Adeolu Adefarasin, a Christian creative, pastor, an actor who has starred in movies like New Money, the Eve etc… Adefarasin who is also player in the Christian creative space, yesterday took to his Instagram handle to share a heartfelt letter he penned to the Nigerian film industry popularly known as Nollywood.
The letter which was originally published on his personal website was a heartfelt plea to Nollywood to tell positively impactful stories and n sell its soul to the devil or the highest bidder.
The letter reads:
“To the industry, I love dearly,
Now more than ever, I believe Nollywood is on the precipice of greatness, the eyes of the world are facing you and you have a great opportunity to speak, to be seen and to be heard. For far longer than I have been an active member of this valued industry, many before me have dreamt of the day that the reach and influence of Nollywood would go far and wide, I know there is so much to be proud of.
In the same breath, I am aware that with such great influence comes a weighty responsibility that cannot be ignored. Amongst the many lessons of 2022, I have learned this, it is harder to speak truth to power when you seek the help that power can offer. So, at this moment, I lay down my personal aspirations and hopes, for what I believe is the greater good not just of the industry but, the many people it influences.
As Nigerians, we have not always been set the best example, not by our elders, not by our leaders – political or otherwise, not even by our peers. In the midst of that for a long time, we managed to maintain hope and a sense of moral integrity. Two things I believe are waning under the pressure of present circumstances and the everyday realities of most Nigerians. I believe it is your responsibility to restore hope and a moral core to the masses, I believe it is a responsibility that has been neglected for quick financial gain, I believe it is a responsibility that can be ignored no longer because our nation is at hand.
We cannot follow the footsteps of Hollywood, we cannot lose our moral centre and continue to glorify sexual depravity, corruption, hate and many more. I am so proud of the global success of Nigerians in industries such as music and fashion, but I fear it has come at the great expense of many souls. Music that glorifies drug use, yahoo yahoo and objectifies women, and a fashion industry that sexualises everyone and promotes gender ambiguity. We have sold our souls to the highest bidder and my cry is that Nollywood does not follow suit.
It is easy to read this and believe I am acting morally superior, I am not. I am not without my many failings and faults, some of which I am sure are still in my future. It is also easy to read this and think of me in my office as a pastor, but I am not speaking only as a Christian, but as a Nigerian. I am writing this to Christians, Muslims and Atheists alike. I do not believe these values are religious, I was not taught these values merely within the context of my home, but within the context of my nation. I believe at the very core, as Nigerians, we are good, selfless, kind and compassionate.
For far too long, the narrative on Nigeria and Nigerians has been 419, corrupt and inept leaders, police brutality, ‘Emi Lokan’ and Yoruba demons etc. While the eyes of the world turn to Nollywood, your duty is not to feed the narrative, but to change the narrative. The stories we tell matter. It has brought me great joy in recent weeks to watch shows such as ‘Far From Home’, unfortunately, productions like this are few and far between, instead we see more films glorifying ‘the bad guy’, glamorising corruption and galvanising division.
Up until now, we have let the western world take advantage of our unpreparedness in the face of unrest, pain and desperation, to paint doubt in our own identities and values. Heavy is the head that wears the crown, but Nollywood, you are primed, poised and positioned to show that success does not have to come at the expense of our souls and to set the framework for the rebuilding of our nation.
Yours sincerely,
Adeolu Adefarasin
The Change Agent.
Reacting to the post, Toyosi Etim-Effiong, talent manager, storyteller, Founder of the Good media, Author and wife to actor Etim Effiong reposted the letter and shared a few thoughts on her Instagram handle @the_toyosi. She wrote;
My brother @adeolu.adefarasin wrote an open letter to Nollywood. Nollywood here means the players in the industry. While this will not resonate with everyone, it will resonate with some and I hope it spurs those “some” to start to think of the kinds of stories they want to tell moving forward.
Nollywood is on the cusp of something massive! Never-been-seen-before kind of attention and funding, and it is our responsibility to be truly prepared and not just by mouth. Preparation includes deciding what our narrative is.
What is our story?
Of the 3 top film industries, we seem to be flailing.
Bollywood- Romance, music/dance, rich culture, religion, tradition, heritage
Hollywood- LGBTQ+ rights, indestructible America, saviour stories, dreams come true stories…
Nollywood- ???
What is our story? What is our message? If we study 100 movies, what will the most recurring theme/storyline be? Are we happy with it? Is it the image we want to portray to the rest of the world?
For those asking, “Lady T, what should we do?”, I’ll tell you.
1. Let’s all start with a consensus of the kinds of stories we want to be told. In the comment section, what values of Nigeria would you like Nollywood to start highlighting? Is it our resilience as a people? Is it our culture of kindness and generosity? Is it our intelligence? We are some of the most intelligent people in the world!! Is it a One Nigeria story e.g, where a Hausa woman can marry a Calabar man and live happily ever after? What should the recurring themes be?
2. Those with the funding, is your story serving the country’s image? If it is, thank you, If it’s not, can we start working on National Image stories?
3. Those without funding, get your stories ready. Polish them. Refine them. As GOD lives, funding is coming. Funding for wholesome content that will transform our image and even us as a people, so be prepared.
Thank you Adeolu for penning this letter. Thank you for not cowering to the fear of men”, she wrote.
