For people who were keen followers of the popular television series, Checkmate, Ego Boyo’s face will still linger in their memory. In this interview with OLUSHOLA RICKETTS, she speaks on being behind the camera, reuniting with RMD in a series, getting married early and today’s Nollywood.
You recently celebrated your birthday, why didn’t you have a large party?
Do people throw a lavish birthday party each year? I am thankful for life; that is the main thing.
Are there things you think you could have done better?
It is too early for me. I would wait to rewrite what I think should have happened or I should have done better. I am happy where I am today. There are many things that have happened in my life and I am sure there are many things I could have done differently. But as I am talking to you right now, I am happy with the way things have turned out. I am happy with how my life has progressed so far.
Why have you decided to act again after exiting many years ago?
I still do acting once in a while. I always do more of little but uncredited roles in my friends’ films. My decision to act again is a case of ‘never say never.’ This year, I could decide I don’t want to do this, and the next year, I do that same thing? Acting is in my blood; it is one of those things I have done before and I fell in love with. But right now, my focus is production. The project I have decided to feature in is a series and I feel it came at the right time. Sometimes, the script makes you to take the job.
Don’t you think you left acting at a time you were doing very well?
Being in charge of production is actually a major part of getting things done. As an executive producer, for instance, I am the person that brings in funds. The difference is that, instead of being in front of the camera, I am now behind it.
Then, my focus wasn’t about being a star; my focus has always been on the work. For me, I just went back to what I was doing, but this time, behind the camera, rather than in front of it. That way, you get to work without being distracted by the attention of the world.
Could it be that you left acting because of marriage; responsibilities of a mother?
I was married when I was on Checkmate; I have been married for 25 years. So, my decision to leave acting for production wasn’t because of marriage.
Was there a time you felt like going back into acting fully?
I have missed it (acting), but not enough to go back. You know things happen for different reasons. I was the producer of Violated in 1996; so, from the outset, I wanted to be a producer. I wanted to come up with things I wanted to produce and that is what I have done in the past few years.
How was your growing up like?
It was wonderful. This was a time where you could ride a bicycle on the road to your friend’s house and your parents would not be worried because they knew you were fine. People were not as angry as they are now. Things were working well in Nigeria, though not everything.
I was a troublesome kid. I was a tomboy, I used to climb trees. I do tell my son this. I climbed every tree in our compound. There was no tree I looked with fear; I conquered them all. I fell down a lot, too, and I sustained many injuries.
Would one be right to call you an introvert?
I don’t think I am an introvert. When people meet me and I don’t know them and they don’t know me too, I would be very calm with them until I get to know them. I am not sure I am an introvert or extrovert; I think I am somewhere in-between.
When I was younger, I went to parties. But as I get older, I am enjoying silence a lot more. I enjoy listening to music, walking around the garden and reading books.
Was it a deliberate decision to get married early?
You cannot make a conscious decision to get married early. I think it is all about when you find the person you want to spend the rest of your life with. I just found the person that I wanted to be with earlier than I would have thought.
Comparing today’s Nollywood with yesterday’s, do you think there is much difference?
There is clearly a lot of difference. When we started, it was a smaller industry and there were fewer players. Despite being a small industry, however, we had highly committed professionals.
I think there is still commitment from some people, but a lot of people think they are in Nollywood to become stars, rather than being an actor and making impact with what they are doing. So, in that sense, it has changed.
The emergence of technology and skilled professionals have helped the industry. More people have come in now. I cannot even name the different producers, actors and directors we have now because we get to see new faces every day.
Do you think our content is better now?
We always have great stories. In interpretation of roles, it may still be a challenge, but I think it is a process. We haven’t developed as quickly as we should have.
But we have rich stories. I don’t understand why producers remake past movies because we have original stories. There is nothing wrong in doing remixes, even Hollywood does it. But I don’t necessarily agree with it because I prefer some of the older ones. Inasmuch as there might be a market for reproduction of films, I think we are still a young industry. We can still do quite a lot with original contents.
How come it seems the older actors and younger ones do not work together as much as they should?
I think every production depends on the producer and director, and what they are looking for. If you want older actors, you look for them, and if you want younger actors, you look for them, too.
I think I have seen a production where Liz Benson and a younger actor did well together. I have seen productions where Olu Jacobs and Joke Silva featured alongside some younger actors. So, I have not really noticed any discord.
What are you working on now?
My new movie, The Hotel Called Memory, will be premiered on October 8. The movie is directed by Akin Omotoso and features Nse Ikpe-Etim, Kemi ‘Lala’ Akindoju, Mmabatho Montsho, Nomzamo Mbatha and Abdi Hussein. It is an experimental film. That’s what I have been doing in the last two years.
