Joke Silva, the veteran actress, has revealed she was banned from Nollywood because she dared an influential movie marketer
By Kehinde Okeowo
Veteran actress, director, and businesswoman, Joke Silva, has revealed the reason behind her ban from acting in Nollywood movies years ago.
The thespian made this known during a recent chat with journalist and media entrepreneur, Chude Jideonwo.
According to the 60-year-old, an influential movie marketer, approached her and her husband to be a part of a movie he was sponsoring and they accepted the role given to them.
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After taking the job, she and her husband appeared on the movie set, only to be kept waiting for 8 hours by the lead character.
In her words: “Years ago, we did this film. That was the time the marketers were getting involved in movies. This marketer came to our house, we were living in Ikeja at the time, brought money for myself and my husband to come on this film that they had already started shooting. And he wanted us to play the parents of the star of the film and we decided to do it.
” It was Fred Amata who directed at the time. We started shooting and things were going a bit rocky until one day we were waiting for the lead actress. They told us we had to be on location by eight in the morning. And we got to the location on time, we are never late. We got dressed and we were waiting. We were waiting till four in the afternoon.”
The highly revered actress further revealed that when the actress eventually arrived in the company of the marketer, she told the producer that if the shooting of the movie exceeds the time agreed, she would not turn up again.
She, however, gave them two extra days of grace, knowing the time had been wasted while waiting for the lead actress.
“When the marketer then brings the star along to the location, I turned around and I looked at Fred and said ‘I am contracted to work with you for two weeks and I will give you two extra days because I know what location can be like, after those two days, if we don’t finish, I am walking’.Fred said I understand. I am sure he didn’t believe I would do it.” she said.
She added that when the grace period she gave elapsed, she stopped showing up at the movie location.
The marker, who according to her, was quite powerful at the time, then used his influence to ensure she was not given a role in Nollywood for a while.
“When those two days were up, we still had one scene and it was supposed to be a very crucial scene in the film. I didn’t show up. The marketer was big at that time. Because of that, I was secretly blacklisted for quite a while. Mine was never mentioned, but it was done.” Silva concluded.
Joke Silva is a graduate of the University of Lagos and the Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art in London, she began her career in film in the early 1990s.
