December 12, (THEWILL) – Comedian and filmmaker, Bright Okpocha, known as Basketmouth, has shared the challenges he encountered while making his first big film, ‘A Ghetto Love Story.’
Basketmouth said that Funke Akindele was his top choice for a mentor.
He believed she could help him from the start to the finish of his project. He reminisced about their first conversation in August, which was filled with energy and hope.
Unfortunately, his many calls and texts to her thereafter went unanswered, leading to a long silence.
He thought that Funke might have been busy with her films or had other commitments.
Following this significant challenge, Basketmouth said he decided to change his strategy.
He reached out to Mo Abudu, another prominent player in the industry who was eager to help and immediately got on board to assist in bringing ‘A Ghetto Love Story’ to fruition.
“With collaborations with filmmakers, it was dramatic. When I started calling all these like Mo Abudu and the rest of them, you know, I had a plan.
“I was going to start with Funke Akindele and just run it all through. But when I called Funke, she was excited and that was in August, and then the next thing, she never picked up my calls again.
“But she was making a movie, maybe she was busy, or her phone was on silent, or maybe the phone got spoiled. But yeah, I hope she picks up or responds to my messages”
He added, “I sent over like 25 messages or whatever, but she didn’t respond. So I had to change the whole plan and re-strategize. I had to go to Mo, this and that, but the rest of them came through.
“I called Mo and normally she doesn’t do stuff like that, but she jumped on it. Sooner or later, I believe that filmmakers in Nigeria will understand that collaboration is the new competition.”
Ivory Ukonu is a versatile journalist with many years of experience, with entertainment and society reporting as her area of core competence.
