Heraldworldwide

Taking time out of her busy schedule in the bustling city of Lagos, Glo Ambassador and sexy screen siren, Mona Lisa Chinda jetted out to the Queen's own country (England)last week to attend the 2009 edition of the Afro Hollywood Award. The actress was nominated along with several other actresses for the Award for Best Actress in an English movie, and she won amidst some stiff competition. Also present at the occasion was veteran actor, Justus Esiri, Mercy Johnson etc. The Afro Hollywood Award is a yearly event organised by Mike Abiola and it seeks to reward deserving actors and actresses for their contribution to the development of film in Nigeria. Speaking with the star (who has since returned to the country) on the significance of the Award she said, 'I couldnt be more happier (to win this Award). This has been a particularly tough year for me but God has been faithful. He has seen me through and I am most grateful'. So whats new for the bubbling actress...

Saw this article and loved it!! Big ups to my man Zik Zulu Okafor “Nollywood, Nolly What?” is the title of Eddie Iroh’s surprise rhetoric of Monday, May 25, 2009 on the back page of THISDAY. As a former Director-General of the Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria (FRCN), and a writer, one expected Iroh’s critique of Nollywood to be pungent but professional. Sadly and with due respect, Iroh chose, albeit unwittingly, to elevate himself to the chair of the club of quasi-literary figures, armchair critics whose criticisms of Nollywood can, at best, be described as poetics of pseudo tradition. In concise terms, Iroh’s piece offers decidedly a mixed bag of campy humour and the hilarious tone of a farcical comedy as it lacks knowledge of the tempo of motion picture development around the world and specifically the colour and culture of Nollywood. But let us even begin with the curious premise upon which Iroh’s stinging hypothesis is based. This is the failure of Nollywood films to win maj...

The wind of change continues to blow over Nollywood as more and more professionals are crossing over to swell its ranks. The latest entrant is Chisom Oz-lee, a pretty up-coming U.S based producer/actress. She was in the country recently to shoot a new film starring Ramsey Nouah, Uche Jombo and Mona Lisa Chinda. I had a few words with her and this is what went down. BA: Hi Chisom! C: Hi Bola, how you doin’? BA: Fine…for the benefit of those who don’t know you, can you please introduce yourself to us? C: Well, I’m Chisom Oz-lee, a Nigerian based in the U.S. I’m a film producer and actress by calling and a professional registered nurse by training. BA: Hmm…interesting combination. How do you manage both nursing and film producing? C: Quite easily. I produce films about once a year and work regularly as a nurse for the remaining part. That’s what I do for a living. BA: Why the romance with film making? Why not just stick to nursing? C: Nursing is a job but film making is a ...

Word is out that ace Movie Producer, Emem Isong is about to release two of her new films, ‘Guilty Pleasures’ and ‘Nollywood Hustler’ in the cinemas in Nigeria. The movies will be premiered at the Silver Bird Galleria on the 29th of November 2009. Red carpet is from 5pm till 7pm and the Premiere proper takes off at 7pm. Emem has been known to put on some pretty ritzy premieres in the past, her last which was for ‘Reloaded’ was held at the prestigious Civic Centre and drew the crème de la crème of the banking and entertainment world. What should we expect this year? Hear her, ‘Don’t expect less. This year I want to concentrate more on showing the movies than displaying effizy as was the case last year. I wanted to make a point then; that Nigerian films are capable of drawing the kind of crowd that would not normally be associated with film and it worked! The place was jam packed with people from the upper echelons of society. This year, its all about showcasing creativity. Not just...

First of all, let me say here that I am a die-hard Nollywood enthusiast and I make no apologies for that. Why? Well, not only because Im a writer there but also because it is an industry wholly created, driven and sustained by the Nigerian youth. Anything like that certainly deserves my attention. Gone are the days when I was a Nollywood-basher. This came about when I discovered during a working visit to Germany a couple of years ago, that the West was very behind in the way they viewed ‘Africa’ whether by omission or commission. They still think we live on trees, are dying of hunger and disease or whatever. Nollywood has unwittingly smashed that misconception to smithereens. If we all live in grass huts or trees, then where do all those beautiful houses, flashy cars and fine people come from? Mars? Anyway that is not the reason for this write-up. I just want to comment on the recent paradigm shift in the industry. To the careful observer one has to notice that things have shi...