Nollywood: Why Yoruba Celebrities or movie actors aren’t respected

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I have discovered that contrary to what some Nollywood top shots will have the public believe, there still exists a huge disparity between the Yoruba actors and their English speaking colleagues. Sadly, this has gone on for a long time and may continue, especially as the present generation, most of whom are educated, aren’t making efforts to bridge the gap but would rather continue to lag behind their English speaking colleagues, who continue to rake in mouth watering contracts, get featured in TIME magazine and chat with CNN, Oprah and other well known media houses. 


Some blame the universality of the English language for this, but the Merriam Webster dictionary defines a celebrity simply as a famous or celebrated person, which means it is void of connections with tribe or language. Needless to say, the criteria for being a celebrity are both in the ‘art’ and in the artist. Sadly, Yoruba actors, though may have the art in them, are not doing well enough to project themselves. To help them do this, here are three things I advise they put into consideration

 1. Be Visible: A large number of the Yoruba actors and movie makers do not have quality pictures online, let alone personal websites or Wikipedia pages. Only a few are on IMDb, while those present on social media hardly engage their fans on the respective platforms. If and when they do interact, they do so with lots of blunders, caused by carelessness and impatience. Worse still, is the habit of shying away from interviews, with their usual excuse being ‘I’m on location’. But being visible isn’t restricted to social media. It extends to physical presence at gatherings and functions where they can meet and build relationships with colleagues, fans and other industry players. 


2. Work with a team: A celebrity is first and foremost a brand, and that implies it must be desired by people. Creating such need in the minds of people isn’t a one-man job, which is where the importance of having a team comes into play. The team should consist of at least a spokesperson, manager, a stylist/makeup artist. All three have important roles to play. While the stylist ensures the clothes, hair and makeup are in place, the spokesperson ‎helps you stay relevant in eyes of the media and sells your strength to potential investors, while the manager sorts out how to move the career forward and fraternizes with those who matter to ensure this is done.

 3. Be Professional: It is a well known fact that many Yoruba actors and movie makers don’t have a background in film-making but learnt on the job. While this is not a problem, there is a need for constant improvement, which may involve going to film schools, building portfolios and working according to industry standards....