Nollywood actor, Raymond Okafor, has said that talent is not enough to succeed in the Nigerian movie industry.
The 30-year-old stated this in an interview with Saturday Beats, adding that an actor, actress or filmmaker has to be loyal to succeed in Nollywood.
Okafor revealed that there are cliques who favour one another and look out for each other when it comes to movie gigs, and the only path to success for a promising thespian is to belong to one of such groups.
He said; “As crazy as it sounds, one’s talent is not a guarantee that one would be successful in the industry. That one is a great actor is not a guarantee for success in Nollywood. I don’t know about other industries but in Nollywood, talent is not enough. The only thing that can bring one success is one’s loyalty. One has to be extremely loyal.
“There is way they operate in Nollywood; they have cliques. They care about one another, and they carry themselves along. One has to belong to a team, and one has to be loyal.”
Okafor, who was recently appointed by the President of the Actors Guild of Nigeria, Emeka Rollas, as a member or its National Task Force, said they have initiated bylaws to protect everyone in the industry.
“Now, we are making sure that everybody gets paid, even if one is only an extra. Everybody gets paid, and they get insurance. It is part of our new scheme, and our new bylaws that we are trying to enforce,” he said.
Meanwhile in similar news…
Popular Nigerian actor, Deyemi Okanlawon recently complained that the major challenge facing actors in the film industry is that they are not paid enough.
He stated this during an episode of MTV Base Africa Lights, Camera Stardom, programme alongside his colleague Daniel Etim-Effiong.
Okanlawon said Nollywood underpays actors but the are not financially literal enough to use the tools at their disposal to protect their career future.
He said; “I think [Nollywood] actors are not being paid enough. And the other hand, we are not financially literal enough to use what we do have and maximise it to protect ourselves in the future.”
On his part, Etim-Effiong said: “I also think that the way the [Nigerian movie] industry works, it doesn’t provide enough for the actors to work with both financially and otherwise.
“For example, I don’t think actors are given enough time to prepare [for their roles]. I don’t think actors are given enough time even to work on themselves.”