‘I used to trade my scripts for film roles’- Omoni Oboli

Oboli is a seasoned actor, producer, and director popular for the ‘Wives on Strike’ franchise.

Nollywood filmmaker, Omoni Oboli has revealed that she traded her scripts for roles in films at the beginning of her career hence her decision to be a director.

In an interview with Radionow 95.3 FM, Oboli shared the difficulties she experienced at the beginning of her filmmaking journey, from giving out her screenplays at no monetary cost to attempting to direct her films.

“I was trading my scripts, I’d say you know what, just take it, don’t pay me. Just give me a role in the film. So, I started to do that. But then I’ll watch the film and I realised, Okay it’s not quite what I had in my head when I was writing cos I see what I’m writing, I write in pictures. I see what I’m writing, so when I’m watching the movie it’s so different. Not to say that it wasn’t good because no two directors will direct the same script in the same way. So I said to myself, if my stories are going to have my DNA, then I’m going to have to direct them myself,” she said.

She stressed that she felt apprehensive at the beginning of her directing journey. She wasn’t very confident but found some courage to pursue her dreams.

“And it was a scary thought, really who do you think you are to come and direct a film? Like who are you again? You know it was so scary, but then I said to myself, Warri no dey carry lass na. Wwetin dem get wey I no get? I was like, I’ll do this thing. So I started understudying directors, like I’m acting on set but I’m watching the director closely. And I said you know what? Maybe I need some formal education on this. So I went to the New York Film Academy for a short course,” she added.

Omoni Oboli has several films to her credit including Moms at War, Last Year Single currently streaming on Netflix, and The Uprising: Wives on Strike 3, which is the third installment of the Wives On Strike Franchise premiering in cinemas this October.