Why Nollywood directors are bossy – Dickson Iroegbu

Weekend Magazine: Nollywood directors have a reputation of being bossy. Do you agree and are you one of those described as such?Dickson Iroegbu: My job is such that I seemingly appear bossy, but it’s a collective effort. A director cannot function without the writer, producer and even a production assistant. It’s just that the position […]

Weekend Magazine: Nollywood directors have a reputation of being bossy. Do you agree and are you one of those described as such?
Dickson Iroegbu: My job is such that I seemingly appear bossy, but it’s a collective effort. A director cannot function without the writer, producer and even a production assistant. It’s just that the position is defined. It affirmed as the position of God. You cannot question him. The director is seated there to ensure that the script is properly interpreted and the characters go out there and people appreciate them. He answers also to the producer or investor who is expecting that returns come from for what he has invested in. The whole responsibility of that content that is out there as a film is on him. So he has to be firm when needed.
Still on directors’ reputations in Nollywood, how about the ‘casting couch’, is it in full play in Nollywood?
I don’t think discussing this issue of ‘come to see me somewhere and I give you a role’ is necessary. I think it works everywhere it’s just that we are in the limelight. I can speak for myself. So if you ask me directly, ‘Dickson do you sleep with cast members for them to get roles?’I will give you my answer, which is ‘no’.
You met your wife on a movie set?
No I didn’t. I met her during production. (Laughter) Actually, no, it was post-production, because I went to the Censors Board to censor my movie and she was there as a staff.
You were there in the very early years of Nollywood. As one of the ‘midwives’, how do you feel about its steady growth and current state?
It’s really exciting that something out of nothing has now become what the whole world is now celebrating. Nollywood for us is one of those magical aspects about Nigeria. It is about the resilient spirit that resides in the average Nigerian. Truth is that when it started we didn’t see tomorrow. We never envisaged that the business would become this big.
When it started it was called the Nigerian Home Video Industry. Somebody got curious and wanted to know how we were churning out films and all that. A journalist comes into Nigeria and discovers that it all seemed to be a mirage and there is no movie industry and called it ‘Nothing good’. In our bid to refute it, it stuck and the media hyped it.
But most importantly Nigeria embraced us and Africa too. But of course the world was yearning to hear us tell our own story ourselves like the Chinua Achebes did.
About your next movie, why the title ‘Child Soldiers’?
I decided to go to the root of the matter here. Some kids have been victims of violence. Have we bothered about reintegrating or rehabilitating them? If nobody cares, what do they turn out to become? Are they now the menace we are faced with? These are the questions we tried to answer.
I’ve been on it for the past four years, asking for support and calling out for investors. When we started it was a two million-dollar budget. We’ve taken care of pre-production which leaves us with production proper and brings the budget down to one hundred million naira.
Will you be featuring established stars or there’ll be new faces?
The movie will have two or three Hollywood stars as well as some from Nollywood. The child soldier will be a character whom when people see will be, believably, a child soldier. For this role, we intend to discover a new star. We want the message to hit the right spots.
Who’s been the most interesting to work with?
I’ve enjoyed working with Sam Dede. He’s a professional to the core. In my movie ‘The Mayors’ which featured Sam, RMD and SegunArinze, I expected we were going to have some conflict. When it came up I saw Sam play that professional in him nobody had seen. His character turned out to be the most essential in the film.
How true is that you are contesting for political office?
Regan was an actor and eventually became president of America. There is also Arnold Schwarzenegger. So what’s wrong with my contesting?I personally feel politicians can no longer solve Nigeria’s problems. They need to stop being biased and give creative minds a chance.
Which has so far been the most difficult to work on?
Two, actually. I had eighty women on set for three months shooting ‘Women’s Cot’. These were not young girls. There’s no need mentioning names, but that was hell for me. The second was ‘Mayors’. When you have such characters on location and a Sam Dede to douse the tension, it helps.
As a director you must have influences of some sort from across the world. Can you share some of them?
I’m a protégé of James Cameron, not just by content but by his philosophy and approach to filmmaking. This is somebody who always wants to set a record and make a statement for others to follow. He doesn’t sit back after making the film to enjoy the money. He looks at other ways the proceeds can be reinvested.
There are others I respect a lot like George Lucas and Spielberg. In my immediate environment there are the likes of Andy Amenachi, Teco Benson, NdubusiOkoh, Lancelot Imasuenand Chika Onu. One person who is so good and done so well being a producer is EmemIsong. They have a major say on how I go about my everyday creative work.
Do you think film in Nigeria addresses topical issues and do you think the Nigerian government is sensitive to those issues in relation to film?
We should stop seeing the business as some group of people’s way of survival. This is a major industry that if not embraced by the nation, some people will come from outside, harness it build it and then Nigeria will start paying to see it. We are talking about employment and non-employment, Nollywood provides work directly and indirectly.