Film Producer Amma Abena and Director, Deji ‘Riley’ Omoloja, share common passion – making classy movies and have made exciting strides in the industry.
By Eberechi Obinagwam
Two friends, a Film Producer Amma Abena and Director, Deji ‘Riley’ Omoloja, share common passion – making classy movies and have made exciting strides in the industry. They decided to team up in a movie-making venture in 2023.
The duo first struck friendship during a movie project where Deji was the lead writer for a series and Amma, a co-writer.
Amma recalled the encounter: “He was the head writer for a series. They brought me on board. We wrote for the series and we all went our separate ways and met again at Ebony Life Academy.”
She added: “We both found that we had equal goals, that movie making and creativity generally is what’s important for both of us. We then decided to start together.”
Deji is a filmmaker who has directed and edited several movies, including Subsistence, Think It, Hers Mine Ours, among others.
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The 2017 graduate of Computer Science from Covenant University is also a co-founder of Dudu Creative where he produces innovative commercials for companies and businesses.
Amma, his fiancé, is a movie producer, singersongwriter, creative writer and director.
The 2018 graduate of Economics and Statistics from the University of Benin, released a musical single titled Bread Crumbs in 2020. In 2022, she debuted her first Extended Play (EP) ‘It’s Okay Not to be Okay.’
She has performed at big stages, including one hosted by the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) and in 2023 for music star Aramide, among others.
How it all started.
Deji’s journey into film-making began during an extra-curricular course when at Covenant University as an undergrad student. It was in that course he discovered that his true calling was behind the camera.
Having discovered his talent in film-making, he honed his skills at the Royal Art Academy where he did his Youth Service in 2018. There, at the Royal Art Academy, he started going to set as an editor, also as a behind-the-scenes recorder, and later became a script supervisor.
“From going to set as an editor to being their behind-the-scenes recorder and a script supervisor, I started getting experiences from the roles given to me and I felt satisfied because that’s what I wanted to do,” he told TheNiche during an interview.
For Amma, her passion for the Arts started in childhood.
It then started taking professional shape when she worked in the communication department of a financial management firm as a communications officer and content creator.
The collaboration
Amma and Deji first met at a project writing session. Though they parted ways at the end of the project, fate had other plans for them. Their paths later crossed again at Ebony Life Academy, and this time, sparks flew. As their romantic journey began, they realised their uniqueness and passion for storytelling and decided to collaborate in 2023.
Their goal was to go the extra mile in every of their work and unconventionally tell the African story.
First project
They put all their creative abilities and resources into their first joint movie, ‘Tomorrow, My Time Will Come,‘ which is weeks away from release.
They are unshaken in their belief that they have put in the work for a movie that’ll stir emotions and start conversations, a story of hope and it’s despair. “We wanted to improve and out a lot more of ourselves out there,” Deji said
Amma added, “It’s hard work because we are not working for someone this time but for ourselves. We bear the risk.”
The duo disclosed that return on investment is not their primary goal for the project. Strengthening the brand is the first and second objective.
Deji has been a filmmaker and has no plan B on that. Even Amma draws inspiration from his strong conviction.
She said, “The motivation is from him. He says filmmaking is what I am going to do for the rest of my life and I am fine if I am mediocre in film making it’s quite a conviction to work with someone who has such a drive.”
What about the budget?
In filmmaking, Deji revealed that budget is not the sole decider of quality but helps in time and set control. “If you have a lot of money, you can control the Set but it does not necessarily guarantee quality. What matters a lot is the content and the story you are trying to tell and the marketing you do,” he said.
Amma reiterated, “Quality is in so many things. There is quality in the story, there is quality in the visuals but a good budget could get you good visuals but quality is a different thing entirely. If you have a small budget, you could make a good film but again people assume they know a small-budget film when they see them and that’s never necessarily the case.”
Where’s the market?
The filmmakers disclosed that the markets for movies are many – streaming platforms, televisions, Africa Magic, Netflix, Amazon, Cinema, and also in festivals.
Challenges?
Inflation is the major challenge for movie making in Nigeria, the duo said. They said it undermines movie budgets and leaves creators with some difficulties.
They also said movies that explore certain themes face acceptability problems in Nigeria, especially those that are not light. But Amma said: “Every single film has a community it sells.”
Japa?
The duo said they love travelling and exploring other parts of the world but would always have their roots in Nigeria.
Deji added, “Our Company is about telling people about everyday stories and the story is here.”