Popular Nigerian most sought after filmmaker, Kunle Afolayan, has opened up on why he chose Temi Otedola, to play the lead role in his new movie, Citation.
During a media briefing in Lagos on Thursday, the movie producer said;
“Whenever I scroll through her social media pages, I used to wonder at how energetic and enterprising she is. Then, when I saw her on a CNN programme, her talent seeped through and I knew I would like to work with her. Here we are now.”
The pre-production of the movie began in October 2019 in the Island country of Cape Verde.
The storyline is written by Afolayan’s lifelong cinematic collaborator, Tunde Babalola.
According to Afolayan, Citation is a coming-of-age movie, which tells the story of Moremi Oluwa (Temi Otedola), a happy-go-lucky 21-year-old undergraduate who is harassed repeatedly by a smooth-talking university don.
Moremi drags him before the university senate and, thus, began a concatenation of events that would define her life.
In a clime where sexual harassment on campuses has become a topical issue, Afolayan said,
“Citation will create awareness on the different forms of violence against women and girls in the public and private sphere. It will educate the society on women’s rights and the ways to enforce these rights for the achievement of equality and tranquillity.
“The movie will encourage and embolden women to stand up against mistreatment and abuse by a patriarchal society. It has also been designed to propel women to aspire to become successful leaders and thereby provide counterexamples to negative gender stereotypes,” he added.
The actor also said the project has already bagged partnership deals with Ford Foundation, Canon Central, which will avail him the use of the new Canon EOS C500 Mark II camera (the first time the camera will be used in Africa) and Access Bank, through its W Initiative – Africa’s premier women’s financial programme focusing on inspiring, connecting and empowering women and girls.
Other partners include Ajike Peoples’ Support Centre, a Non-Governmental Organisation and pet project of Mrs. Olufolake Ajike Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq, First Lady of Kwara State; and online travel portal, Flyboku, for continental travel logistics.
It will be shot in Nigeria, Senegal and Cape Verde where the actor was smart enough to seal production deals ahead of a proposed January 2020 shoot.
Furthermore, the filmmaker said that apart from its thematic premise, the movie will attempt to market Cape Verde to Nigerians and the rest of the world while also establishing film and cultural affinity between the two countries.
