Calista Okoronkwo is fun and playful, but has her eyes set on the job at hand, which is to become a household name in the acting career she has chosen for herself. One only needs to see the films she has put under her belt in the recent past to realise that she is well on her way to the very top. Assistant Life Editor, TERH AGBEDEH, encountered her in this interview on a movie set in Lagos.
What project are you working on right now?
We are shooting a movie called Home Apart, and I play the character of a girl called Chika.
Is that the lead?
Yeah, incidentally, it is my real name that I am playing too.
Don’t you fill uncomfortable playing yourself?
No, I don’t feel uncomfortable because most times in other movies where I have to use other names, sometimes when they call me the name of the character, I forget it is me. But in this case, it is my name; so once I hear it, I know it is me. So it is a bit easy for me to get into the character.
How did you get on this project?
It is the job of my manager, Uchenna Mbunabo.
Which means you were not even auditioned; you just walked in?
Well, it is something that belongs to my manager; so it is my job, too.
Is this your first time acting as lead?
No, it is not my first time acting as lead. I have played lead in Barrister Anita, Born Again Sisters, Kachi Goes to School and a host of others.
You must have done 100 or more films already?
Couple of 10s, 50s more like it.
Do you really enjoy it or doing it until you get a bank job?
Oh no, I am an economist and I have a certificate which if I wanted a regular job I could go ahead and do it. Acting is something that I really love to do. I know it is almost a cliche, everybody keeps saying that but (I really mean it).
Where did you study economics?
University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN), where I graduated in 2010.
So you have been acting since you left in 2010?
I had my first job in 2005, but when I gained admission in 2006 I had to take a break from acting. So I returned after school in 2010 when I started fully my career in acting.
What was your first job?
My first major job was College Girls. In 2005, I did a minor job titled Too late to Claim.
Was it ‘waka pass’?
No, I had four scenes.
Is this your first time on a Lagos location?
No, I have had other jobs that I shot here in Lagos.
Have you done Enugu, Asaba and Owerri?
I haven’t been in Asaba to film before, but I have filmed in Enugu. And I have been on set in Bayelsa State.
What is different; do you prefer Enugu to Lagos, for instance?
Everywhere is home to me as long as I am Nigerian. If you take me to Bayelsa, I fit in properly. It’s my country, it’s my home.
Some actresses have said that if you don’t sleep with the production crew, you cannot get a job. Would you say that is true?
Basically, I have never had to be with a producer who said to me that you deserve this role, but if you do not get down with me I will not give it to you.
What is your expectation from Nollywood?
Hopefully, in three years from now, I would like to be a household name.
Does your guy like the fact that you are acting, kissing other people?
Yeah, because he met me while I was doing this and liked me because I was doing this.
Is he also in the industry?
No, he is not.
Have you ever done drama on raw stage?
Yeah, but not on a professional scale. But I hope to do that someday because I know there are several disparities acting in front of the camera on set and then acting on stage. I know the voice clarity, everything is different; so I would like to know how it feels to be on (raw) stage.
Who are your mentors?
I love Angelina Jolie because of her role in Maleficent, which she carried with so much grace. I like her delivery.
You only love her in Maleficent?
I love all of her, but Maleficent is like one of my favourites?
So you are going to do what she did, like remove her female parts?
No, oh lord (laughter). I like the grace with which she plays.
You almost have high cheek bones like her?
I know, but I don’t look like her. We are two different people.
Apart from Angelina Jolie, who else?
I think it is her, and Idris (Elba) sometimes works for me.
What of back home in Nigeria?
In Nigeria, I have loads of mentors and anybody that is way above me is my mentor because there is always something to learn from them, since they have been in the game before me. Each chance I have with them, I learn one or two things. It is almost difficult to pick a particular person.
