Four Nigerians who grew up in the united states of America namely: Mr Muyiwa Babatope, Oris Erhuero (actor and producer) Christopher M. Anthony (Director) and Niyi Towolawi have come together to shoot a movie tagged “sole redemption” worth $40 million which will be 90 percent produced in Ekiti state.
It was gathered that the Hollywood stars had initially penciled down some states in the country as setting to be used for the shooting of the film including Port Harcourt, but the plot experienced an alteration when these four Nigerians who grew up in the united states of America and Britain got to Ekiti state. Stunned by the Serene and Splendid topography of the state decided to use the state which is repository of natural habitat required in sole Redemption.
According to the Director (Anthony), the state would be better off economically, stressing that movie making brings communities together, generates local business and brings significant revenue with it. It can allow other local business to flourish even after production.
Anthony who had his childhood exploits in Port Harcourt, Rivers state said his journey into movie production was as a result of his upbringing in the state, adding “my inspiration came from the time I spent as a child in Nigeria where my father lived and worked. I was inquisitive and I enjoyed exploring and I found that the more I explored, the more beauty I found. As an adult, I realised from seeing Nigeria in the press and on the TV that there was too much focus on negative aspects and not enough on the beauty I experienced while there. I felt there was an opportunity to show Nigeria on the screen in a much more balanced light.
He maintained that still within the narrative of a fictional story, he wanted to showcase some of these themes, but with a greater emphasis on what isn’t shown. Providing a contrasting and balanced news. He said, “we could have shot in South Africa, a nation far more established for handling Hollywood films, particularly 35mm. But in doing so we would miss out on the massive amount of positive publicity we could generate from shooting successfully in Nigeria. “If we didn’t do this now, another film maker would seize the opportunity soon. With my heritage, I felt if anyone was going to do this it would have to be me,” he said.
The director said that he is happy to say that it has been a smooth and natural transition, stressing that he has gained so much experience over the years in the industry and worked on films with some of the greatest directors who inspired him like Stephen Spielberg and George Lucas among others and has been responsible for the entire design of a sequence right through the cinema screen.
