Omotola

Pat Utomi, Omotola, others gather for Nigerian Entertainment Conference

In an effort to chart a new course in the nation’s entertainment industry, a number of dignitaries, last Wednesday, converged on the Grand Ballroom of Eko Hotel and Suites, Victoria Island, Lagos at the second edition of the Nigerian Entertainment Conference organised by Nigerian Entertainment Today.

Hosted by comedian and TV show host, Tee A, the conference featured six different sessions: Media, Business, Music, IT (Info Technology), Social Responsibility and Nollywood. Four of the six sessions were preceded by keynote speeches delivered by Prof. Pat Utomi (Business), Tuface Idibia (Music), Social Responsibility (Omotola Jalade-Ekeinde) and Nollywood (Emeka Mba).

Anchored by different moderators, each session included a discussion that featured a group of panelists discussing different topics as they affect the entertainment business in Nigeria. The panelists included comedian Basketmouth, Storm 360 Chairman, Obi Asika, Jobberman co-founder, Ope Awoyemi, pop artiste, Dr SID, Toni Kan, Chairman of COSON, Tony Okoroji, Olisa Adibua, actor Ramsey Nouah and founder of the AfricanMovie Academy Awards, Peace Anyiam-Osigwe, among many others.

The conference, popularly known as NECLive, kicked off with a welcome speech by the Editor-In-Chief of NET Newspaper, Ayeni Adekunle.

In his speech, Ayeni, who was the chairman/executive producer of the conference, talked about the entertainment industry’s many shortcomings, despite the perception of its’ progress.

 “Today should be indeed a happy day. But it’s not. I feel pained because I know that there’s so much work to be done. And we’re not even scratching the surface. How can we get the best from the system, if the industry is not well structured and funded?” he asked.

 NECLive 2014 highlighted a number of problems plaguing the entertainment industry, including distribution, piracy, content ownership, collective rights and royalty, absence of infrastructure and social Responsibility.

Speaking on the theme for this year’s conference was: ‘Creating Pathways to the Future’, NET Editorial Board Chairman, Chris Ihidero, said:  “The future is changing rapidly, such that whatever we know at present pales into insignificance at an alarming rate’.  All over the world, rapid manifestations are occurring in the production and distribution of entertainment while we are still largely playing catch up with out-dated platforms. If we were behind by a few decades before, we may be moving behind by perhaps half a century if we do not properly chart pathways to the future of the Nigerian entertainment industry.”

Prof. Pat Utomi, who spoke on “Solving the Distribution Problem Once and For All”, stressed the importance of those involved in providing entertainment on radio, television, film and theatre to treat their works as importantly as any other business in order for it to thrive.

“Showbusiness has to be treated like business. And because you love it, you need to learn how to apply things that people have learned from enterprise. Our idea was to set up an alternative distribution structure that will better serve the interest of both content owners and consumers, so we set up Exodus Entertainment with the sole aim of effectively distributing Nigeria entertainment products (CD, DVD and Magazine) to all of Nigeria.”

Meanwhile, African Pop icon, 2face Idibia, who spoke on “Slaying the Collective Rights Monster”, stated that one of the major problems was the issue of ignorance or lack of understanding of the subject. “Artistes and music executives/ administrators have to take time out to learn about the ins and outs of the subject so as to understand what they are getting into.”

 He also said there should be only one CMO (collective management organization) for a developing nation like Nigeria. “How has having multiple CMOs impacted the subject of royalties and the owners of the rights in Nigeria? One thing is for sure, having more than one CMO operating within the industry has not helped further our cause as rights owners because, being a developing nation, everyone is busy looking out for their own interests,” he said.

In her paper entitled: “Why We should Care”, Omotola Jalade-Ekeinde, raised two major issues in her presentation: education and leadership. She said that although success is not compulsorily tied to education, it is advisable to be educated. “There are many layers to being famous or being a celebrity and education prepares us for these layers so we can reach our full and be trusted with more responsibilities. Social responsibility, as you can guess, is a lot of responsibility and expression. You might at some point be required to speak to different types of group of people as I am doing right now … Simply put, talent will Never be Enough,” she said.

The fourth speaker and final speaker of the day, Emeka Mba, delivered a paper on ‘Building a Sustainable Film Industry.’

The current Director- General of the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) said it was important to recognize that the old order in Nollywood is changing.

“Those who choose to maintain the status quo will find themselves on the wrong side of history and I dare say on the short end of the money stick,” Mba said. He also advised practitioners to be curious rather than critical.  According to him, “Ask questions that provoke reflection and further inquiry. Do not create a fortress mentality. Ideas don’t work unless you speak up.”

Just like the inaugural edition, the conference ended with the NET Honours to18 individuals, includin Ebenezer Obey, Onyeka Onwenu, Christy Essien-Igbokwe, Sunny Okosun, Daddy Showkey, OJB Jezreel, Jide Kosoko, Adebayo Salami, among others.