Kunle Afolayan: The visionary filmmaker
Born September 30, 1974, to the famous theatre/film director and producer, Adeyemi Afolayan ‘aka Ade Love’, Kunle Afolayan had planned to be where he is today; to be a notable director, filmmaker and an actor were among his set out goals. Kunle doubled as the director of his production outfit, Golden Effects Pictures where he produced four multiple-award-winning movies with the likes of Irapada (2006), The Figurine (Araromire) (2009), Phone Swap (2012), and October 1 (2014). In this chat, Afolayan spoke on his work and other issues.
You appear to be a very hardworking person, how do you manage the career and being a family man?The same way Dangote has managed to build his empire and still manage his family, the same way those who started before me Ogunde, Ade Love and others have managed to separate their family from their businesses is the same way I’m managing to do same. There is time for everything and family values are very important. But you should be able to pay bills and you have to work to do that. So my family shares the same thoughts and it has been great.
Why did you take a long break off the screen after your role, Aresejabata in Saworoide and you came back with a bounce winning the heart of so many?
I was working at a bank when I took up the role of Aresejabata then and so I had to take time off work to play that role, thereafter I went back to my job. Two years after, Agogo eewo was shot and I also managed to features in few other films. But it got to a time that I couldn’t combine both careers any longer, so I had to make a decision on what I want to do. So I resigned from my job in 2004 and set up my company and since then I have been unto of my game.
Having grown up under the wings of a successful entertainer back in the days, what memories of your childhood have you?
I have so many of them and that has helped me in moulding myself into what I have become today. Despite the fact that my father was wealthy and well known, I lived as a child whose parents were striving to survive. The money my father had then was used in feeding multitude, so there was no such attention for us. Also, the kind of training we had was different. I practically grew up on the street, learning street trades and all, so although I was seen as been born with a silver spoon, in the actual sense, it was a wooden spoon. And today when I look at what we went through then and how we managed to survive, it helps me in telling my stories better, because I was able to cut across people in different background, age grades and class.
I was working at a bank when I took up the role of Aresejabata then and so I had to take time off work to play that role, thereafter I went back to my job. Two years after, Agogo eewo was shot and I also managed to features in few other films. But it got to a time that I couldn’t combine both careers any longer, so I had to make a decision on what I want to do. So I resigned from my job in 2004 and set up my company and since then I have been unto of my game.
I have so many of them and that has helped me in moulding myself into what I have become today. Despite the fact that my father was wealthy and well known, I lived as a child whose parents were striving to survive. The money my father had then was used in feeding multitude, so there was no such attention for us. Also, the kind of training we had was different. I practically grew up on the street, learning street trades and all, so although I was seen as been born with a silver spoon, in the actual sense, it was a wooden spoon. And today when I look at what we went through then and how we managed to survive, it helps me in telling my stories better, because I was able to cut across people in different background, age grades and class.
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