What’s going to be different about this year’s award?
For those who have been attending the event, it gets better every year. This is because we try to learn from our mistakes and experiences. We don’t claim to know it all and so we learn from people. The most important thing we’ve kept alive from the first edition till now, is that we’ve been able to make the award very credible. Over the years, we’ve tried to make sure the award remains credible. This year, we are making conscientious efforts to make sure that it’s a success. Its going to hold in the biggest event centre in Africa, The Dome, recently built in Ondo State by the state government and we believe that it’s going to be an event people will not forget in a hurry.
Seun Oloketuyi
We follow some procedures. First of all, we call out for entries and movie producers submit their movies. This year alone, we have close to 400 movies. We are the only award that accepts movies from the Hausa genre. We believe that all Nigerian movie genres are of Nollywood, irrespective of language. So, we have close to 400 movies that have been screened and by October, we’ll come up with the list of nominees. After that, the jury will sit and come up with the winners. That’s how the winners emerge yearly.
What’s the criteria for each category?
I wouldn’t want to go into that for some reasons. First, I’m not part of the jury. I just ensure that the movies are submitted and other necessary steps are taken for a smooth and credible selection. I don’t know the criteria and I don’t even sit at their meetings.
Do the audience have a say in the selection process?
Yes, but in a few categories. We know it’s going to be difficult for the audience to be passionate about some people. For instance, if a Chelsea Eze does fantastically well in a movie and a Genevieve Nnaji also does well and they are both nominated for the Best Actress category. People won’t vote for Genevieve based on her performance in the movie, but on the love and passion they could vote for her.
That was why we left it to the jury so as to give everybody a level playing ground. Although there are some categories we throw open to the audience like; ‘The Kiss of the year’ and ‘Best Use of Food in a movie’. We are trying to promote our culture with the later. For these two categories, the people decide who wins, whoever gets the highest number of votes is the winner.
How did you come up with the ‘Kiss of the Year’ category and how has it been received?
It was funny and that was in 2011. I went to do a presentation for sponsorship with a toothpaste brand. After the presentation, they told me they would love to come on board, but nothing appeals to them in everything I’ve told them.
They asked me what I can think of that would make the brand relevant. Because I didn’t want to lose the opportunity of getting the sponsorship that year, the idea just came on the spur of the moment as if it’s been already prepared. I told them ‘The Kiss of the Year’ and the brand manager and marketing manager gladly bought into it and that was how that category came to be. The following year, when they didn’t turn up to sponsor the category, we still left it because we discovered that it was one of the most popular categories. When we put it on YouTube every year, it generates a lot of viewership.
What challenges do you face organising this award every year?
Truly, that I’ve not had a heart failure is by God’s grace. Getting state and corporate sponsorship every year is very difficult. Besides, we live in a country where a lot of people do not believe that people can get things without having connections. That’s why when some people tell me, ‘I must win this year’. I just laugh and say I can’t determine who gets nominated or who wins.
I make a lot of enemies yearly. When the nominees’ list is released, I get more friends warming up to me. Immediately after the awards, I lose a lot of friends. People say a lot of things but I’m used to it. My joy is that those who win know that they didn’t have to do anything to emerge winners, besides working hard. What gives me the most satisfaction is on the day of the award, when the winners are called out and they are surprised, shocked, happy and excited as they walk to the stage.
What has kept you going all these years despite these challenges?
The number one thing that has kept me going is passion. Even though I read History and International Relations, I don’t think I have the patience to be a diplomat. This is the only thing that comes naturally to me. In 2011, almost everyone close to me advised me to stop organising BON awards. That year, we didn’t have a single sponsor and after the award I was owing more than six million naira, with no physical means of paying back.
What distinguishes the BON award from the other awards out there?
Not just the award, but what makes Best Of Nollywood different is that when we started, we made up our mind that since the industry is under-reported and under-celebrated, we have to bridge that gap. It wasn’t easy at the onset, because a lot of people I spoke to then, told me that it’s not a good industry to invest in. I almost listened to them, but thank God I didn’t.
I really love the arts, sometimes I wonder that if I put all the energy I’m putting into BON into the music industry, I won’t be where I am today, we would have been at the pinnacle. Most corporate brands are not really promoting their brands with movies, a lot of them are doing that with music. I don’t know why that’s the case because I’ve done a lot of research and brainwork to find out why companies don’t identify with the movies. Nollywood is appreciated more outside the country, but I pray it gets better. I have only achieved 45% of the dream I have for BON. My dream is that when anyone wants to do anything that has to do with Nollywood, they don’t have a choice but to come to us.
The other awards we have are different; ‘City People Entertainment Awards’ is an all-round entertainment award. ‘African Magic Viewers Choice Awards’ is a viewers choice award targeted at the whole of Africa. It’s the viewers who choose the winners not professionals. ‘African Movie Academy Award’ is also totally different. It’s not competition. The only award that does something similar to what we do is Nollywood Movie Award. Although I’ve never met the organiser of the award, I know he doesn’t see me as a competitor because times without number we consult each other when the need arises. No two awards are similar. What we are trying to do is celebrate Nollywood every year.
Have you had instances where stars come to lobby for the awards?
That happens every year. There was one very tempting offer in 2011, we didn’t have a sponsor for the award and it was tough trying to put the award together. A friend reached out to me to say that a particular nominee who was nominated in two categories was prepared to give me N500,000 provided she wins the award. It was tempting at the time because the money meant a lot considering the issues on ground. (That day, we couldn’t even give out plaques. We just used one plaque for the entire award. That was how horrible it was.) I turned down the offer, but guess what, the actress won on merit at the end of the day. Some of them just tell me playfully that they must win this year, but I know they’re serious.
How far have you gone with sponsorship for this year’s award?
This has been a very turbulent year in the history of Nigeria. First of all, it was an election year, the election was a keenly contested one and the government spent a lot of money on it. The net-worth of government’s income dropped drastically. That’s why as much as 18 states are owing salaries. It means that you can’t go to those 18 states to solicit for sponsorship. But we thank God that the Governor of Ondo State, Gov. Olusegun Mimiko came to our rescue by deciding to host the award. He just finished building the biggest event center in Africa in Akure ‘The Dome’. It has been tough getting sponsorship but we’re still on it, networking and throwing proposals around. By the end of October, we hope to have a couple of companies coming on board to sponsor the show.
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