Filmmaker talks Nollywood, casting, developing audience, TV series in Nigeria [Full interview]

Nollywood award winning filmmaker, undefinedproduced the much talked about film "Fifty" She is also popular for productions like "Journey to Self," "Hotel Majestic," "Tinsel," "New Horizon" among others.

Tope who has worked in reputable TV and Film as a undefined spoke on disposable and timeless movies, what makes a film great for her, choosing between two talented actors and more.

Read excerpts and watch full video below;

On timeless and disposable films;

"As regards the film culture in Nigeria, it's at the moment evolving, and it's evolving fast. There was a point in Nigeria when we shot proper celluloid films, going back to the days of and That was an era that came and went.

Then came what we now refer to as Nollywood, which basically started from commercializing video tapes, and then looking for how to make them look marketable, and then deciding to shoot drama and put them on the tapes.

What we call Nollywood' has now evolved from where it was - from just selling tapes into getting into a cinema culture, producing films and arts that can be screened at film festivals locally and internationally.

So, for me, if I were to describe the film industry in one word, I would say "Because it's changing fast, it's growing fast, it's becoming bigger and better by the second. You cannot talk about the film industry in Nigeria without talking about the origin.

The whole thing of shooting stories and putting them on video tapes, kick started what is essentially part of our culture in Africa as Nigerians, which is telling stories."

On how she decides if a movie is great;

Taste differs, so what I may regard as a great film may not be what you would regard as a great film, she said.

So for me, a great film is one that resonates my beliefs, my ideas. It's one that leaves me thinking, that changes my state from when I got in the cinema or when I press the play button ,to the end of the movie.

If Something has changed within me, if there's a thought that I leave the cinema with, if there's a shift within my conscienceness, then for me that's a great film.

On choosing between being a director, producer and casting director;

My first love, my core, my passion is directing, and that is because first and foremost, I'm a storyteller. I'm an artist and I want to create. This is where I find my passion - creating and telling stories.

I find that I'm not just a storyteller, but most of the time I have things that I'm passionate about. I'm passionate about women.

As you might find amongst my most popular works, most of them are about women. I'm very passionate about women and that's because I'm one. Secondly is because within the African society, there are a lot of things that happen to women that we are not allowed to talk about.

On why TV series are no longer popular;

"Why it would seem as though Tv dramas and soap operas are not as popular as they were in the 80s is because, generally, the world has become a small place. Back in the day when was big, when was big, and the streets would basically empty out when the show was on, and you could hear the theme song resonate all through the street, and it's the same thing everyone is watching, I think basically we didn't have a lot.

The industry was small, the industry was just beginning, there were just a few people who were doing these things. Right now, If you turn on the TV for instance, we have so many local channels, we have so many cable channels, we have so many satellite cable providers as well. So, everybody is not watching the same thing at the same time. There's several soap operas, several sitcoms, so, it's very very difficult for one to become that popular or become what everyone is watching.

On Quality of Nollywood movies;

"A slight departure from the core of filmmaking, which is story telling. I have seen that of late there’s a little bit much concentration on picture quality, and less concentration on the story itself. This I would love to see worked on and come back."