By Olamide Jasanya
He has spent 40 years of his life acting, so referring to Jide Kosoko as a veteran is not out of place. His knowledge of the development and the state of the movie sector cannot be disregarded, especially when it borders on the Yoruba sector.
In this interview held at his Ebute Metta office in Lagos, Kosoko tells NET the many problems faced by the Nigerian actors especially the Yoruba ones. He also expresses his opinion on the ongoing war for the presidency of the Actors Guild of Nigeria.
Now that you’re sixty and still an actor, what plans do you have for the industry?
Before now, I have been involved in the development of the industry not just as a practitioner, but also as a leader involved in the management of the industry. I will intensify my efforts because we haven’t gotten there yet. We are still contributing our various quotas to ensure we arrive at the promise land. I will still continue to contribute positively to the industry’s development.
Do you think your age might affect your input in the industry, especially the number of films you will appear in?
No, I don’t think so. I am now involved in some other things that will also take time other than just movies and these things will share part of the time one uses for the production of one film.
All through your 50-year career in the industry, you have stuck to only acting, and barely made success of other areas. Why is that so?
That is not to say that I did not make efforts in those days to diversify one way or the other, but it’s just that it’s not easy. Our profession is so jealous and will not allow any other thing to rival with it, so I continued to do acting because that is what I know how to do best.
Having acted a number of roles, is there any role you still wish to act?
Well, I cannot say precisely now, but I know I have entered into so many characters…
As a Prince from a royal family, how easy was it for you to convince your parents about your choice of career?
You know, when I started about 50 years ago, I was still a very little child. I was a boy of ten then, so you will know that I was a rascal. My parents’ efforts to stop me were strongly defeated because I tried as much as possible to let them know I’m committed and it was a passion for me. Although in my own time, no parent wanted his or her children to go into this kind of profession. My mother was on the aggressive side but my father was gentle but kept reminding me of my position as a royal Prince and would state that I am not supposed to be entertaining people but rather I should be entertained. However, because I wasn’t doing too badly in my academics, they eventually agreed, especially in 1972 when I left secondary school.
If you weren’t an actor, what do you think you would you have been?
I don’t know, because I’m a very creative person. I don’t know what I would have been doing.
What other thing do you do apart from acting?
Nothing! I am an actor, film producer and director. I am more than an actor: I write scripts, I act, I produce and I direct.
There is a notion that Yoruba actors are not as successful as the ones in the English speaking sector. How true is this?
It depends on your measure and what you consider as success. If it is of material relevance, I will tell you but everybody knows what he does with his/her own money. I can speak for Yoruba actors; they work hard to get what they have. I don’t want to say anything that will cause disaffection within the industry, but the truth is, some people in the industry still believe in moving from corridors of power just to get money, I don’t consider that as money made from the profession.
Few years ago, certain popular Yoruba actors were detained by the NDLEA for drug related offences. How does this make you feel, especially as it seems like a trend…
It is not a trend. Yes, I agree there are one or two people who are in one way or the other involved but that is not to say it was a trend. There is no industry without bad eggs, they are everywhere even among lawyers and the doctors. Ours is not an exception but because of our popularity, people tend to believe it’s a trend and come up with different stories.
But the two people that were involved are considerably popular and successful. If these two were involved in such could it be because the profession isn’t as lucrative as it seems?
We don’t need to say anything contrary to that. We all know that the industry is not as buoyant as we think. We don’t get ten percent as profit off the money we spend on productions. The money isn’t as much as people think but we are not complaining because this is what we do for a living. However, if you don’t see success as physical cash alone, you would agree some of us have done things that could be regarded as successful. I already have seven graduates in my family and that is part of success, so is my continuous relevance and contribution in the industry, but when you talk of physical cash or investment, know that not everyone will sit you down and start telling you what and what they have but on the other side, it is not as bad as people think neither is it as good as they think.
Yoruba actors are popular for the act by barter style where they feature in each other’s movies based on relationship. Do you think this has fared well for the Yoruba acting community?
That was at the initial stage but in the real sense, that was what brought about anything you call Nollywood today. I make bold to tell you that we started it. We built the industry on which others have now come on board, and we did it that way, something like ‘Rub my back, I rub your back’ to be able to have an industry. That was how we started and it is acceptable anywhere. However, it is not the same thing again, if you call any artiste now, you’ve got to negotiate.
Why do you think awards aren’t favouring them? Even awards don’t seem to be favouring them.
I don’t see anything sectional in that. It depends on the production submitted for such award. There are so many beautiful productions that were never submitted for competition, that much I can tell. Take for example; I was the first to be honoured by AMAA among all the icons or veterans. Does that mean I am the best amongst them? After all, so many of them are there, they could have picked Pete Edochie but I was the first to be so honoured. I don’t think they rate indigenous language films with English language ones… they don’t do it anyway so you cannot compare.
There seems to be a lot of disparity between English speaking actors and Yoruba actors, why do you think this is so?
It depends on what you think. I am sure you know I am still referred to as a cross over artiste – what that means is that I am capable when it comes to films in English language or any other language. So many of our people including Antar Laniyan, Yemi Solade, Bukky Wright have been doing such too but I will not rule out tribalism absolutely. Check the number of Igbo people that also act in Yoruba films now, are they as much as they do in their own? All these tribalistic ideas being sponsored by the journalists, I don’t like it. It is one industry. ‘We’re the same’. However, when you talk of marginalisation of the Yoruba sector in some aspects of government support, I will agree because that’s always been the problem, and it is not peculiar to the film industry alone.
Do you support Yoruba actors joining the Actors Guild of Nigeria?
I don’t have issues with that. I am a member of the guild and I can be a member of as many guilds as I like. Sectionalism is not the major problem in Nollywood; it is the government and the House of Assembly. If we are able to have a motion picture council today, every association will melt under that council, and that is what we are praying and fighting for. The moment we have one body (The Motion Picture Council), it will embrace everybody because we will all be under one umbrella and run by guilds.
Tell us about your achievement while you were the ANTP president.
It all depends on the aspect you want me to touch. I got myself involved more with the human development. By that, I mean in the continuous development programmes to ensure that at least we are able to move ahead in terms of quality productions and we got there. Go and check the quality of productions produced by Yoruba films in terms of story lines, equipment and anything you might talk about. The effect of such programmes is there, and that is one major thing.
The ability to steer the ship of an association like ANTP (it’s the largest and I can’t even give you the actual figure of members that’s to tell you how many we are); to be able to keep them together for so long alone is another achievement; for the industry to continue to exist is the major achievement.
When did TAMPAN (Theatre and Movie Practitioners Association of Nigeria) come into the picture?
Earlier this year.
How true is the story that you and Adebayo Salami (Oga Bello) masterminded the plot to change ANTP to TAMPAN?
That is our problem.
By that phrase, who are you referring to?
When you talk of an association, it is a collective responsibility. It’s a group of people who have agreed to come together under one umbrella for one reason or the other. So, if one or two people are the first set of people to put some things in place, that doesn’t make them the owners of the association. So we have an association which is TAMPAN, where people of like minds come together to say we should have an association with the following programmes.
What informed the switch from ANTP to TAMPAN?
There is no switch. ANTP still exists and so does TAMPAN and I am a member of the two. I have a right to belong to as many associations that I like. I am a member of AGN, AMP and board member of YOFIBAN.
In the past, Nollywood movies used to focus on socially and culturally relevant themes. This isn’t the case anymore; it’s more about sex, drugs, prostitution and thuggery. Do you feel such diversion will do Nollywood any good?
As creators of wisdom and by what our profession dictates, we have a responsibility to satisfy our numerous fans. Take nude film productions as an example, there are some people that enjoy it. Whether it is good or bad is secondary but the moment we have some people that can patronise it, they’re our people and we have the right to satisfy them. Such films help some people who are not strong (sexually). It is the responsibility of the parents out there to check what their children watch.
Again, when we talk of productions bordering round the topic of drugs, have you seen a film where a drug baron triumphs? I think the people to complain are the drug barons themselves because it is more like we’re exposing them for our law enforcement to get an idea as to how these people operate. It is part of our responsibility, and because of the present situation in our country. I agree with you that there is need to play down on issues about terrorism and similar topics but that is not to say we can be forced to do that. If we have good information on how best to track down the terrorists, we will not come and tell you not to run. We’ll go on production, expose some things, even at our own detriment and expect the government to act along with the information provided.
On a final note, what is your take on the ongoing war between Ibinabo Fiberesima and Clarion Chukwurah as regards the Presidency of the AGN?
I have said my mind and it is that Ibinabo should be left alone. Leadership of any association is not easy. She is not God, as such there is no way she won’t make mistakes. For example, I heard she visited somewhere and was given five hundred thousand; that is normal. If you go to visit somebody and they give you money as a guest, will you reject it? Mind you that money isn’t the association’s, it’s your gift. I just picked one out of those numerous things. I’m not privy to everything said by Clarion for me to be able to ascertain the truth, but when you have a leader, you should entrust them with the good and bad of everything putting into consideration you still have your vote and can use it when the time comes. Let me add that creative people are the most difficult to govern because we are all leaders in our own right. That said, they should allow her achieve all she wants to and stop disturbing her.
