“I Want to Build the Next Generation of Female Filmmakers”: Funke Akindele on Nollywood, Box Office Records & More

Funke Akindele during her exclusive BellaNaija interview discussing her filmmaking journey, Behind The Scenes, and her vision to build the next generation of female filmmakers in Nigeria.

If there is one person in Nollywood who does not do things by halves, it is Funke Akindele. From the “Jenifa” franchise to “Battle on Buka Street” to “A Tribe Called Judah” and now “Behind The Scenes,” she has consistently redefined what Nigerian cinema can achieve, both commercially and culturally. And now she has sat down with BellaNaija for one of the most candid conversations she has had on camera in a while, covering her filmmaking journey, her records, her relationships, her dancing, and the conversations the industry keeps getting wrong.

“Behind The Scenes” is the latest entry in a box office story that keeps writing new chapters. The film broke Akindele’s own previous records, which is no small thing given what those records already looked like, and in this interview she talks about what goes into making films at that scale, the pressure of following up on something the whole industry is watching, and what keeps her going when it would be far easier to play it safe.

She also gets into the personal stuff, and she does not hold back. Her relationships with the people around her, the narrative that follows her in the industry, and who she actually is when the cameras stop rolling. It is the kind of conversation that reminds you there is always more to a person than the version the public gets to see.

Then there is the dancing, which, if you have watched any of her film promotions, you know is very much part of who she is. She explains in the interview why she does it, and the story behind it is not what you would expect. Akindele revealed that she first started dancing to promote her film Battle on Buka Street because she simply did not have the budget for PR and marketing, and dancing became the way she got the word out. It worked, and the rest is history. She also credits her mother for the moves, so now you know where it all comes from.

And she takes on the cinema sabotage conversation head-on, speaking directly about what she has experienced, what she believes, and what she thinks needs to change in Nollywood for these conversations to be had honestly.

Grab your popcorn. Watch till the end.