As the general election to elect new officers for the Directors Guild of Nigeria holds tomorrow, Friday January 29, expectations are high as to who will emerge the helmsman of the umbrella body of directors currently led by veteran thespian, Olorogun Fred Amata.
The election was meant to have held last year but was postponed due to the corona virus pandemic.
TCN can confirm the aspirations of four film directors – Victor Okhai, Yinka Akanbi, Kehinde Soaga and McCollins Chidebe as the new President of the guild, which many consider to be one of the oldest and strongest in Nollywood’s contemporary history.
Many people have maintained that the battle for the presidency is between Okhai and Akanbi, two leading directors whose voices are seemingly the loudest on social media and among members, with various endorsements in tow.
However, industry watchers say Chidebe, who is the incumbent Vice-President of the guild might spring a surprise; whike Soaga should not be condidered a push-over either, given his close rapport with the influential boss of National Film and Video Censors Board, Alhaji Adedayo Thomas.
All the four aspirants come with high industry profile. Okhai is a founding member of the guild with over two decades experience in filmmaking and directing. He has produced and directed several documentaries, movies and television series locally and internationally. He has been tipped by many to emerge as the next President of the guild having been endorsed by some power brokers within the directors’ fold. He is known for his film 2013 short film ‘The Line-Up’, his film academy in Lagos and for throwing his hat in the ring as a Presidential candidate under the PPC banner in the 2019 general election.
Having been around for a while, actor and film director, Yinka Akanbi, may also be a favourite for the DGN presidency. The Obafemi Awolowo University-trained thespian who started out with Tade Ogidan’s OGD Pictures boasts of many years of experience in filmmaking. In a post on his personal twitter handle, the director, while making reference to the DGN elections, says: “True greatness means great service.”
McCollins Chidebe, also known as China, is currently the Vice-President of the Directors Guild. He is one of the most popular names in the eastern flanks as far as film directing is concerned. He produced and directed ‘Nkoli Nwa Nsukka’ a film which is predominantly Igbo-speaking and reportedly sold over five million copies.
A serving Board Member of NFVCB, Kehinde Soaga is the director of the BBC-nominated comedy, ‘Lagos Na Wah’. He boasts of many years of experience in film/TV production and directing.
Founded by “six (angry) men, who were unhappy about the treatment of film directors in the emerging Nollywood in 1999,” DGN was created to check practices such as copyright infringements, poor crediting, poor remuneration and inadequate welfare while serving as the main umbrella body for Nigerian film and television directors.
Matthias Obahiagbon became the pioneer president of the guild who is credited for midwifing the association’s birth in 1999. He led the guild from 2000 – 2003. Popular filmmaker and founder of the Abuja Film Festival, Fidelis Duker, took over the mantle of leadership as the guild’s first-elected president from 2003 to 2007, consolidating on his predecessor’s strides and laying the structural foundation.
Bond Emerua succeeded Duker in 2007 and was said to have resumed office with a view to creating a “bond” of unity that is still existent amongst the members before he handed over to Andy Amenechi whose assumption of office in 2011 saw to the upholding of standards with the main focus being training and retraining.
When the incumbent president, Fred Amata, assumed office in 2016, his first mandate was to unite the Guild after a hard-fought campaign process tagged #dgnfuture. He saw the future of DGN as an inclusive, directional and world-class body poised to restore and refocus professionalism and investment in the Nigeria film industry as well as focusing on selling and promoting the DGN brand.
Interestingly, all the present and past presidents are founding members of the Guild and were all elected after their first tenures.
According to Duker, who is proud of the achievements of the guild so far, it is noteworthy that DGN has not witnessed any litigation or crisis in 22 years – a feat attributed to the quality of its leadership.
With these, the spotlight awaits the next president of the Guild who will steer its direction for the next two years and the question on every observer’s lips is, “Who will emerge the next president of the DGN tomorrow?”
