An Interview With Pascal Atuma, Filmmaker and Actor

Image Courtesy of Pascal Atuma

Pascal Atuma, who now has three blockbuster movies (Only in America, My American Nurse and Hurricane In The Rose Garden) to his credit talked to me after a long chase trying to corner him for this interview. I had talked him into this pleasant chat when we met in February at a jam session, the PAFF Bistro African Night. With a very busy schedule, he shuttles around cities in the United States and Canada. When not in Toronto, he is somewhere in Atlanta; and when not in Washington, D.C., he is probably in Atlantic City or New Orleans cutting deals. And when he is a little bit done midway, he pops up in the City of Angels where it's all happening.

At a particular time, when I thought we had a done deal for an early morning breakfast somewhere in Culver City, California, his agent called and that appointment had to be cancelled. Then, another move was made by Pascal himself for us to meet in a dinner and isi-ewu at Dozie Ozoemena's Joint. That, too, had to be rescheduled due to series of his Hollywood engagements. Nevertheless, we became buddies and talked on the phone all the time discussing how Nollywood can turn things around and start making movies not only for commercial purposes but for change to reflect on human events of our time and beyond.

We talked more about what inspired him and how his career in showbiz started. Born in Umuahia, Pascal attended Government College, Umuahia and University of Port Harcourt, and at that point he knew what exactly he wanted in life. Not satisfied with the scholarly work that has nothing to do with his destiny, he travelled home to notify his dad he was through with academics realizing "America is the land of opportunity" and Hollywood is the dream. Landing in Dallas and enrolling in a film school, the rest now would be history. His movie was the first ever Nigerian movie to be released all over Europe and his success in the US is quite telling.

Pascal had told me his ultimate goal in moviemaking "is" to set a standard pledging to help generations to come. While we were at it, he introduced Tony One Week who had just arrived Los Angeles to explore opportunities to start playing gigs and concert series to promote his new CD. Pascal, with a very good sense of humor, likes to tease me every now and then when he calls me Oga Ambrose. "You know say you be my oga now," Pascal would say with a smile.

However, we talked about a whole lot of things including the pogrom and the fate of Nollywood ten to fifteen years from now. Excerpt:

Ehirim Files: I wasn't used to watching Nigerian movies until I ran into you. Recently, I reviewed a movie called "Girls Cot," starring Genevieve Nnaji, Rita Dominic, Ini Edo and Bonita Nzeribe. Based on Nollywood movies that I have watched so far, they pretty much has the same resemblance. I mean the plot and story line runs to the same direction. Love, voodoo and things like that which to me is becoming boring and I'm quite sure movie goers would feel the same if they are in my shoes. In analogy, how come Nollywood is not making movies related to human events and tragic moments of our time as in Hollywood's "Schindler's List," about the Holocaust, "We Were Soldiers," about Vietnam, "The Pianist," about the Nazis invasion of Poland, "The Last of the Mohicans," about a Native American Confederacy of subtribes who were driven out and things of that nature? When will Nollywood start making movies based on human events and tragic moments of our time, for instance, "Blood on the Niger" and "The Aba Women Riots"?

Pascal Atuma: I think with time we will change the way business is done in Nollywood, you know. You see, I saw Stephanie Okereke the other day and Stephanie told me she is here to take some courses and I was so proud of her. With moves like this, I can see the future of Nigeria film industry shaping up because now they know that they want to conquer this; that we need training. The only thing our industry lacks right now is priofessionalism, you see what I am saying? The only thing that is stopping us from the stories you are talking about is professionalism in Nollywood. You see, there is a difference between a job and a career. A job is something you have to do to survive. A career is something you choose to do. Once that is done, we will be able to make the kind of movies you are talking about, like the Aba Women Riots. Nollywood can say all they wanna say, the thing is professionalism. And the problem is most of the people are not professionals. You see, Hollywood has the capability and you can see my movies are in a different class. We need more people to come up and do what we are doing. Stephanie has taken the right step.

Ehirim Files: I don't know how you put all the stuff you do together. The scripts, the production team and all that is attached to movie making. How do you do that?

Pascal Atuma: I have not started yet. You see, my scripts are original and it comes from stories of life and I give thanks to God because God gives the beginning, the middle and end of every story. God provides.

Ehirim Files:From Nollywood perspective and in my own humble opinion, how do you guys take over independently and carry out projects without interference from the sponsors who bankroll the movies and magnates alike who seemingly manipulate how the movies should be made? How do you take charge as it's done in Hollywood?

Pascal Atuma: You have to go through the system. You see, the catch is you have to fight and work hard. If you are consistent in what you do and you are committed to it, like my first movie, "Only In America," they will give you money to go and do the movie because you have estalished that trust that you can produce a good movie because if not they will know that when they give you the money it's going to finish. I have been consistent and have featured movies three years in a row at the Pan African Film & Arts Festival. On the other hand, you see, when you give a Nollywood producer ten million Naira to go and produce a movie, he wil put only one million Naira in the project and before you know it he is building a foundation whereas he can produce a movie and make one hundred million Naira and still go and build his foundation. You see, as you are looking at me now, anytime I come to L.A. I have been in position of solid cash because of the connections and the movies that I have made. Once you get to that level, you see that people can relax and say take this money go and do this movie and bring it back. You see what I am saying? So it's a problem of trust, that's number one. Number two, the last movie, "The Hurricane," the budget was five-hundred thousand Dollars. When you came to Magic Johnson, you saw that it was sold out because people were watching it. And they thought they were watching a one million dollar movie, but that movie, that "Hurricane," I did it with five hundred thousand Dollars, you see what I am saying. And I promise you, the day I finished shooting, I didn't even have a dollar to buy hamburger to eat.

Ehirim Files: Yes, I saw that during the question and answer session after the movie. You mentioned how you guys ran out of money and had to cope up and come up with the money, struggling to make sure the project is finished. That's courageous.

Pascal Atuma: But you see in Nollywood, the producers will take the money and just find a way to finish it haphazardly. But here, I put the whole money to the point that the investors were there, you see what I am saying. Now I am doing a new movie which we are working on right now. You see, my job now and all I'm doing for the last three months is flying around meeting with actors. Money part is not my business. I am not worried about the money part. My lawyers and all the investors, they are the ones doing their own meetings trying to get the money. My job is what I am doing. The only thing they do for me is to provide the money for me to run around to make sure I put a good cast together. And now I promise you when you see my next movie, you won't believe that a Nigerian did it. I promise you that.

Ehirim Files: So let's go back to Nollywood. It has been said Nollywood is the third ranked or fourth ranked movie industry in the Universe, but when you look at it closely you will find out Nollywood is still far from Hollywood and that to me is a long journey. Is there a kind of union that protects the rights of writers, producers and actors in Nollywood?

Pascal Atuma: You see the problem with Nollywood is that with what you just said, they have unions. The have the Producers Guild of Nigeria and they have the Actors Guild of Nigeria. But the thing is this, are they the people that can stand up and fight for the actors and producers? That's the problem.

Ehirim Files: How do you see Nollywood in the next ten, fifteen years from now?

Pascal Atuma: In the next few years, Nollywood is going to change. The way is going to change is when they look at my movies and ask themselves questions why is my movies in theatres and not their own. Then they will go back home and they will buy my movies and they will look at it, and they will look at their own. Now they will see how things are done professionally and that is how Nollywood is going to change because I know the next professionals will put the unprofessionals out of business. By then professionals like us will have money. If you have money and don't have the professionalism, nobody would want to work with you, they would want to work with professionals like us because I will still give them the same amount of money. I know Nollywood is gonna change. There is no where in the world I'm gonna be born in Nigeria and I'm playing Hollywood and am gonna see Nollywood die. It's not gonna happen. If they don't want to accept it, they will be forced because if you can't beat them, you join them. You see what I'm saying?

Ehirim Files: Very impressive. Goodluck, man!

Pascal Atuma: Thanks for having me.