Plump and beautiful actress, Jennifer Eliogu, is on top of her career at the moment. The mother of two who hails from Anambra State recently completed works on her debut film From Within, after her 15 years sojourn in the make-believe world.
For those wondering why she has been off the screen for a while, Jennifer says she has been working on so many things.
“There are so many things to do and little time, there are scripts I am working on, preparation for the premiere of my movie, From Within and stuff like that,” she said.
Although From Within happens to be her first major work as a producer, she, however, claims that she is more competent than some “usual producers that have bored us over the years.”
Notable leading role interpreters in the flick, according to her, include Kenneth Okonkwo, Ebele Okaro-Onyiuke and Thelma Okoduwa, while emerging talents like Dorothy Njemanze, Bibiana Francis, Paul Sambo, Habibat Lasisi and several others also sizzled in the film.
On what actually separates the movie from others in the market, she said, “it is strictly a family oriented film. There is no nudity or obscene scene; nothing like that, we also did not unnecessarily prolong scenes. If there were to be a hint of sex, it was done with great decency and in such a manner that the whole family could watch and be very comfortable with it. I want my films to be for family and teaching family values.
“I believe all this nudity stuff has been over flogged and over used and it is all to the detriment of our society. And I don’t want to be just talking and criticising; that is why I have decided to be producing my films myself.”
Klieg lights asked if she is now a repackaged moralist to which she said no.
Her words: “I am not repackaged. This has always been me. Those that know me very well would tell you, Jennifer is like that.
I don’t pretend. But sometimes, I do some crazy stuff for fun. I go to nightclub with my brother for fun and I believe everybody deserves that. Outside of that, I am an advocate of decency and decorum. And I do my things with frankness; I don’t know the image of me that you have but
I am not repackaged. This is me and I have always been like this.”
Against the speculation that she is one of the actresses striving to live the superstar lifestyle, she said, “that is wrong, I have realised something over time, people tend to report what I consider not too good things. About four years ago or so, I wore a dress that created a lot of ‘oohs’ and ‘aahs’ to an occasion and you won’t believe it, people still ask me about that incident in interviews and I wonder what about other better things I have done and changes that I underwent within those years. So, you see you can’t base your perception of me on the things you read or hear.
“Let me tell you about a recent incident. I went visiting with some friends and when I got there I was my normal self, free with everybody and all that but I noticed there was this lady that kept to herself and was staring at me all through. When I was about to leave she excused me and told me that I really surprised her that based on what she heard about me, she had taken me for a snobbish person. And I simply told her that I’m still myself.”
She further explained that being a known face in the industry, she has had quite a number of unpleasant stories about her.
“It is not difficult. No I wouldn’t say it is difficult for me. It’s just that it puts me in a bit of restraint because your business is everybody’s business and I happen to be a very private person. You will find it hard to see me hopping from this party to the other or that occasion to the other. I love my privacy and I try to keep my affairs as private as possible,” she said.
Does her life revolve around movies?
“No, my life is all about me and all that keeps me moving. Fine, I will be very happy if I am known for contributing positively to the industry with my works, especially trying to get producers to focus more on family-oriented movies like my film, From Within.
“Aside the movie, I also own a non- governmental organisation,
Initiative For Development, Empowerment, Absolute Skill Acquisition (IDEAS). It is primarily aimed at helping the physically challenged and less privilege. We go to orphanages and the streets to help out whichever way we can. We also do workshops amongst other things. The last one we held was on March 18 in Ikeja, Lagos. Presently, we have one of them with us, he is a good singer and his two legs are off but he doesn’t seem to bother about that. He puts his energy into everything he does; he can sing any song to perfection. He was at my maiden premiere at Oriental Hotel, Lagos and he will also be at the Abuja Premiere on May 14, 2011 at the Sheraton Hotel. The idea is to showcase his skill so that people can appreciate and contract him, as part of our empowerment scheme.
“ I’ve been doing it as a passion with my brother. On my birthday, we go out and give to the needy and all that. I wasn’t making any noise until I realised that I needed to put a structure in place, make it more formal in other to achieve broader goals and make better impact and I came up with IDEAS.”
