Category: Entertainment

The Africa Film Academy (AFA) has partnered with the Lagos State Ministry for Tourism, Arts & Culture under the Lagos State Creative Industry (LACI) initiative for the second edition of Film in a Box Lagos.

 The initiative, created by the late Peace Anyiam Osigwe, will provide free training for youths in Epe, Badagry, Ikeja, Ikorodu, and Lagos Island.

 Building on the success of the first edition, AFA and LASG aims to empower young filmmakers by providing training and mentorship to foster the growth of the creative industry in Lagos.

 The first edition trained 890 young Lagosians, and many of them have since been integrated into mainstream Nollywood.

 According to Mr. Habib Sheidu, a training and strategy associate with the AFA, “Film in a Box is a capacity-building framework that equips individuals with the requisite skill sets in the Creative Industry space, thus enabling the individual to be economically empowered.”

 The training will cover acting, directing, production, set design, costume design, props management, film and TV makeup, scriptwriting, editing, cinematography, and sound production. 

Ekpenyong Bassey-Inyang, a veteran Nollywood actor and director of studies at the AFA, emphasised the importance of training programs like Film in a Box in the growth and advancement of the industry. “We saw drastic positive behavioural improvements in our students during the last edition, so it also helps in building young leaders.”

Professor Pauline Long has been revealed as the new host of Elegant Flix magazine TV talk show.

 The media personality, who has been a TV presenter on BEN TV for eight years, is excited about her new gig which launched in London.

 She said: “Elegant Flix Magazine has taken a huge step to introduce this talk show. Well done to our founder HRM Queen Florence Okonkwo and her team. She has my full support.”

The talk show aims to share with viewers the best interviews from some of the best CEOs, philanthropists, entrepreneurs, and entertainers.

 In the first season of the talk show, Long interviewed the incoming Mayor of Greenwich, Cllr Dominic Mbeng, businessman Dennis Mawadzi, and gospel artist Manelli.

In commemoration  of International Women’s Day which was held across the globe on  March 8, The Nation spotlights five Nollywood women who have taken on the roles of directors, producers, writers, and actors, either on single projects or in different films.

 Tope Oshin: Temitope Aina Oshin is a Nigerian film director, producer, consultant, and casting director for television and film. She is also the founder and CEO of Sunbow Productions. She was named one of the Okay100 Women of 2017 by OkayAfrica and can be described as a multiple award-winning filmmaker who has directed several thousands of hours of TV content. Her expertise can be seen in TV shows like MTV Shuga, and films that include ‘Up North’ and ‘Here Love Lies,’ which recently launched on Netflix. 

 Biodun Stephen: Biodun Stephen’s life has always been around the creative industry from featuring as a young actor on TV soap operas to taking up a role as a radio presenter and copywriter for an advertising agency. In 2010, she dumped a lucrative job to become a Nollywood filmmaker and finally put out her first film – The Visit – in 2014. The film received two nominations at the 2016 Africa Magic Viewers Choice Awards. It’s been 13 years since she made the bold move to return to the industry, and she’s still going strong. With several made-for-TV and cinema films like ‘Picture Perfect,’ and ‘Joba,’ she continues to stand out. Some of her recent projects are ‘Smokescreen,’ ‘The Last Days of Lola Sampson,’ and ‘A Night Alone.’

 Diane Russet: Not many TV audiences give ex-housemates of Big Brother reality shows a chance at creativity. However, Diane Russet has morphed from the quiet 24-year-old viewers saw in 2019 to a fiery producer in 2023. She dipped her toes into filmmaking with short films and she made great success with productions like ‘Bayi,’ ‘The Therapist,’ ‘There Is Something Wrong With The Bamideles,’ ‘Mo X Mel,’ and ‘Storm.’ She moved on to web series with ‘Ricordi’ being her first. The web series has gone on to become a fully-expanded TV series on Africa Magic Showcase. Interestingly, she appears in most of her projects as an actor, producer, and director.

 Funke Akindele: Funke Akindele has had decades of acting since her feature on the educational series, ‘I Need To Know’ and charted a path few could dream of. Refusing to be caged into any corner of the industry, she’s appeared in English-speaking and Yoruba-speaking films. She had her first lead role and producer experience in ‘Ojo Ketala,’ and her directorial debut in ‘Your Excellency.’ A few years later, she wrote Jenifa, her first screenplay, and took on the role of ‘Jenifa’ in the 2008 movie that changed her life completely. Since ‘Jenifa,’ Funke has acted in over 50 films like ‘Dwindle,’ ‘Isoken,’ ‘Maami,’ ‘Moms At War’ and more. She has produced films like ‘Omo Ghetto,’ ‘Double Trouble,’ and ‘Battle on Buka Street.’ In 2015, she converted Jenifa into a series in which she scored producer credit.

 Lota Chukwu: Lota Chukwu can be referred to as one of the many young people, who rode on Funke Akindele’s fame to make a name for herself on the scene. However, Lota has become a talented actress, brilliant writer, and dedicated filmmaker since she first broke out from ‘Jenifa’s Diary.’ Since her days as ‘Kiki’ on Jenifa’s Diary, the former MBGN contestant has appeared in films like ‘The Royal Hibiscus Hotel,’ ‘The Arbitration,’ and ‘The Perfect Plan’ as well as TV series that include ‘Enakhe’ and ‘Ajoche.’ She started her filmmaking career in 2020 with the short film ‘Small Bant,’ and got her directorial credit in 2021 for ‘David.’ Then in 2022, she took things up a notch, writing, directing, producing, and acting in her short film, ‘37 To Go.’ In 2022 she delved into documentaries and made ‘I’m Not Fine’ after which she made her directorial debut with the feature ‘Now That We Are Married.’

Marvin, one of the Nigerian ex-housemate of ongoing BBTitans show, has opened up on his connection with partner Yaya saying it began as flirtations.

 In a chat after his eviction from the show, he said, “For Yaya, it was a beautiful connection, coming to the house it was as though we connected immediately. It started off with little flirtations, despite having a good connection and the emotions being there. I was still unsure if it was a game or just a strategy she was playing on me.”

 On his experience on the show after 42 days in the house, Marvin said, “It was beautiful, having the opportunity to be a part of the dynamics going on between the South Africans and Nigerians. I was like one out of the six Nigerians guys to be part of the show. It was fun and I got to be myself, it was just a great experience in all.”

 Speaking on what he could have done better, Marvin said, “I should have probably seen like one season of the show to be able to balance between my real self and understanding the game part of it.”

Fuji musician, Sule Alao Malaika has said that the narrative that Benin owns Lagos is false.

 The 50-year-old singer made this statement during a musical performance at the 66th birthday party of King Wasiu Ayinde Marshal.

 Malaika while singing narrated that Lagos was originally discovered by a fisherman called Aromire.

 He continued to lecture that Aromire, who was one of the sons of Olofin after settling in Ido, Lagos, invited his brothers over and then gave them lands for settlement.

 “Visitors are about to claim our land, they said Yorubas are not the owners of Lagos, I saw it and read it myself. The Benins only came to do business in Lagos and subsequently, they married Yorubas and started having kids,” said Malaika.

 The singer also urged residents and people in Lagos to go out en masse and vote for Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, who is seeking a second term.

Fast rising musician, Olufemi Denzel Adeniyi aka Shizem has once again proved to entertainment aficionados in Nigeria why he is one of the best.

 Shizem, who gave a good account of himself at the just concluded New York Fashion week held in the United States of America, has also been making waves recently with his highly anticipated newly released single,“If .”

Speaking of the experience, Shizem said, “It was an incredible experience to be able to share my music with so many people, who came out to support my brand.”

 According to industry players, who caught a glimpse of his unique singing style and voice, Shizem is far ahead of his time.

Television sensation, Chinonso Arubayi is making waves in the new Africa Magic series, ‘Sisi Eko.’

 She gives an effortless performance as the titular character, ‘Sisi’ in the latest comedy series, directed by Kayode Peters.

 The character allows Chinonso to show her dexterity as an actor, as she portrays a care-free diva, who enjoys living the highlife, but is constantly plagued by the pressure of marriage from her overbearing aunty played by Lolo 1 and an array of impossible suitors. She is joined by an ensemble cast that includes Emmanuel Ejekiru aka Oga Sabinu, MC Abbey, MC Lively, Esther Biade, and many more.

 Recently, Arubayi received the award for Distinguished Actress of the Year at the Nigerian Women Achievers Awards.

 She has continued to raise the bar in her acting career ever since her debut on The Johnsons in 2014. With over 50 full feature films under her belt and a plethora of TV series, Chinonso’s career is definitely on an upward trajectory.