Nollywood: We’re beginning to tell our stories better —Actress Ireti Doyle

Iretiola Doyle needs little or no introduction in the world of stage play, television and film in Nigeria. An established writer, presenter, actress and producer, Ireti has traversed the gamut of acting in her over two decades’ career span. Some of her works reflect her excellent delivery skills and stage management.She speaks with Newton-Ray Ukwuoma about some of her concerns in the industry. Excerpts: 

Some people believe you are a strict and no-nonsense actress. What will surprise people about your character choices?

Do you remember the TV series entitled, ‘Fuji House of Commotion’? There was a character called Sisi Caro. Do you remember that character?

Yes.

That was me. I can play hard, I can play soft, I can play cunny, I can be serious, I can be elegant and I can be otherwise. I am an actress. I am a gun for hire. I can be anything a director wants me to be.

What would you have to say about those who think you are not media friendly. What do you have to say about the Nigerian media?

I actually respect them in general. I respect what they stand for, I respect the role they should play. Are some of them a burden? Yes. Are some of them unethical? Yes. Do some of them refuse to recognise and respect boundaries? Yes. However, that is not the yardstick with which I deal with them generally. I will deal with every individual as an individual.

Talking about boundaries, would you like to shed more light on a particular case?

I wouldn’t say there is a particular one that disturbed me. But have there been inappropriate questions over a 21-year career period? Yes.  Have there been times when you have stated clearly, that you will not respond to questions in this and that area and that have been breached in the course of the interview? Yes. Have there been people who have been down right rude and intrusive because they are hiding behind the microphone? Yes. First and foremost, I understand that it is the power for the course. The fact that I am in this business and very visible means that I will have to deal with the press. So, it is something I have got to deal with, so even when I am offended, I take a punch and walk out gracefully.

You once said you started off acting because of the incessant strike actions in the university at that time?

[Cuts in] I would have joined eventually. It just happened a whole lot faster because school was always on strike and I didn’t have anything else to do. It was a burning passion in my belly. I seized the opportunity, spoke to somebody that spoke to somebody until God, fate, made a way for me.

Before that time, was acting something you wanted to do for a long time?

Yes. It came to me naturally. I don’t know how it did, but I just found out that if there was a performance to be done in secondary school, I was always involved in it and if anyone was to be called to speak, it was me. I think Checkmate was the first Nigerian TV series I fell in love with. I used to hurry back home to watch it. Then there was Mind Bending, a TV series produced by Lola Fani Kayode and it starred Joke Silva at the time. There was a particular scene where Aunty Joke took me through an emotional journey. I looked on so steadily at her as she tugged at all my emotions. After that scene, I knew that was what I wanted to do. It may sound weird, but it was a light ball moment for me.

With the advantage of your resume, do you think much progress has been made in area of authentic story-telling in Nollywood?

Things have improved a lot. Everybody is proudly Nigerian. Everybody is trying to tell the Nigerian story. There is, however, no one particular Nigerian story. We are all coming at it in different perspectives. And it is okay for some people to stamp their personal perspectives on what they think is the authentic Nigerian story, but we must remember that we are very cosmopolitan. There is nothing happening in Nigeria that hasn’t happened anywhere else in the world. Our story is a collection of the universal story of mankind. I think we are doing a better job of telling our own story. And I also believe there is a need for improvement.

Wedding Party 2 is now being distributed on several online platforms in the United States, what does that say about the future of the industry?

Frist, I am very proud about it. And this is beyond the fact that WP 2 will be the first Nigerian film to get such distribution opportunity. Those types of accolades are superficial and good for a moment. I am proud that the industry is evolving. Distribution is evolving. There are more channels for a producer to make more money and greater profit off their jobs which in turn gives me, the actress, a greater negotiation power. Because I can now prove to you that if we collaborate and make a great project you can continue to make money off this project for a long time and if you continue to make money off a project that has my name and my face and talent, it gives me the leeway to negotiate for a better post profit deal.

After Wedding Party, what did you take away from your role that continues to influence your other roles?

I won’t say learning; it just reinforced what I have known for a while: continue to do great work. Like some people always say, continue wearing your best shirt, sooner or later, the right person will notice you.

Has there been any criticism about your role in Wedding Party 2 that you want to correct now?

Absolutely none. It is a work of art. If ten people view a work of art they will come back with ten different points of view and it is okay in my line of work.  I just give you my word that I will continue to do great work.

Has there been any movie you would love to go back and do over?

Go back and do over? No. But do I mock my work? Intensely. Every time I watch a project of mine that is what I am doing. I am mocking my work. And if you are honest, you will always see somethings that you would have done differently, may be not necessarily better, and sometimes even better because you are in a moment and you are working with all kinds of stimuli and energy coming from your other cast members. I mock my work. I think any actor that is worth their weight in gold should.

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One almost always see you crisscrossing two genres of drama. If you are to choose between stage and screen, which will you prefer?

Stage every single time. Stage, because it keeps you on your toes. You can’t take the theatre for granted. There is no “Cut, take 2”. You have to deliver on the spot. And there is a certain energy rush that I get from the exchanges between the actor and a live audience that given the choice, it will be stage all the time. But unfortunately, the attention is not as heavy as television and film.

Would you say actors that transit from stage to screen have a better grip of role interpretations and delivery?

I will say this much, people who come from a theatre background are cut from a different cloth, and you can tell by the way they behave, the way their delivery on the craft and their level of discipline. There are certain things you cannot get away with in theatre. Theatre makes you a ready team player, a virtue you have to acquire consciously in television and film. You cannot be a successful theatre artiste if your ego is larger than life.  You have to trust your colleagues because you are going to get undressed in front of each other. It is a leveller and you go into the project knowing that you have each other’s backs. There is no rivalry because if one person looks bad, the entire production looks bad. So, it equips you with a certain mindset.

Do you have plans of reviving Oge, the show?

Yes. It will soon be back.

How soon?

In fact, it is done. We are doing final correction. The only reason I wouldn’t give you a date is because once we are done with final corrections, the work will go back to the person who has bought it and it is up to them to decide when they are going to air it, but it has been produced. The first 20 episodes are done. All the promotional works are ready. I am just waiting for them to allocate me a time and a date.

The movie, Torn, has won you a number of awards. What were your first thoughts when you got the script?

After reading the script I was like, “I don’t care; I have to act this role”. There are some roles that speak to you. Torn spoke to me. Also, the brief was clear cut: my character was sound, though it was obvious that she was unwell. And what was her illness? She believed a truth that was a lie. For me [in the play], my work was clear cut, I just had to continue to believe that lie as though it was true. Once I made the decision, it didn’t matter what came at me. That was my husband and everybody else who said anything contradictory was in trouble for it. So, that was just it. And then I think we are all kind of crazy.

For some actors who are really worried that Nollywood is not lucrative, that there is no money to be made and that people are mostly there not for the money but the passion, what word do you have for them?

The future is bright. This is Nigeria, where we do not all have the same earning capacity. That is one. We are not all on the same level. Three, you have to be specific about who we are talking about. It is a lucrative business. First of all, do you have a scale? Are you a player? What kind of player are you? There are a lot of people parading themselves as actors and actresses, who really are not actors and actresses. Forget pay, the conditions and services could they be a whole lot better.