Funke Akindele called me yelling at me and asked me never to mention her name in any interview- filmmaker, Kunle Afolayan

Nigerian filmmaker, Kunle Afolayan, says his colleague in the industry, Funke Akindele, called him last night and yelled at him over his recent remarks on film promotion strategies within Nollywood. Speaking in an interview on ARISE News on Sunday, February 1, Afolayan said Akindele personally contacted him after media reports interpreted his comments at a film business forum as dismissive of his colleagues who promote their movies through dance-driven campaigns. While speaking at a film summit in Lagos state a few days ago, Afolayan said while he appreciates the new marketing style of filmmakers where they adapt dancing as part of the measures to sell tickets of their movies in cinemas, he doesn’t see himself doing it. He also stated that he doesn’t want to join the trend of filmmakers whose films make” N2 billion in the cinemas while in the end only a fraction of the revenue generated gets to them.There is no competition between us. I dont just want N1 billion or N2 billion in the cinema that I wont be able to personally receive N10 million from.I want to make a film if you can guarantee I dont have to dance to sell. We need to come up with other strategies. How do we sell without exhausting ourselves? I dont know how the likes of Funke Akindele and others are doing it. Creating skits every day, changing costumes all the time. I cant do it.He said in two seperate videos Reacting to his comments via her Instagram story, Funke who did not mention any name, attributed it as one coming from a place of jealousy. Im not the one hindering your progress. Ka rin ka po, yiye ni n ye ni. If you cant beat them or join them, create your own path. No allow jealousy burn you. The sky is so big for everybody to fly. Eyin Werey jojo. You can do it! The opportunities are endless, and everyone has their own path. Im focused on mine, and I have faith in Gods plan for me. Go ahead and create alternative promotion or marketing strategies for promoting your business, or hire a company to handle it, she saidIn his interview with Arise TV this morning, Afolayan said Funke called him and yelled at him..She called, and she said, I know you dont like me, but dont mention my name in your interviews, she was yelling, and she dropped the phone after that, Afolayan said He described the accusation as surprising, noting the long-standing personal and professional relationship between them. It was weird, and Im like, where is this coming from. Shes like a sister to me. In Unilag, I would go to her hostel, her sister is also my friend, so I am not sure where this is coming from, he said. Afolayan stressed that his comments were taken out of context, insisting he never criticised Akindele or any filmmaker who adopts aggressive promotional tactics. I never said anything was wrong with it. For me, its draining. I have absolutely nothing against it. Im just saying what I will not do, he stated He explained that his remarks were made during a film business forum attended by cinema operators, where discussions focused on profitability and sustainability for filmmakers. The honest truth is, it was a forum, it was a film business forum, and we had the cinema operators there, and the cinema operators were asking me, when are you coming back to cinema, and I said, I cant come to cinema if you cannot guarantee that I will make substantial money, he said. Addressing Akindele directly, Afolayan expressed disappointment over the backlash that followed. If for any reason she feels offended, Im sorry. But one thing she has done, which I think is totally wrong, and I would never do this kind of a thing, is to use social media rats to come after whoever it is. Despite the controversy, Afolayan acknowledged Akindeles success and influence, describing her growth as deliberate and strategic. I clearly said to them (young filmmakers), that if you want to adopt a model that I think will work for you now, then follow Funke Akindeles model.Funke started at a younger age, and then she did Jenifa with minimal budget, rolling resources, and from then, look at Funkes brand now, she has grown.  Watch a video of him speaking below     View this post on Instagram           A post shared by Lindaikejiblog (@lindaikejiblogofficial) The post Funke Akindele called me yelling at me and asked me never to mention her name in any interview- filmmaker, Kunle Afolayan appeared first on Linda Ikeji Blog.