“PART of the reason we are here is to represent and project us all in the best possible way through how we communicate with the rest of the world, in terms of film, music, and the entire creative industry. It is difficult to separate entertainment, sports, and tourism. I refer to them as triplets. As a matter of fact, sports is defined as entertainment in some places,” says Idris Olorunnimbe, the Group Chief Executive Officer at Temple group and Ogidi studios.
A consummate strategist and a Law graduate of the University of Lagos, at 44, Olorunnimbe stands tall with a wealth of experience that span the private and public sector.
His name precedes him at different fora – entertainment, sports, tourism, business, public sector, and politics – yet his unassuming mien remains one of his lucky charms.
It’s no news that his passion for public service got him campaigning and eventually working as a Personal Assistant and Senior Special Assistant to Babatunde Raji Fashola, SAN, ex-Governor of Lagos state and current Minister for Works and Housing between 2007 and 2015.
However, unknown to many, Olorunnimbe, who is one of the sons of retired Justice Ishola Olorunnimbe, had co-written a policy paper on driver reorientation in Lagos which led to the introduction of Drivers’ Institutes in the state, before getting the opportunity to work with Fashola.
The Temple
For Olorunnimbe, the challenges posed by the entertainment, tourism, and sports sectors spurred his decision to build The Temple Company with its head office on Victoria Island.
In an interview, he said, “When His Excellency Babatunde Raji Fashola SAN left office in 2015, I thought of what next to do. I wanted a challenge. We looked at the country’s economy in a bid to identify areas that had great potential and were not saturated. We wanted a place where we could cause a ‘disruption’ and leave a legacy. We then chose the entertainment and sports sectors which dovetail into tourism. There are quite a few players there but they are not enough. And, there was a space for us. That is basically the abridged version of how The Temple Company was founded.”
With the Temple Group, Olorunnimbe and his team continue to pilot one of Africa’s fastest-growing creative firms to break boundaries and position itself as the go-to team in the industry. The group continues to offer a 360-degree service in entertainment, sports, arts, and media with a solid footprint across Africa, the United Kingdom, and the United States. From music to films, concerts, and conferences, the Temple Group continues to make giant strides. Not resting on his oars, Olorunnimbe and his team joined other partners of Lagos State to embark on training and human capacity building. Olorunnimbe joined Mo Abudu, Linus Idahosa, and Peace Anyiam-Osigwe to partner with Lagos State in empowering youths in the creative industry under the project, Lagos State Creative Industry Initiative, LACI.
Enters Ogidi
Poetically, Ogidi Studios, West Africa’s premiere multipurpose creative cum audio-visual studio by the Temple group was once just a landed property waiting to be converted into a private residence. Situated on three plots of land on Ogidi crescent in the highbrow Lekki area of Lagos, the story of the studio is one that continues to amaze Olorunnimbe and which he describes as divine.
“So, Ogidi has different but similar meanings in Yoruba and Igbo. Interestingly, Ogidi is also a community in Anambra state and that is where the man, who named the street comes from. We had deliberations over what the studio should be named for a long time and I just came up with Ogidi, which was the name of the street where the studio is situated,” he said.
From the outside, it’s a hard piece of real estate to be excited about. It’s sandwiched between two private residences in a neighborhood that houses rows of luxurious homes, some spiffed up with bright landscaping, most with exotic appeal.
Inside the gates, though, is a paradise no one enjoys more than Olorunnimbe, who has an office in the studio. During a recent visit, Olorunnimbe and his team revealed the latest cutting-edge technology in audio recording and video production. Little wonder that the producers of ‘Black Panther II’ decided to work in Ogidi studios for the African themed sequel. Inside Ogidi studio, a soundtrack album featuring Nigerian A-list artists was recorded while the movie score and sound design were created and perfected at Ogidi Studios in Lagos, Nigeria.
From the infamous Neve Genesys Black console, a multi-functional device for sound production and engineering to a standard green screen measuring 17 by 11-foot, a globally accepted music booth, and more, Olorunnimbe has consolidated his seven-year-long achievements with a temple for creatives, not only in Nigeria but West Africa.