The challenges with ‘October 1st’ - kunle Afoloyan
industry. His movies had been blockbusters and are still making waves
both locally and internationally. Kunle Afolayan speaks on his recent
movie and the joy of being a producer, director and actor rolled into
one.
You just finished your third movie 'October 1st', can you tell us
what the movie is all about?
It is a story that actually came up when I was trying to research a
story that affects the local environment in Nigeria. Before then I had
sought the view of people and I tweeted that I was looking for a
script. I could not believe what I got in response, because they were
really not what I would get myself involved in terms of film making. I
later contacted Tunde Babalola who is the writer of the 'October 1st'
movie and gave him a brief of what I was looking for. He then came up
with a treatment and the initial title then was 'Dust'. When the final
script came up, we decided to change the title to October 1st , which
we felt summarised the whole movie and would relate to people more.
What were some of the challenges you faced on the set of this movie?
There were quite a number of them, but the most tedious was the props
we used for the movie. Because the film was set on an olden day story
line, it was difficult to get most of the artistic things. I mean we
are talking 1960s and we are in 2013. I knew before now that Nigeria
as a country is bad when it comes to archiving things, but I never
knew we were this bad. We are very bad when it comes to preserving
monuments for future use. Most of the things we had that we should be
cherishing today have been demolished, destroyed or stolen. We had to
resort to shopping and hiring most of the things we used for the movie
from the America. That aspect was quite challenging.
How much did these props cost you?
I really can't put a figure to the entire artistic thing and other
things we bought, but on props which constitute sets, costume and
make-up we spent over ten million naira just on that alone. We spent
all that just to make sure we get the make-up, costume right which
will give the effect we desire from this movie. We had to buy
television of 1960s from London and some of the juke box we got from
America. Majority of the things we got from America and some we
created here. In conclusion it cost us a lot for the props. The movie
is actually a big project, so we had to do it right by getting the
props right.
Coming back to the cast, with the security situation we have in
Nigeria, how were you able to convince some of the foreign actors to
stay on board?
Well, that was a tall order and a very challenging one too, because at
some point some of them decided to back out, because of the situation
on ground in the country. In actual fact, the week they were supposed
to come into the country there was a kidnap case when a Britain
business man was kidnapped from the airport. Some of them whom I had
already pinned down for casting then started calling back to say they
were a bit paranoid about coming to Nigeria for the movie. I had to
convince them, the process wasn't easy, because at some point I had to
go to England to try to sell the whole idea of coming to them. Before
then I had a number of names sent to me for casting and I could not
finish auditioning in London so I had to come back and it resulted to
using skype to audition them. I had them read and acted the script to
me through skype which I don't think has ever been done in the history
of film making. That was how I went about getting my cast and at the
end of the day I was able to bring them to Nigeria to shoot their
scenes and in the end everyone was happy. It was impossible at first,
but with hard work, patience and most of all the guidance of God, all
things became possible. In the course of this did you have to involve
any special security arrangement for them, since they declined at
first? Well, that was the assurance I gave them and that was what I
had to result to at the beginning. But on getting here they felt
relaxed and comfortable with and people around me and saw no need for
the security as not too draw unnecessary attention to them. I went to
pick them from the airport when they arrived along with some good
friends and family. Notwithstanding I alerted the police that I had
expatriates coming to town and all that. And at the end of the day, it
wasn't really necessary because the areas where we shot there was no
cause for alarm.
If you are spending this much for a movie, how do you locate this in a
thriving piracy environment in Nigeria's movie industry?
This is really a big concern for my crew and I; and I think this is
where the government really needs to do a lot. Film making is hard and
hardly will any film maker come and out and say he has broken the ….
And all that. It does not work that way, basically because of all the
piracy going on in the industry. I am glad that we were able to get
some corporate sponsorship and also a big thank-you to Lagos State
government who were actually the first to agree to be part of the
whole thing and they have been very supportive on the entire project.
But right now it's even more difficult, because we have crossed the
first hurdle which was shooting the movie. Even at that, the film is
not done yet. As we speak, we need more than N50 million to actually
complete the film. After all this, I am still considering recouping
the money in the Nigerian market. I will be lying to myself because
basically we do not have the distribution network. I am hoping that if
the film gets a break in the international market then we should have
no problem recouping our money. Over there, we don't have challenging
issues of piracy, your work there speaks for you and not someone else
living off your hard earned money and sweat. Piracy needs to be taken
seriously in Nigeria.
Speaking about the government taking action against piracy, are you
into any partnership with the Ministry of Tourism and other relevant
agencies on this project?
Before I started shooting the movie, I actually tried to access some
of the funds that the Federal Government announced for the movie
industry. I wrote to the Nexim Bank, submitted all the documents that
they requested for and they said we were good to go, but at the end of
the day the money was never disbursed. We had a press conference
before the shooting and told the relevant authorities about how the
movie was going to propagate the image of Nigeria and all that. Asides
tha, a lot of children would learn and know where Nigeria is coming
from and what the country is all about. All these we actually
mentioned from the beginning and I think a reasonable organisation
would have tapped into this idea of ours, but surprisingly no one is
interested. I decided not to wait on anybody; so, I do it my own way
by raising funds and get the project going. We hope to raise funds
soon to enable us finish the project at hand. Not too long ago you
tweeted that you may not live long.
What was that all about?
It was actually a thought I voiced out. After I came back from the
shooting the 'October 1st, which was really exhausting, I just
couldn't get the whole experience of the first phase of the project
off my mind. Asides the wonderful and dedicated crew, I see myself as
a lone ranger in this whole thing. Asides my crew and cast, no other
person really cares and I felt if one continues like this one could
just drop dead. It was nothing really serious; I was just speaking out
loud trying to get people in my shoes so they feel what I feel.
Nollywood critics would be quick to judge that Hollywood movies take
months or even years to produce a movie, but Nollywood takes just days
and that is why it cannot be compared with Hollywood.
With the amount of you have spent so far, do you think 42 days on set
would do justice to the movie?
In an ideal world like Hollywood and Bollywood where they have proper
structure, the movie shoot will probably would have taken longer,
because they do not work day and night. They work six or seven hours a
day, but here it is different. We were doing 24 hours most times. We
hardly had three hours of sleep, in the industry, we call it shooting
back to back. So, if we had followed the normal standard procedure
where actors do not work for more than eight or seven hours, then we
probably would have shot for three to four months. Our shooting for 42
days helped reduced our budget. If we had the proper structure in
place for the industry, we would not need to rush our shoots on
locations for any movie. This movie has been on in terms of logistics
and research for almost a year and post production would take another
three to four months.
What informed your choice for Deola Sagoe to feature as Fela's mother?
How were you able to convince her?
Funny enough she was not in my initial thought for any role in the
movie. We meet and as professionals we shared the same passion for
arts and everything. I later told her about the script and she said it
would be nice if she could see some of her costumes for the movie and
somehow she decided to come on board. For why I choose her for that
particular cast, any time I looked at her I saw the face of the Kutis,
she had a round face like them. I then asked her if she would like to
play the role of Funmilayo Kuti and she laughed about it and asked me
to pay one million dollars. We started talking about it every day and
at the end of the day, she reluctantly agreed. What has an
actor/actress got to have to have them featured on your movie? The
person has to look like the character I am looking for. Then I look
for the charisma, talent and ability. Even if the person is not an
established actor and has the look and charisma to act out his roles,
I am ok with it. A good director can get the best out of someone who
is not a professional. It might just take a longer time. You don't
have to be A or B list to be able to feature in my film.
It means a being a professional doesn't get an automatic ticket in your movie?
In that case, it depends on whom I am trying to sell the movie to,
which is really important to an average film maker. If it's a
commercialised film and you are targeting Abuja, then you need to look
for known faces and actors people like and relate to, but if you
already have a name as a film maker and you have huge followers, then
you can compromise on the A list names, because you already have a
pedigree and people will still relate to your film because of that and
not because of the A list guys in the industry. 'October 1st , is a
universal story targeted at the world. Which is why, we have a mix of
foreign and local actors, known and unknown.
Do you think this movie will surpass 'The Figurine' and 'Phone Swap'?
I think it is going to surpass everything that I have ever done and
not only that, but a whole lot of things that have been done in this
industry. This movie is a fresh air and a new beginning for the
industry. It is a story no one has ever treated.
What is your greatest strength as a film maker?
I asked myself that question a few weeks ago and I could not really
conclude. I think being able to wear three crowns all in one movie is
my strength. I am a producer, director and actor. You are an
accountant and left for film making.
What is more important for you, the passion for your job or the money?
For me it is the passion, because if really it was the money I don't
think I would be in Nigeria. I don't think I would have about N200
million and decide to put all into movie making. I would rather invest
it in the real estate business and continue making my money. The truth
is I dream, sleep, walk, drive, eat and drive film and production. All
I think about is film production and that is what gets me going. For
me, film production is do-or-die and that is why I put in everything
within my reach in it.
With this kind of passion, do you ever have time for your family?
Of course I do. It is important to balance both. When I am not filming
and not in the office, I spend that time with my family. We need to
understand that once we start a project, we must see it through and I
have been doing this even before the family came into my life and so
they have an idea of what my job takes. We have been able to balance
it so far.
How do you cope with the positives and negativities that have come
with being famous?
I happen to be one of those who don't see themselves as being famous.
I don't see myself as a celebrity and that is why I do not engage the
services of personal assistant. Fame for me is one of those things
that come with the kind of work that we do. For me it's been good,
because it helps sometimes in bringing favours, but most importantly
it has not gotten into my head and it's not going to get into my head.
I am still Kunle Afolayan and still the common man who will want to go
to the nearest buka to eat pepper soup.
Would you say you have lived the legacies of your father?
I am sure wherever he is now, he would be happy with what I have done
to the name he left behind. Even after his demise his name still
lingers on and better still making tremendous waves in the industry.
So, I would say yes, I have lived his legacies well.
How do you cope with the ladies out there?
Without ladies there is no entertainment. They are huge followers of
entertainment. The same way I cope with female actresses and
journalists is the same way I have been able to cope with female fans.
Your job comes with a lot of pressure and stress.
How do you cope?
With this kind of job, it is important to know how to manage stress.
Whatever you can do, try to do it to the best of your ability and that
which you cannot do forget it. If you cannot conquer something, I
think you should just let it go and not put yourself under undue
pressure and stress. That is my own philosophy to conquer stress.
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