Meet Lari Williams… The ‘wanted’ lord of stage and screen

THOUGH the veteran actor Babalari Williams is still very much around and has aged a bit, the fact remains that the London-trained journalist, poet and actor has been missing in action for some time now and fans still want to experience his depth of character interpretation. An observer hinted that the last time the actor was believed to have done any serious work in the movie was about eight years back and most of his fans say they want him back on screen even if to play the role of a sage or grand father or story teller which his age permits. But Uncle Lari, as younger colleagues call him, is still very much around. Sources disclosed that Uncle Lari who taught briefly at the Department of Theatre Arts of the University of Calabar and at the Lagos State University is still very much involved in other areas of performance art. 

Call him the undisputable rounded actor and you would not be wrong. Call him Nigeria’s foremost performance poet and you will just be stating the obvious. A deep actor of vast credits, the Lagos-born actor is one thespian who has traversed nearly all genres of the literary and performing arts. A trained journalist, drummer and published poet, Lari’s first involvement with the theatre was during his early school days. Since then he has not looked back. He has continued to bestride the theatre and film industry like a colossus that he is, leaving indelible impressions and a stamp of quality on each run.

A one-time columnist with the Vanguard newspaper, Lari is an alumnus of the prestigious London School of Journalism and the Mount View Theatre Academy London. Founder and Artistic Director of Calabash Artistes, a repertory company he had established in London in the 70s to further his interest in promoting African culture, Lari returned to the country at the wake of preparations for FESTAC 77; taught briefly at the defunct Centre for Cultural Studies of the University of Lagos, from where he moved on to establish the Lari Williams Playhouse, reputed at that time to be one of the leading theatre companies. With the playhouse, Lari produced and directed plays like ‘The Island’ and ‘Sizwe Bansi is Dead’. A recipient of a number of industry awards, including the national honours award of the Officer of the Order of the Niger, OON, Uncle Lari considers the award one that he would cherish for life. Fans say they want the actor’s actor back on screen. 

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REVIEW

Title- Dorothy My Love

Producer- Collins Ezeanwa

Director- Tchidi Chikere

Actors- Eucharia Anunobi, Sharon Ezeamaka and others

IFY (Eucharia Anunobi) a single parent has difficulties taming her daughter’s likeness for a young chap (Bobo) who is her classmate.  Dorothy her daughter is 12 and Bobo is 14. Though she heaped threats on Dorothy but that would not separate the small love-birds who believe that they are born to be one. Dorothy and Bobo also proved by their attachment that theirs was love made in Heaven.  No wonder it was only Bobo that could stabilize her temperature at the point where she was hospitalized. This scores some alpha in acting and cinematography but it was ridiculously told. It didn’t look as though it benefited from a focused discussion. Perhaps a wider consultation would have helped in refocusing the story. The director here placed so much emphasis on two young lads fantasizing than they did on their educational pursuit. Counseling and not corporal punishment was what the lads, who are aged below 15, needed to know that phrases like ‘I like and love you’ and ‘my feet moves with my heart’ are words that can be employed freely by adults! Convincing characterization here. Good dialogue too even though too strong for a 12 year old and a 14 year old.

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Filmdom Notice Board 

‘KnockOut’ by Wale Adenuga Production secures global deal

‘KNOCKOUT’, the movie by Wale Adenuga Productions’ (WAP) has secured a global distribution deal. The hilarious movie will be distributed globally by Nairobi, Kenya based international film agency Media Pros Africa. A statement from WAP indicate that the deal was brokered by Osezua Stephen-Imobhio’s Lagos based Oduma Creative Worx Limited. Managing Director of Media Pros Africa Wangeci Murage disclosed at the deal signing ceremony that the right granted Media Pros include theatrical release, Video on Demand, SVOD, and Pay TV across the globe. The movie revolves round a group of people who were sent into a hilarious frenzy as soon as news of a boxing competition with a cash prize of One billion Naira ($3 million) hit town.  They devise mischievous means to participate, while the clumsy boxer they choose and the crazy characters they meet along the way result in a myriad of mayhem and madness. The movie is directed by Pat Oghre and it parades an array of notable actors including Hafiz Oyetoro, Sola Sobowale, Chiwetalu Agu, Toyin Abraham, Odunlade Adekola, Patience Ozokwor, Segun Arinze, Ngozi Nwosu, Desmond Elliot and Ali Nuhu.

Maiden Universal Movie Awards Holds In September 

THE maiden edition of the Universal Movie Awards (UNIMA) will take place in Lagos, Nigeria on September 25, 2021. The award according to the President and Founder of UNIMA Hope Obioma Opara is geared towards presenting a platform through which the Nigerian film industry Nollywood will host filmmakers all over the world. According to Opara who is also founder of the annual Eko International Film Festival (EKOIFF) ‘’the Primary vision of UNIMA is to add value and creatively enrich the entertainment industry through excellent work in film and television. The mission of Universal Movie Awards is the celebration of professional Excellence in the Global Film/Television Industry.”. Opara also hinted that the secretariat have started receiving films submitted for the award from all over the world. He explains the structure of UNIMA ’Universal Movie Awards (UNIMA) Art Academy is for the development of contemporary motion picture environment whereby talents among youthful bracket in the aspect of motion picture – catering to script writing, acting, filmmaking, cinematography, and Directing.  We strongly hold that arts can save lives. Arts can turn around troubled teenagers; get young men and women off the streets into creative and constructive pursuits. Therefore the workshops will engage young men and women into more meaningful ways to look inside themselves to rediscover their potentials’’.

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Filmdom WORD BITES: 

“I THINK that we have really come a long way. Yes we are churning out movies but we have not gone anywhere yet in terms of quality of production and spread especially in terms of getting the finished product to the right prospects. Am sorry to say that the distribution structure is poor but it can be better. What we have presently is a situation where our distributional outlets are not opening up. Marketing is still done the same old way. One was hoping that by now we would have broken into the international movie market. One was hoping that by now we would have discovered how we could sell our movies across borders. Yes we are making waves abroad. But it’s just our actor’s going there to be admired by Nigerians in Diaspora. That’s all. The marketing level is still door-to-door. That is not marketing. Selling to special groups abroad does not represent Marketing. No it does not. We must expand the frontiers of distribution. Only then can we start talking of making waves internationally and only then can we begin to talk of producing mega bucks movies’’

– Actress France Aernam on the state of Nollywood distribution 

“FOR those who yearn for a career in the movie, Florence admonishes that they must not be desperate if they want to make a success out of the vocation. ‘A lot of them have come to me and I tell them that the movie industry is big enough to accommodate every body. But then you must not be desperate. You must first establish your mission here. I mean do you want to come in here because you love the art or because you have just seen Genevieve or Florence Onuma in a movie. I think its something they must sit down and ask themselves and in asking they must know that those people, that is Genevieve and Florence did not just delve into it. Its what they wanted to do. And that’s what they are doing and so whether money comes out of it or not they would want to do it. So you must be sure that you have the talent for it and not necessarily be carried away by the euphoria of oh they want to be known. Again If you are not disciplined you can never be in the art. So people come into acting with the wrong notion and when they come to me I try to find out their motive. If it because they love it beautiful but if it is for some other reasons then they would burn out so fast. 

–Actress Florence Onuma admonishing new entrants to Nollywood. 

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Star Fad & Hobbies

The Actress Foluke Daramola –

“It has been rewarding and that it has opened up a whole lot of windows of opportunities. ‘I don’t have any regret. I enjoy what I am doing.  And in terms of my likes, I like to cook. I like dodo a lot. I also like Amala with Ewedu or Nla. I like bright colours like pink and I wear dull colours especially black for my trousers. In terms of footwear, I wear low slippers. I have some, which are high, but I feel comfortable when I wear those that are low. But sometimes I wear the high ones because of the consciousness that I am too short (loud laughter)’’

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The Actress Uchenna Nnanna-

“I HATE pretence-people who will not be straight with you and people who will say one thing and mean another elsewhere. I like people who say it as it is—people who are very blunt and people who are honest and caring. And when I am not working, I read, watch movies and visit friends. I am not so much of a food person but I love beans and plantain. I am not a designer freak. I just put on anything that will look good on me. As for marriage, it will come when it will come and my kind of man will just be any God fearing man that will love me and I will love him. He should also be the type that believes in 50-50 love. Once we love each other, there wont be any problem because like they say love bears all things. As for whether I am in a relationship presently, I will beg that we keep that off prints. Oh, definitely as a woman advances will definitely come.  But I try as much as possible not to be rude to them.’’

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MILE STONES & ROUGH CUTS

 #NOLLYWOOD WEEK IN PARIS ENDS- The 2021 Nollywoodweek Film Festival in Paris closed this May, precisely on May 10 in France and for the first time in its 8-year history, Nollywoodweek streamed all the films exclusively online. Also, at this edition, a movie by first-time director Diji Aderogba titled ‘About A Boy’ received the highest honor at the 2021 Nollywoodweek (Nollywoodweek.com) film festival, the Audience appreciation award known as the Prix du Public. The announcement of the winning film “About a Boy”, a story about the psychological games played between a writer and his muse marked the culmination of the 2021 edition of the Festival, where 15 feature-length and 18 short films — from Africa and the African Diaspora — were showcased to a global audience. For winning the audience award, the director of the winning film Diji Aderogba will receive use of a range of top-of-the-line lenses from the Angénieux brand with which to shoot his next film. Previous winners of the audience choice award include international Nollywood favorites such as ‘The Meeting’, ‘Isoken’ and ‘King of Boys’.  The 4-day film festival featured film screenings, panel discussions on screenwriting, funding within the African animation sector and distributing African content. 

#TIME FOR DURBAN FILMMART PROJECTS: The Durban FilmMart Institute has announced the 2021 Finance Forum Projects for the 12th edition of Africa’s premier film industry event – the Durban FilmMart – which takes place virtually from 16 to 25 July. After receiving hundreds of applications, a total of 28 projects – comprising 14 documentaries and 14 fiction features – have been selected for the Finance Forum.  The Finance Forum consists of individual mentorship, public pitching and one on one meeting with film investors, sales agents, distributors, content editors, broadcasters, and programmers, and is a core element of the DFM.  This year’s selection includes a diverse mix of emerging African talent alongside well-established filmmakers from across the continent.  Participating African countries include the Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of Congo, Egypt, Morocco, Namibia, Senegal, South Africa, Swaziland, Tunisia, Uganda, and Zimbabwe. With principal funding from the Durban Film Office and Ethekwini Municipality, the Durban FilmMart will present a comprehensive online programme of discussions, master classes and hangouts in addition to the Finance Forum, thereby contributing to the growth of film industries across Africa.   The 2021 edition takes place from 16-25 July.  Registration will open on 1 June 2021. A full list of the official projects and on the Durban FilmMart Institute can be sourced from: https://www.durbanfilmmart.co.za/