Wana meets with Tope Oshin, award winning director of film and television. Her body of work contains titles like Shuga, Up North, New Money, The Wedding Party 2, Journey to Self, Tinsel, and Fifty.
Tope talks about how she was first pushed into the spotlight (and found to be a natural actress!), and how her approach to acting led her to eventual transition into directing. They discuss the challenge of balancing commerial work with Tope’s personal message to inspire social change or inspire an individual, and what work she would make to make (psychological thrillers and stories of beauty and light). Touching on Oshin’s documentary Amaka’s Kin: The Women Of Nollywood (2016) they delve into the importance of women working in film, and why women must be visible in the industry.
Bio from Oshin’s website: Named as one of the Okay100 Women of 2017 by OkayAfrica, and one of the 100 Most Influential Nigerians in film by YNaija.com, Tope Oshin is a severally awarded filmmaker who has directed over 7,000 hours of TV & film content. These consist of up to 750 episodes of some of Africa’s biggest drama series like MTV Shuga, Tinsel, Hotel Majestic, Hush, Castle & Castle, etc.
Her directing credits include films like New Money, Journey To Self, InLine, Ireti, The Young Smoker, and the ground-breaking December 2018 theatrical release – UpNorth.
Tope is a serving Juror for the International Emmy Awards, London Feminist Film Festival, Eko International Film Festival, and AfricaMagic Viewers Choice Awards 2016 and also a member of the MTV Staying Alive Squad.
ShowRunner, Producer and Lead Director of MTV Shuga Naija 4 (Season 8), her other Producing credits include the highest Nigerian box office grossing movies – The Wedding Party 2 and Fifty, and her revolutionary documentary about female directors in Nigeria – Amaka’s Kin: The Women Of Nollywood. Tope, who trained in Filmmaking at the Colorado Film School, Denver and studied Cinematography at MetFilm School, London, owns Sunbow Productions. She describes herself as a Film Artist, dedicated to changing the world, one frame at a time.
Among the hats Tope wears competently are Writer, Content Creator, ShowRunner, Director, Producer and Casting Director.B