Around and about moviedom this first quarter | The Guardian Nigeria News

It is just the first quarter of 2022 and some practitioners in Moviedom are already in the news for the right and wrong reasons. Here are some of the headliners…

That Rita Dominic’s Carnival At Aboh Mbaise
It was more than a wedding. It was a carnival. The story of how the high and mighty in Nollywood and in the business world stormed Aboh Mbaise and then Owerri for the wedding ceremony between star actress Rita Uchenna Nkem Dominic Nwaturoucha and Publisher of Daily Times Fidelis Anosike would be told for a long time. By yesterday, some ‘busy body’ observers were still collating the names of those who made it to the April 18 and 19 wedding ceremony and those who did not. Names that featured on the list of Nollywood practitioners that made it to the wedding that was tagged ‘Reeldeel2022’ include Joke Silva Jacobs, Chioma Akpotha, Shan George, Chidi Mokeme, Hilda Dokubo, Ini Edo, Nse Ikpe Etim, Charles Inojie and the Ghanaian actress Lydia Forson. Those who featured on their list of absentees include star actress Funke Akindele, Omoni Oboli, Toyin Abraham, Kate Henshaw, Omotola Jalade Ekeinde, Mercy Johnson, Mercy Aigbe and Tonto Dikeh. They however shared well worded congratulatory messages to the actress on their social media handles and gave reasons why they couldn’t make it to Imo state for the glam wedding ceremony. With the successful wedding, the 46 years old actress and star of ‘La Femme Anjola’ and ‘The Meeting’, will no longer feature on the long list of Nollywood’s bachelorette.
A Pip For Nollywood Actor

Bob-Manuel From Anambra Governor

GOOD news from Government House, Awka Anambra state for notable Nollywood actor Bob-Manuel Udokwu. The Governor of Anambra State, Prof Charles Soludo, has appointed the actor of vast credit as his Special Adviser on Entertainment, Leisure and Tourism. Bob-Manuel’s appointment as SA was announced in a statement signed by the Commissioner for Information and Public Enlightenment, Paul Nwosu. The announcement came barely a day after the actor hosted family members, colleagues, friends and associates to a lavish double celebration party to mark his 54th birthday and his investiture as a Knight of St Paul. Married to Cassandra Udokwu and blessed with two children Elyon and Marcus Garvey, Bob-Manuel had previously served as Senior Special Assistant on Creative Media during the administration of Peter Obi, and as an aide to the immediate past governor, Willie Obiano.

Good News for Papel Paul Apel’s ‘Eagle Wings’ from USA
NOTABLE Nollywood Filmmaker Paul Apel Papel took to his social media platforms to share the good news that leading content distributors and aggregators Vision Films, Inc is set to release the action film Eagle Wings to VOD on May 17, 2022. The film which Papel wrote and directed was shot entirely on location in Nigeria and is one of Vision’s emerging catalog from prolific filmmakers in the region. Eagle Wings depicts the on-going devastating regional conflicts of insurgents, their pervasive mistrust of the government, and the mission of those who try to diffuse the war against all odds. The film stars Enyinna Nwigwe, Femi Jacobs, Yakubu Mohammed, Francis Duru and Keppy Ekpeyong Bassey. According to Lise Romanoff, CEO/Managing Director of Vision Films, “Eagle Wings is the perfect blend of an epic war movie and a relationship story.” Eagle Wings will be available on cable, major streaming platforms, and DVD in the US and Canada.

Nafisat Abdullahi To Headline Nollywood Travel Film Festival in Athens
POPULAR Kannywood actress Nafisat Abdullahi will join notable Nollywood actor Ken Erics to headline the 2022 edition of the Nollywood Travel Film Festival (NTFF) which will take place in the city of Athens, Greece from May 27 to May 29 2022. The NTFF is reputed as Nigeria’s biggest and foremost travel film festival. Founded by the filmmaker and diplomat Ambassador Mykel Parish Ajaere, the NTFF hosts screenings of Nollywood films in cities around the world. The Kannywood actress told Moviedom that she is looking forward to a successful edition of the festival in Athens. ‘’I like the fact that with NTFF, we are able to showcase the product of the Nigerian film industry to the world while also using the opportunity to foster relationship with developed film societies. So I am very much looking forward to the festival which is held with the cooperation of the Nigerian Embassy in Greece and in partnership with guilds and associations in Nollywood’ she said. The NTFF has so far held in cities including, Berlin, New York, Glasgow, Helsinki, Peru, Toronto and Amsterdam

Another Nollywood Marriage packs up
BARELY two weeks after the marriage between Nollywood actress Nkechi Blessing and her erstwhile ‘honey pie’ Opeyemi Falegan crashed, another celebrated marriage—the marriage between Nollywood actress Tawa Ajifesin and businessman Mayowa Alli has reportedly crashed. Close sources hinted that the marriage packed up because of the decision of Mayowa Alli to reunite with his first wife. Alli had shared a post on Instagram which suggested that he would soon re-unite with his first wife. Alli shared a picture of his daughter and a lady believed to be his first wife with the caption ‘’my Jewel see you soon’’. Reactions have continued to trail the post. Mayowa Alli and the fast rising actress and producer became an item in 2018. However a fan on Instagram had alerted Tawa as soon as she shared her wedding photos on Instagram in February 2019 that Mayowa was married with two kids. The fan had appealed to Tawa in the comment section not to take Mayowa seriously as Mayowa who is now a U.S citizen was married with two kids abroad.

Excitement as ‘The Village Headmaster’ Television Series Returns To The Screen
THE iconic television drama, ‘The Village Headmaster’ is coming back to our television screens courtesy of Globacom, Nigeria’s pre-eminent telecommunications giant. ‘The Village Headmaster’ which was created by the late Ambassador Segun Olusola and Dejumo Lewis began its life as a radio programme on Nigeria Broadcasting Corporation (NBC) before migrating to television in 1958. It ran for over three decades and produced iconic characters who became household names. The later Justus Esiri was the eponymous Village Headmaster. In the new iteration which has undergone a spectacular make-over by Wale Adenuga’s WAPtv to delight of Glo subscribers and Nigerians in general, Nollywood actor Chris Iheuwa will step into the role of the Viillage Headmaster. This nostalgia and legacy project reliving the golden age of Nigerian television will return to television screens on April 24, 2021, and will be broadcast on NTA , AIT, and WapTV weekly.