Rita Dominic, apart from having an alluring appeal that makes one feel welcome, her smooth, soft voice is sensuous, especially when she wears one of her red trade mark lipsticks, which she has traded for a more matured look for now. Rita is the fans’ delight anytime as seen by TOPE OLUKOLE in this write-up.
Rita’s stage presence in movies largely draws from the emotions and passion with which she enraptures her audience, as she successfully interprets her roles to the last detail. Often as sweet as candy, she’s got the looks such that one could at once feel she was born for the screens.
“I want roles that would take me away from the usual norms; you know, challenging roles,” she blurts to signal her confidence level. Although, she wouldn’t be too specific, Rita admits she’s done one or two such roles that took her out of the stereotype in movies. Her appetite isn’t quenched yet. “I’m still looking to do more. You know, challenging roles, I mean roles that will stretch me and take me away from anything that has to do with me,” she said.
And Rita knows, to star in a novel, unconventional movie role will have to begin with an exceptionally brilliant script. “It has to be a very good script with great and challenging characters. At this point of my career, I’m looking to doing roles that would push me further and bring out the little things that I have inside, which I never thought I had or knew existed,” she stated.
That Rita talks and walks with the poise of someone who knows her natural talent is not in doubt but what might appear a bit queer is the root of the courage and confidence that pushed her to opt for the camera lens when her family is rooted in an elite profession. Though her parents are medical practitioners, (her father was a medical doctor and her mother, a nursing officer), Rita, the youngest of four children was intent on pursuing her passion.
She always imagined herself mingling with the best of Hollywood and exhibiting her brilliant acting skills on set. So, she started performing when she was a child, appearing in school plays and children’s television shows like ‘children’s variety show’ and ‘Junior opinion’. When she was in primary school, Rita was already showing traits of her great talents, winning several dance competitions both at the local sports club and later at the Federal Government College, Ikot- Ekpene, before she went on to obtain a Degree in Theatre Arts from University of Port Hacourt, in 1998. Rita, who hails from the royal Waturuocha family of Aboh Mbaise in Imo State, got her first chance to star in a movie-“A Time to Kill”. Her talents, shone through as she rapidly rose through the ranks, clinching the 2004 City People Awards as the Most Outstanding Actress.
However, Rita insists she’s not resting on her oars and declares that she’s got something new up her sleeves. “We’re hoping to shoot good movies and tell good inspirational stories that hopefully, people out there can take something positive away from,” she volunteered.
Away from the TV screens and cameras, Rita could also come across as a taciturn; preferring terse, concise answers to broad views on going-ons in the industry.
“Yes, piracy! That’s a big one”, she spurts after a moment of reflection on a question about limiting factors in Nollywood.
“And of course, distribution. That’s another one,” she adds.
Like it’s widely believed, Rita acknowledges that scripting constitutes a huge challenge in Nollywood; although she thinks the present scenario still deserves some credit.
“Nollywood is known for the simple stories that we tell,” she said, adding,”We tell the stories that the man on the street can relate to. But, if we can do fantastic stories and make it better….. you know, better quality, better scripts and better equipment and distribution; then we’ll just explode. We actually need an infusion of all these,” she said.
Rita admires real and humble people, loves guys who are cool, polished, intelligent and who know how to put it all together to achieve that individual sense of style.
