‘Anniversary’ Movie Producer, Gregory Onuda Challenges Buhari On Piracy
The issue of piracy has recently brought Nollywood together. Many practitioners in the motion picture industry have now seen the reason why they must collectively fight the menace once and for all.
Last week, some Nollywood heavyweights held a protest against piracy in Lagos and the state governor, Babatunde Fashola, promised to look into their plights.
One person that has also joined in the voices against piracy is the producer of the highly anticipated film, 'Anniversary', Gregory Onuda, who also doubles as the CEO of OGPLUS International Films.
Onuda, a member of the Association of Movie Producers (AMP), in this interview, tasked the incoming government of Muhammadu Buhari to pay special attention to the plight of the creative industry in Nigeria; piracy.
Onuda, who has produced flicks like 'Sasha', 'The Living Ghost', 'Scam' and his recent job, 'Anniversary', minced no words in hailing President Goodluck Jonathan for giving life to Nollywood more than any other administration before him.
May we meet you
My name is Gregory Onuda. I hail from Edo State and I am a movie producer. I have a couple of movies to my credit, for example 'Sasha', 'The Living Ghost', 'Scam' and 'Anniversary', which is my most recent movie. We are hoping to show the film at cinemas across the country and beyond because we utilized state-of-the-art equipment, high grade casts, good locations in shooting the movie. It's a very big project and I have to say it cost us a lot to achieve and I'm very optimistic it will appeal to a wider audience.
Can you let us know how much the film gulped?
It cost us quite a lot; in monetary terms and man power.
Why do you think movies recently taken to the cinemas have ended up in the hands of pirates
As a matter of fact, that is one of the challenges we have been facing for years now. This has become a common fear in the minds of producers because you don't want to put so much into a movie and at the end of the day, some hoodlums or heartless set of people will try to frustrate your effort. We just have to look for a way to curb this menace in our society. We also hope the incoming government can help in this regard.
Do you President Jonathan tried enough for Nollywood with the visits of practitioners to Aso Rock
In the past, we didn't really feel government attention. But with due respect to the outgoing administration and in all honesty, a lot has been done to assist the industry. One of them was the setting up of the Project ACT Nollywood Initiative, which was created to support producers with funds to produce movies. Some producers benefited from the said initiative and hopefully, that could help to better the quality of movies in the coming years. The incoming administration needs to take a cue from this great initiative. Most important of all, I would like to use this medium to challenge the president-elect, General Buhari to look closely into the possibility of assisting Nollywood to fight piracy, which has badly affected the industry.
Can you advise Buhari on how to do that
It should be easy if the government sees it as a priority. Nollywood has done a lot to project a good image for Nigeria and I think it makes a lot of sense if the government gives Nollywood the attention and support it deserves. Take a look at the amazing things we are doing with the little we have. All that Nollywood needs is a government that is committed to improving the industry.
Tell us about your new movie, 'Anniversary'
Anniversary is a story about a man who pretends to be the perfect husband, an honest man and everybody saw him like that. Even his wife could bet her life on him for his 'uprightness'. But the events that unfolded in the course of the movie will keep you glued to your seats. More than 50% of all spouses are victims of infidelity, which means that one spouse in most marriages will suffer the greatest marital pain possible. Infidelity can shatter even the strongest relationship, leaving behind feelings of betrayal, guilt, and anger. This is a very touching story and worth your time and money for your ticket and popcorn. The movie features top Nollywood actors like Gideon Okeke, Ebube Nwagbo, Zynell Lydia Zuh, Elikem Kumordzi, Juliet Ibrahim and her sister, Sonia Ibrahim and a host of others.
'Anniversary' will be premiered in a couple of weeks from now in Ghana, Nigeria, Europe and America.