Most Nollywood actors see the industry as stepping stone —Ibikunle

Taiwo Ibikunle is a sought-after actor, movie producer and the immediate-past chairman of the National Association of Nigerian Theatre Practitioners (NANTAP), Oyo State. In this interview with SEYI SOKOYA, he speaks on his new project and the movie industry.

You have been a notable face in the industry as a prolific actor; so what are you doing differently at this time?

I have been around for a very long time, precisely since the 90s, but presently, there is this radio drama going on air soonest in some states including, Abuja, Edo, Enugu, Kano, Lagos and Bauchi states. It is about migration and it was sponsored by UNESCO with the collaboration of the Italian Agency for Development Corporation.

It is solely on migration. We enlighten people on its adverse effects; what are the things one should know before migrating. A lot of people want to travel, migrate from one state or one country to the other because they believe that life is good on the other side and they want to explore without having a clue of the terrain or the unforeseen challenges. Some are resolute on their decision maybe because of their present situation, but they eventually realise that it is not worth it.

We will also enlighten people about brain drain; we have seen cases of Nigerians that are celebrated abroad, but it is not always business as usual when you find yourself in the circle. Some of those who fall victim to these cases may even fall into depression. Firstly, in Africa, everybody just wants to move out because they believe things will not work here. But I do tell people, here in Nigeria, if you can boast of  N40,000 per month, at a particular age, I will tell you just stay put.

Above all, we have identified various challenges people face as a result of migration and we have come to rescue people from this problem. This is why Agate Multimedia Concepts, of which I am the Director, with the support of Italian Agency for Development Corporation bonded with UNESCO to use the widest communication medium, radio, to educate people.

We started around April, when we had a workshop in Lagos and we brought in two resource persons to enlighten people and do a kind of brainstorming, for people to learn more about migration. What are the classes of people that usually migrate? Is it the female or male gender? We discovered that it cuts across both male and female; they just want to migrate. So, that has always been the major challenge that we have been facing. Right now, we are airing in the six geo-political zones.

You are used to the screen, why radio this time?

We need to know that not all homes have television. We discovered that radio is everywhere and easy to penetrate larger audience even more than the screen; that is why we picked that medium.

Are you also partnering with the state government of the states that you are touring?

No. It is solely with UNESCO and the Italian Agency for Development Corporation. We are just the three bodies involved; no government interference at all.

How do you get across to people easily when in the different states considering the language barrier?

We will establish a sustainable relationship with various radio stations and we are confident that they will embrace the initiative in as much as our goal is to inject the society with positive information.

What is the title of the project and who are the cast members?

I can say we got more than 90 percent of the actors from the National Association of Nigerian Theatre Practitioners (NANTAP), Oyo State; we contacted some other actors including the likes of Victor Oyebode, aka Boy Alinco, the present one now. I directed it and we also have two writers – Mr Gbenga Adekanmbi and Monsuru Olajide. So, we have some notable people that actually joined us in the recording. We also picked pidgin, which can cut across. So, no matter the level of people’s education, they will still understand and decode our message. The title of the radio drama is Waka About Series.

Would you say you opted for radio drama production because you are tired of screen movie production?  

Not at all. I was trained to be a versatile actor even from the University of Ibadan. I have always loved radio while I was still a student. I can remember that I have done series of radio dramas, even before I got on screen. I am not a novice in that area. I have done series of radio productions before now. I actually started on radio, and that really helped me a lot. I started acting from the stage, then the screen. So, I am opportune to have touched all the areas in the theatre. So, it wasn’t stressful at all, though the radio takes a lot than the screen. With the screen, you can use your face and hands to gesticulate, pass across messages without even uttering a word, but in the case of radio, it is your voice, which is the only tool that is used to pass across the message. It has to be done convincingly. It is a called blind man’s theatre that you create a face for yourself.

There are claims that Nigerian movie productions lack substance. What is your take on this?

I wouldn’t want to run anyone down. You see, the stories we tell on-screen are mostly our stories. In America, if you watch Hollywood films, don’t let us deceive ourselves, we know where it is going from the beginning. For example, their culture would make a thief go scot-free and people will be happy that such occurred, but here in Nigeria, we always hammer on it that didactic movies must teach moral lessons. Go to a mosque or church or even the traditionalists, they teach morals. It is about morals; so we all know that eventually a thief will either be caught or be killed. So, it is our story, but in America, the thief will go scot-free.

There are claims that the movie industry is saturated with unprofessional acts; what is the industry doing to separate the wheat from the chaff?

It is so sad. It is a country where we celebrate mediocrity and it is not only in the industry alone, even amongst our politicians, the people in power, you discover that they celebrate mediocrity. We discover that this person is a rogue, but we still go all the way for that person and at the end, they mess us up, because of some benefits. We can’t say we won’t have them in the industry, we will continue to have them.

I feel so sad because theatre is a disciplined arena; it is even more so than the army. It is stricter than the kind of training in the military because we don’t tolerate nonsense; but it is just sad that things have begun to decline gradually. Nobody will just come, do whatever they do and social media is helping people to do lots of nonsense.

Until we have the support of the government and some bills can be passed in the House of Assembly, things may not take shape. In Hollywood now, there are some movies that don’t see the light of day and it will be well sponsored too, but right here, we do everything with our money, nobody is sponsoring anybody. If I just wake up tomorrow and I gather all the boys in my area that we should make a movie, they will join me and before you know it is all over on social media.

I know the acting bodies are working towards that; they want to put sanity into the industry. Most people just see the industry as a stepping stone to perpetrate some evil things. Some want to do it for prostitution, some want to be noticed; both male and female. Some guys want to be known because they can penetrate and start messing around with rich women in society, also the females too.

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