Dorcas Shola-Fapson speaks on her career, relocation and relationship.
Background
I was born in North London, England, in the 90s. I was raised there mainly by my father, as my mother passed away when I was 14 years old. After my degree at the University of Bedfordshire, I decided to pursue my passion which was acting and that led to me being given a full scholarship at the American Musical & Dramatic Academy in New York.
Career
I love my job as an actress, so it’s fun. I get loads of perks like getting lots of free stuff, loads of paid sponsorships from clothes to hair to food. It’s great, really.
A major challenge for me, as an actress, is the viewers being unable to differentiate between myself and whatever character I play. They tend to think I’m like that in real life; I guess it’s a compliment as it means I’m doing my job well.
Relocation
I always say I fell into Nigeria and it must have been all part of God’s plan because I had no plans of moving to Nigeria or even working here.
I had moved to New York from London, where I lived and still shuttle between, to pursue acting, and my agent at the time in London told me about an audition for a new television series. It was for an international audition; so, I did a self-tape to show my talent. A few days later, I got a call from the director, Biyi Bandele, who told me that he loved my audition and they wanted to fly me out to Nigeria to film. The series is called Shuga and the rest is history.
Experience
To be honest, I’ve had a great time being here. It’s amazing to have met and worked with a bunch of incredible people and I have to say I have an amazing fan base in Nigeria. But of course, I have to say that a few things have made me have bad experiences in Nigeria as well. There’s the issue of security, light, health. I mean, it’s a rather long list but let’s stay with these.
Parent’s reaction
When I told my dad I was moving to Nigeria to get into the movie industry, he wasn’t happy at all, but I’m a risk-taker and he knows that. So he had to come to terms with it and now, interestingly, he’s my biggest cheerleader.
Mother
Honestly, I don’t really like to talk about my mum as it is a real soft spot for me. However, I’ll say she was an amazing woman. She had several businesses and built a school before she passed on, which I now run. Funnily enough, I really don’t know what her reaction would have been if I’d told her that I wanted to become a full-time actress. Thinking about it, I really have no clue. Though it’s unfortunate she didn’t get to see me perform, I’m sure she’s very proud.
Roles
I can’t really say I’ve had any challenging movie role because, funnily enough, I’ve only been in two movies and Banana Island Ghost was my first. I wouldn’t say it was challenging, but it was out of my comfort zone which I loved. I have BB Sasore to thank for that. Talking about my breakthrough role, again, I’d have to say it was Banana Island Ghost which came out this year. It was produced by Bamnesia Productions, which is a joint collaboration with the amazing Biola Alabi Media and Nemsia Productions – such a fun production team to work with.
AMVCA
For the Africa Magic Viewers’ Choice Awards 2018, I was nominated for my role in Banana Island Ghost. Even though I played a small role in the production, which was directed by BB Sasore and produced by Biola Alabi, it was mighty enough to earn me a nomination, which I’m extremely happy about.
Acting/Criminology
I was born and raised in an area in north London called Tottenham. I did all my compulsory education and then decided to go to the university to study criminology because I wanted to represent the minority as a black criminal lawyer. I also wanted to be a face of positive change. You could ask why I chose acting over criminology for now but I’ll just have to say that the passion drove me to be an actress. I love my job as an actress. Though I’m currently acting, I definitely, in the long run, would like to have a rehabilitation centre or organisation for young offenders from inner city neighbourhoods, to help them channel their crafts in the right way via arts or sports.
Relationship
It depends on who’s asking if I’m single. Don’t mind me, I’m only joking. I’m single at the moment. The kind of man I’ll call ideal is someone who is God-fearing, ambitious, confident, funny and smart. This is a seller any day.
