From College Drop Out To Co-Directing A N1 Billion Film: The Story Of Adeoluwa Owu

There’s a popular saying that it takes a village to make a film but when you think of Funke Akindele’s ‘A Tribe Called Judah,’ do you think of the scriptwriter Collins Okoh, cinematographer Barney Emordi or the co-director Adeoluwa Owu? Do any of these people including the actors get the credit when it comes to how well this film turned out?

At 5pm on January 4, 2024, film critics reported the culture-defining moment where ‘A Tribe Called Judah’ was certified a billion naira film, a huge feat considering the fact that the average weekly cinema attendance for Nollywood films have dipped over 36.7% in 2023 when compared to 2020 and 2021, which had over 30,000 people in attendance and now

The most exciting thing about this feat is that the film was produced and directed by Nigerians alongside a range of local actors. It’s neither credited to international streaming platforms nor excessive gimmicks, it’s simply credited to the star power of its producer and how well the storytelling connected to millions of viewers across the country. This is why Adeoluwa’s work is essential. As a director of photography and film, through times and across genres, he has told compelling stories that have gone on to break streaming and box office records.

With the obvious decline in cinema attendance, it was particularly exciting to see a Nigerian film gross a billion naira. Behind this success is a co-director and numerous creatives in the crew whose creative inputs led the film to industry acclaim, making speaking to Adeoluwa Owu, the co-director behind some of Nollywood’s biggest films ‘A Tribe Called Judah,’ ‘Adire,’ ‘Jagun Jagun,’ and many more, important.

In an exclusive interview, Adeoluwa ‘Captain Degzy’ Owu expresses his excitement,”I’m still getting used to even saying it because it feels like a dream. I’m like, ‘Guys, it’s 1 billion.” In Nigerian history, only Funke Akindele and Adeoluwa have been able to set this record at the Box Office.

Before he became the record-breaking director he is currently, he was an only son born into a middle-class Christian family. His parents, who settled at Satellite Town, a state housing area in Lagos, Nigeria, were disciplinarians. Both parents who were school principals and deacons at their local Baptist church brought up Adeoluwa in a principled environment that helped his resolve as a young adult.

His parents were simply the status symbol of discipline in the society. So for Adeoluwa, it was a school-church system, where he and his sisters only had access to TV on the weekends and had to battle and make a competition of what film they got to watch in their 2-3 hours spare time.

“The first set of films I was exposed to was drama. Drama, as in the regular Nigerian films. Then Mount Zion films were popular among Christian families, ‘Agbara Nla’ and the like. I remember that we only watch TV on weekends.

“I always wanted to watch action films. My sisters will always want to watch those dramas. Eventually, I will win this week. They will win next week. I think it was a good balance.”

In between that battle and love for action films was when Francis Ford Coppola’s epic crime film ‘The Godfather’ got his attention. The 2-hour 55-minute film explored themes of loyalty, power, betrayal and family with innovative cinematography alongside other groundbreaking cinema techniques that have sustained its impact on the industry for decades.

“It was a really long film, with action, plot, story and twists. The first time I saw it, I said I want to be able to do something this great,” he told me. However, to watch action films, he had to place a good bargain, bargains that paid off, especially with how his career as a Director of film and photography progressed. “On Sundays, my sisters and I would be fighting over what genre of films we’d be watching,” he fondly recalls.

As his love for film continued to grow, everyone around him was in shock at his interest. “It was strange behaviour when I started having tendencies of filmmaking because everyone was like ‘What is this one saying?’ and I kind of understand because it wasn’t their world.”

At that moment, Adeoluwa could only think of the exploits he could achieve in the film world. He knew he was going into filmmaking. All he wanted to do as a boy who loved his art was to prove to himself enough that his work makes an impact for his family to understand how much his passion can make a difference.

Now, Adeoluwa’s parents are his biggest fans. When they heard the news of their son co-directing a N1 billion grossing film, they exclaimed at how much he has grown. In response, Adeoluwa said, “It’s not my money sir, it’s just the work.” That moment made it all worth it for the director.

“It’s beautiful, there’s nothing as fulfilling as doing what you like and making some level of success out of it. It’s the best feeling in the world, it’s bigger than any other thing.” But before that, he had tried his hands with traditional education as he had been admitted in 2004 to study Physics at the University of Ilorin, a course he dropped out of in his final year.

“I thought it didn’t make any sense, and I just went to do my film. I tried even up to final year, but Physics was not just working for me. That was another big slam on my parent’s face, this boy again.”

In between being an outcast in his family due to his drastic decision, he had scavenged for opportunities that led him to the doorsteps of renowned filmmaker Tunde Kelani in 2009.

• How Tunde Kelani’s Advice Changed The Course Of My Career – Adeoluwa Owu

 

“I had always admired Tunde Kelani, and once I had a better knowledge of the process of learning film, I swung by his office one day, asked a couple of questions and he was gracious to attend to me.” But beyond what he already knew, Tunde Kelani, whom he fondly calls TK, told him he needed to attend film school.

In Adeoluwa’s words, TK said, “I understand your energy and passion, but you have to go to a film school,” he had advised that more than working and understudying his work, he needed to get more knowledge of the art, an advice that led the then university drop out to enrol in Pefti Film Institute, Nigeria’s foremost private film and television institution.

“I applied first for a directing course – as at then directing was the rush, so it was difficult to get a directing course, which is what I liked. The only thing similar to what I liked was cinematography, and at first, I didn’t want to take it. However, I met another person, Mr Adesanya, who eventually became my lecturer. He told me that for me to be a great director, I needed to learn the ropes from cinematography to sound to lighting, so wherever I start is just the beginning. With that, I applied for digital cinematography.”

However, he barely had enough to pursue his dreams. At the time, he had revealed he had to pay his N120,000 school fee in three installments from a side hustle in retail Oil and Gas supply (DPK, AGO, PMS). It was a humbly experience that prepared him for a new course in his life.

That moment contributed to his prowess in cinematography. After film school, he eventually got an opportunity to work with Tunde Kelani, but not in the way most expected. “I remember the first time I worked on a project with him. I frequent the office just to check on what’s going on – That’s what you do when you get out of film school and don’t have much to do. You go to production houses and jump on whatever is available.”

• How Taking Up A Personal Driver Gig Led To My First Big Production Feature

  

“I remember the first gig I worked with him in 2012. It’s a very funny story because I had gone to his office, and he had a job where they’d already gotten all their crew members, and there was no room, but his personal driver was suspended for some reason, and the production manager just looked at me and he was like, ‘Can you drive the camera team? Do you have a driver’s licence?’ I said yes. I had to take whatever was available.”

He would go on to work with Tunde Kelani’s team on the production of the film as an assistant, but unknowingly, the renowned filmmaker was studying his eagerness to learn. “TK will observe you quietly if you know him. We were done with the project, and I was grateful that I got a chance to work with them in whatever capacity. The next time they called me from their office, they called me as a camera operator, and I was shocked.

From there, Adeoluwa moved on to becoming a steady camera operator for a number of Kelani’s projects, and has maintained a relationship with the renowned filmmaker.

“I’ll always look up to him because I see a reflection of TK in every work I do. TK is also a cinematographer and director, that’s like the most successful example of a mentor that I would look up to in my own journey.”

Since he maximised the opportunity, his first set of big projects was with Tunde Kelani, where he worked with him on projects like ‘Maami,’ ‘Dazzling Mirage,’ ‘Alo Iya Agba,’ ‘Asogbo Dilu,’ and more. Alongside this, he shot TV shows and documentaries with Goge Africa and worked with big names like Femi Odugbemi. “I worked with Tunde Kelani as a camera operator. I worked with Jungle films on reality TV shows (Ultimate Search, Quest), so this grounded me in television and film,” he recalled.

• How Adeoluwa Owu Is Spotlighting Budding Actors With His Projects

In his over eight years as a director, he has extended this grace to upcoming talents, as across his productions, he has worked with budding talents who have gone on to reach a larger audience, from ‘The Griot,’ to ‘Far From Home,’ ‘Adire’ and even ‘A Tribe Called Judah.’

“Most of my talents in ‘The Griot’ were referred to as B-List, and people felt we were never going to sell the film. I was like no! Look at the performance, look at the act, if it doesn’t convince you, then leave it, but you will be blown away (by their performance). Your superstars may not bring as much energy as this hungry new talent. So I believe in giving new talents an opportunity, and I’d do it with every opportunity I get.”

• How Adeoluwa Owu Ventured In Film Directing

As time progressed, he decided to revisit his initial dream of film directing. “It was proving difficult because I had done a lot of excellent work as a director of photography. It’s hard to convince people to give you another role when they know you’re already good at one. But I was bent on doing what I always had the passion for. I just felt like I had more knowledge to do it better.”

He officially kickstarted his directorial career in 2017 with the short film ‘Distraction,’ and the production went on to win some indie festival awards including Best Film, Best Cinematography and Best Production Design at the Inshort Film Festival in 2017. For Adeoluwa, this was proof. “The proof this time was to me that I could do it. The success itself was a good backing and encouragement,” he disclosed. This success led to The Griot, in which he faced difficulty getting partners.

“To make a feature film in Nigeria is quite tedious and financially challenging. I spoke with a lot of people and got partners. To get partners you have to have a lot of people who believe in you and the project because you don’t want to collect people’s huge savings and squander them. So the stakes were high to make The Griot.”

The Griot was a hit. The Melodrama stayed in the top 10 Netflix films every single day for 43 days. It was also listed as the second most-watched Nigerian film on Netflix in 2022. It went on to win the Best Nigerian Feature Film at the AFRIFF Globe Awards and Best Feature Film at the Pan-African Youths Film. It was mind-blowing for Adeoluwa.

“This is like a success no one noticed, but I was blown away. There are big production houses everywhere, and I make a feature film, and it makes it to the top 10 on Netflix. I’m proud,” he said.

From that point, it was easier to have conversations with potential partners and producers for directing gigs because he had proved what he was capable of doing. In the space of two years, he joined the production of highly acclaimed films like ‘Jagun Jagun,’ ‘Shanty Town’ and ‘Far From Home’ as a cinematographer and ‘Adire’ and ‘A Tribe Called Judah,’ as a director.

Speaking of what determines his resolve to work on projects, he simply said ‘story.’

“Whenever a conversation about a project starts the first thing I want to see is the story.” Beyond the person who owns the project, Adeoluwa Owu’s reputation is more important. “Story is the most important element that attracts me to want to work on any project. If I see this story and I find it relatable to myself or people around me, then I think it’s worth telling. Every other thing can be adjusted, amplified and accommodated to make it better.”

He further explains the importance of knowing his characters; “I want to know who I’m talking about. I want to know what they like, and dislike, what triggers them, what touches their heart, and what can make them explode. Understanding the character helps you tell a story in a way that every other person can connect with. If you’re able to build each of your characters and create a good bible world for them, then I think you’re close to justifying the story you’re telling.”

Beyond understanding the character is convincing the actor to believe in that character. For Adeoluwa, actors need to understand their characters, as well as the director, for balance purposes. With all these elements in place, there was no reason for him not to work on ‘A Tribe Called Judah.’

• On A Tribe Called Judah Being Adeoluwa Owu’s Best Work

  

“When Funke Akindele laid it on me to co-direct ATCJ, I asked for the script, and I will not lie, my mind cut because I was like this woman is crazy, literally. But then the thing is that when you are given an opportunity like this because it’s a great opportunity, you have to think of the reason why someone looked at you and called you for that. Funke Akindele is already a twice highest-grossing producer, so I had to talk to myself and say ‘Anything that makes this woman say, ‘Degzy come and do this thing with me,’ she’s expecting more. She wants to see something bigger.”

This was an opportunity where Adeoluwa knew there was no settling for anything other than greatness, and he made sure that it reflected in his work. But most importantly, he disclosed that Funke Akindele was very open to ideas, which made it easy to co-direct with her.

Speaking on ATCJ grossing 1 billion, Adeoluwa said, “ I am very positive I was the first person to put up the hashtag #1BillyGang, and everybody was like ‘crazy.’ I had my guys on the team, and I said this project, we’re going for one billion. It started off like a joke, but we continued using the hashtag, and now we’ve switched to #1BillyPlus.”

In between the excitement to jump-start a new project to finally getting to call himself a billion naira grossing director, was the intentionality behind the use of sets and non-conformity with filming techniques. With shooting areas scheduled from Amen Estate and some other parts of the Island and Epe, the team was bent on creating their own world while telling their story for about 40 days. For Adeoluwa, it was exciting.

“We had to build almost every set that we used in the film, including the house and the furniture store. We built it in several places, you wouldn’t even know. There was also the challenge of filming a robbery sequence in a mall. Shooting in a functional mall meant we had to spend nights and nights because we could only film some critical scenes when people were not around, for crowd control. It was a really serious task, but I’m happy we did it.”

Regardless, he considers ATCJ his favourite work. The adrenaline, and energy that came with the storytelling was the best part. “ATCJ comes like a melodrama initially, and then it almost becomes an actual film, and it is consistently keeping you guessing and wanting to know more and wondering what’s coming, and I think once you can engage the audience on a back-to-back scene level, then you are telling an amazing story.”

When I asked what’s next after his blockbuster, he mentioned a range of projects from ‘Under The Northern Sun’ to ‘The Fling,’ but most importantly he said, “I think I have a strong joker in the works. Ashiru Ade is the title. It’s a film that is very dear to my heart because I built the story with my writers, and it is exceptional.”

Regardless of whatever the director has in the works, we expect nothing short of greatness.

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