Mrs Daisy Maduchikwendu is an amazon, a creative woman who is making her name in Nollywood. She is the founder of Women In Media and now the first woman to become the President of ANCOP. In this interview she opened up on how she became the president of ANCOP. Enjoy:
Let’s meet you ma
I am Daisy Maduchikwendu; a movie producer, screenwriter, organizer of Women in Media projects and REELTEEN film festival.
How long have you been a practitioner in Nollywood
I came into Nollywood in 2001, that is 15 years ago.
What happened to Women in Media
Ah, Women in Media. It is still ongoing but we have not had events for some time now. It is my dream and it is personally financed by me, apart from finance being a constraint, in recent times I have concentrated more on productions.
As a producer and screenwriter what is your assessment of Nollywood, do you think Nollywood is dying
Nollywood is not dying and cannot die, it is even getting better, better scripts are being written, as a screen writer and producer, I can tell you that everything starts with the story and the script, and we have those. The success of Nollywood is more on the power in our stories and we are producing them. We have our niche and we are taking full advantage of it. Also movies are being made with high-tech equipment, our films compete with foreign films at the cinemas, and we are recognized internationally. This year, TIFF is focusing on Lagos state in its “city to city” Lagos is the first African city to be honoured; this puts Nigeria in the entertainment world stage.
You are now the president could you enlighten us on the organization
ANCOP is Association of Nollywood Core Producers, it is a foremost association in the Nigerian movie industry, and it is one of the umbrella bodies for professional film producers and executive producers in Nigeria, with presence in all the Geopolitical zones in Nigeria. We aim at the production of intellectual property and also deepening the Nollywood brand. Through ANCOP, Nigeria is a member of FIAPE; International Federation of Film Producers Association; the umbrella body of film producers globally.
What is the difference between ANCOP and its competitors
The main difference is that ANCOP has international affiliation; through ANCOP, Nigeria is a member of FIAPE. FIAPE is an international Association based in Paris, created in 1933, composed with 36member associations, from 30 of the leading audio-visual production countries. It is in charge of regulating international film festivals like Cannes, Berlin, Toronto etc. FIAPE is to film more or less what FIFA is to football. Nigeria is the only African member county after Egypt. ANCOPs past President; Comrade Alex Eyengho is presently the vice president of FIAPE, the first black African to be honoured with that position. No other association in Nollywood has this, it a big plus for ANCOP. We are also involved in the fight against piracy with other Nollywood associations and the government.
How did you become ANCOP President
I never planned to be president; I actually went for the post of treasurer during the election. Eze Harris Chuma went for president and got it, three weeks later there were issues with the BOT and the Executives. The vice president Ada Anacunam, declines taking over the seat, one thing led to another and it unanimously came to me. This is destiny. The significant thing here is that I am the first female to head a producers association in Nollywood. I didn’t plan to be president but here I am, by destiny president of association of Nollywood core producers.
As the new ANCOP president what are you bringing to the table to take filmmaking to the next level
Nollywood is rapidly evolving; it is more important than ever now to create conducive platform for pragmatic filmmaking. There is no film producer without film production, we are therefore trying to create abundance of prospects for investors in the industry to fuel growth and make meaningful revenues. We plan to host business and investment forums, trainings, workshops etc. Presently, we are planning a joint investment forum with FIAPE in collaboration with financial institutions and government agencies. You will get the full details soon. But I promise you, we have a lot of other things cooking
As a mother how do you manage raising children and your job
These days it is a common thing to manage family and career, I can’t say it has not been challenging, because it has, but we are moving on. The important thing is to prioritize, plan well and you are on easy street.
Finally where will you take ANCOP to before your tenure expires
By the time my tenure expires, our members would have made more movies and I mean quality movies because we are working on more financing and co-productions for the producers. We are encouraging the production of quality movies that will boost the movie industry. We will move Nollywood to a higher end standard of production. You know what is happening in the industry now health wise, our health insurance would have been in place, also production insurance too. All in all the idea is to promote and protect the film business and its practitioners. And that we will do.
