronicles a 9-day experiment of his life as a homeless man in downtown Los Angeles as well as performing on stage said, "It's such an honour for me to attend and be a part of the Ion Film Festival in Nigeria this year. Being a part of this is like the prodigal son returning home. Going to Nigeria gives me a chance to reconnect and rejuvenate my soul."

IONIFF Nigeria09 strives to bring awareness to individuals and organisations creating socially relevant movies to positively impact Nigeria and our world.

Global Festival Promoter Prince Baba-Jallah Epega added, "We have been welcomed to the beautiful Rivers State by His Excellency the Rt Hon Governor Rotimi Amaechi and are proud to be able to positively showcase this extraordinary event in the most positive light. It has also been a delight to work with Parminder Vir OBE who brings a wealth of award winning production experience in drama, documentary, current affairs and entertainment, bridging the gap between "Bollywood" and the Nigerian Film Industry "Nollywood".

Over 80 movies from different parts of the world are being showcased at the Festival. They include 32 movies from Nigeria, 12 from other African countries, 1 from India, 27 from the Americas, 6 from Europe and 1 from the Middle East. It is truly an international film festival highlighting the eclectic mix and international flavour together with a great component coming from emerging young talents.

The ION INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL takes place from the 9th to 12th of December 2009

http://nigeriafilms.com

Nigeria Nollywood Grand Actors

They are the pacesetters in the Nollywood industry.Their presence in the film making industry has been felt and always appreciated by lovers of homevideos and soaps.These are actors who have spent many years in the make-believe industry,have survived the good,bad and ugly sides of Nollywood.And because of their wealth of experience and influence in the industry,the younger artistes and even the aspiring ones look up to them,not only artistically,but because their names open doors to several opportunities in the corridors of power.

They stand as pillars of the Nigerian movie industry known as Nollywood.

Olu Jacobs: He commands so much respect,not only in Nollywood,but in Nigeria as a whole.Uncle Olu as many prefer to call him,has for many years been a source of inspiration to the younger actors and adored by his peers.He is a though-breed professional that has been able to prove his worth in the international movie industry.He is married to one of the best actresses in Nigeria,Joke Silva.
Olu Jacobs has lost count of the movies that he has featured in,has stood the test of time in Nollywood and possesses the qualities of a godfather.

Pete Edochie: Based in the Eastern part of Nigeria,Pete Edochie remains one of the most popular actors in Nigeria.His vast experience and knowledge about the Igbo culture has earned him more Igwe or Chiefly roles in movies.Although,people say he is stereotyped,Pete has repeatedly debunked such allegations claiming that as an actor,his professional responsibility is to interpret whatever script is given to him.
He is a godfather,particularly among the Igbo-speaking filmmakers.

Justus Esiri: He can be described as a bundle of talent with a unique way of interpreting roles.He had on several occasions served as a counsellor or adviser to less experienced filmmakers and actors. He is one of the few that are often contacted when issues affecting the development of Nollywood are to be addressed.

Lere Paimo a.k.a Eda Onile Ola: he is a Yoruba actor with vast experience.Like Pete Edochie in
the English/Igbo sector,Lere Paimo also seems to have been stereotyped,but that has not in anyway hindered the Ibadan based actor from displaying his talent and ability to inteprete roles.

Peter Fatomilola: He is an Ifa scholar of repute and has made use of his knowledge to become a celebrated movie star.However, his vast knowledge about Ifa may be the reason why he mostly plays the role of an Ifa Priest in movies.

Eddie Ugbomah: Ugbomah,who celebrated his 40 years on stage recently,is a down to earth person.He is proactive and innovative.As far back as the 70s Ugbomah had shot movies in celluloid, setting a pace for the modern Nollywood.His intelligence has earned him the responsibility of playing the role of an adviser in virtually all the guilds in the English sector of Nollywood.

Adebayo Faleti: He has proved his mettle as a fantastic script interpreter over the years.This ageing actor for sometime now has been playing an advisory role in the affairs of the Association of Nigeria Theatre-Arts Practitioners (ANTP),an umbrella body of all Yoruba thespians in the country.
Faleti is one actor that has distinguished himself with the unique style of delivering his lines. Watching this icon act,one will be convinced that he has experience.He fits in perfectly in movies that tend to promote more of Yoruba culture.

Kola Oyewo: Apart from being an actor of international repute,Kola Oyewo has contributed tremendously to the growth of Theatre-Arts in Nigeria as a Lecturer at the Obafemi Awolowo University,Ile-Ife.
Oyewo is an actor that has no limits.He can conveniently feature in both Yoruba and English movies, but as a man who loves impacting more on people in his immediate constituency,he prefers Yoruba movies,particularly those that concentrate more on culture.

Sola Fosudo: Sola Fosudo is one of those that started what we today know as Nollywood.Before home videos and movies eventually became the order of the day,he had been one of the veterans doing stage performances.Fosudo, who is a senior lecturer at the Department of Theatre-Arts, Lagos State University and currently the Academic Director of LASU Part-time studies in Lekki.

Prince Jide Kosoko: He is currently the National President of the Association of Nigerian Theatre-Art Practitioners (ANTP).Although he is still very relevant as an actor,he is more involved in the politics of ANTP lately.Kosoko,one of the early actors in Nigeria,is married to an actress, Henrietta.

Adebayo Salami: Otherwise known as Oga Bello,this chubby actor has also contributed his quota to lift the make-believe industry up and has lost count of his movies.


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