Focal Point
Conversations with artists across all industries, taking a deep dive into the nuances, techniques, and philosophies of society's talent.
Focal Point
Trust Bridges Oceans #52 w/ Filmmaker John Smith Jr
Nigerian filmmaker John Smith Jr. shares how he built international relationships through honesty, cultural pride, and digital collaboration. From voicing characters in American horror-comedies to championing his native language in global projects, John reveals the power of integrity and cross-continental networking.
Welcome to the Focal Point Podcast. I'm your host, tony Riggs. Here I take a deep dive into my personal interests of the hidden craftsmanship philosophies and passions behind society's talent. If you're intrigued by artistic nuance, please subscribe and follow on my YouTube channel, spotify and Buzzsprout. With that being said, let me introduce you to today's guests. Alright John, welcome to the podcast for coming on. I appreciate it. How are you?
Speaker 1:I'm fine thank you and you, I'm great. I mean, it's it's, it's it's morning for me, but you're in nigeria, right? So it's around like noon ish, isn't it?
Speaker 2:yeah, it's um.
Speaker 1:This is um 12 32 pm noon here yeah, but from my understanding, though, is that well, actually, before I get into my questions, why don't you just go ahead and introduce yourself and tell me what you do and how you got into it?
Speaker 2:Okay, my name is John Smith Jr. Actually, my dad is John Smith Sr, so I am John Smith Jr and I'm a filmmaker, scriptwriter and editor here in Nigeria, which is in the western part of Africa, and I am also into hotel and hospitality. So currently I'm currently a hotel manager in a two-star hotel somewhere in Nigeria southeast, precisely in the southeastern part of Nigeria, and I have engaged in so many work with different friends. One thing that always keep me going is all about teamwork. It's not all about just one person, it's all about teamwork. We work as a team so we can be able to achieve greatness. And one thing is certainly sure that if we can do great things, then we should do small things with great love.
Speaker 2:So right now I'm currently working with that is to say, I'm working remotely with a friend who is in Houston, texas, on his horror comedy film called Death Bike. So I happen to be the voice over actor in some African scenes that I shot for him, and the sweetest part of it is that I spoke throughout my own set. I spoke my native tribal language. So in no distant time the movie is going to be out, although I've gotten my IMDB credit. So I believe it's just little by little.
Speaker 1:Well, that's good, that's cool. Actually, how did you first get involved with filmmaking? Did you first start talking to people that were locally around you, and at what point did you start reaching out to people internationally?
Speaker 2:Okay, well, I would say, ever since I was a kid, I never missed any part of any interesting movie. That's Nigeria, precisely, precisely. So it's just once in a while. My parents sometimes buy foreign movie from the US made in US, china, india, sometimes in the British movie. So when I started coming in contact with people international was I joined some film groups on Facebook. I think the first film group I joined was Atlanta Film Production, so I happened to when I posted some sample of my works. So I managed to get in contact with a lot of people who are on Facebook, who are also in the movie business as well, like producers and directors.
Speaker 2:I hardly come across with actors because I believe that some actors don't have time for Facebook. So these producers and the directors, they had only want to have time because they post their work and jobs. They have done so little by little. When I started telling people this is what I can do, this is also something I can do, and I said, um, do you have any resume or anything you're gonna show? I said, sure, so I call some of my team here together, we put one or two things together and we show the little we can do. So when I happen to walk hand in hand with some few people. They started referring me to this person, this person, this person. Even when I come directly in contact with somebody, I would say that I've walked with this person. He would said, okay, he would now reach the person. I said do you know John? He said he has walked with you. Yeah, yeah, yeah, he's a good guy, he's good in this, he's good in that when it comes to the african scenes, he's good in that.
Speaker 1:So that was how the recommendations started coming and uh, boom, yeah, yeah, I am in an interview with you well, um, you seem to be a jack of all trades, uh, which which was the first thing that you tried um having your hand at when it came to filmmaking.
Speaker 2:Well, it was like I was handling the camera, holding the mics. I didn't just go to the screen just like that, because I have to learn from the best. So when I started following them from location to location, carrying a lot of equipment, I see what they do and I see how they do it. So when it now comes to a particular film which I cannot disclose the name for copyright purpose, so when we are shooting this particular film and they happen to say this guy hasn't showed up, who can do? We just need somebody who can play as assistant gangster to the gang, I said director, I can do it. Everybody smile, said no, you just gotta say I can do it. So they just gave me a shot and boom, I did it. Great. So that was how that was my first appearance. So my name in the film was Hakimi. I was the assistant leader of Notorious Gang. It's a very interesting movie, though the name of the movie is called Sons of Africa, but it will soon be out.
Speaker 1:That's cool. What's the name of it? Are you able to say?
Speaker 2:Sons of Africa.
Speaker 1:Sons of Africa. Okay, gotcha, when, at what point did people start reaching out to you to be able to start doing some things for their films? Because I've had some experience with working some people actually also from Texas. But it was for a completely different reason. It was for visual effects purposes actually.
Speaker 2:Okay, okay, yeah, okay, for visual effects purposes, actually. And okay, okay, yeah, okay, it's just that somebody might come out and say he wants to make his own film. So due to, I think, from film advisors, people who advise this guy on his film, he said, for you to have a lot of viewers and for people to be interested in your movie, why don't you go international like, um, you know, go to europe or africa, all these things? So, uh, he said I don't have such contacts. So one guy and I said, no, I have a guy who stays in africa. Maybe, perhaps he can be able to work with you. So he linked me up with him and when I first met him, so he said that he's just an upcoming actor and producer, that he's just trying to make his own film for himself. He stays in Houston, texas, you know. So I said, okay, what do you need me to do? He said this is what I have to do. This is what I have to do. I said, okay, fine.
Speaker 2:So he mailed me his script. I rehearsed on it for two days. After two days I told him I was ready. He said, no, that this thing. Somebody takes a week or a month to do some pre-production. I said when an African man is involved, we don't, we don't delay. So I think two days, two days is enough for me. So I did my pre-production within two days and I told him I was ready. He said, okay, fine. So he sent me some little finances because his budget was about $1,000 for his project. I told him that was too much. It's really, really, really too much. That has a whole lot of money here in Africa. It's very too much, except you want to shoot a complete movie.
Speaker 2:So he said like how much can be able to run it? I said approximately 250 or 300 dollars can do it. He was like he was no. He said no, no, no, that's way small. I said that's more for you, but that's not small for us here.
Speaker 2:So one thing I always tell people maintain honesty, it will surely take you far, just maintain honesty. So when he sent the forms for that, I got some people. I need to be included. I paid their welfare, their hotel bills, their feeding and the expenses, so we run our stuff.
Speaker 2:So about two hours before we could start I phoned him and said because one thing about me I always promote my culture. So, although English is good, but I promote my culture because I love my fatherland. So I called him and said we can do this. He said why? I said we have to speak our tribal language. It's a way of promoting my people. If you want me to help you, you have to help me as well. So the English is for the Western world. So me, I have my own language. I have my own mother tongue, which I was brought from childhood. English is just something I learned in school. So he said okay, fine, fine, you guys can speak your tribal language. That means you have to subtitle it in English for my viewers to view. I said, sure, why not?
Speaker 2:So when I got his approval because I was ready to refund him his money if he refused that I cannot speak my tribal language in the movie. So when he approved it and I said, guys, let's kick off. So we did a job we sent to him. It was super good, beyond the way he expected it. So based on the language, our language, we spoke. So I think his viewers can really find it interesting. Just recently I saw in his page he said my movie has gone international. Then he now posted us while we're speaking our language while shooting the film. So I was really really really very amazed. So I was really really very amazed.
Speaker 1:Well, there's a lot there. Actually there's a lot there that I could get into. Well, for one, he was sending you $1,000 to be able to, or wanting to send you $1,000 to be able to accomplish what he thought was necessary from your end, at the very least to be able to do what you need to do, and you're like, no, that's too much, and then that's honestly, the integrity is probably what will get you another job.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, sure, get you another job, I'm curious a little bit about, also before I get into the rest of what you had just mentioned. Yeah, what, how, how did you allocate $300 to accomplishing what you needed to do on your end, like what needed to be done? Because, from to you, like to both of us, we're both foreigners to each other. You know, I'm a dude on the other side of the planet. To me, you're a dude on the other side of the planet, you know, and so because we're foreigners, we have that much in common. But to me, $1,000 is like, yeah, it's not a whole lot, but over there it converts differently. So I'm a little bit about how you allocated just $300 to be able to accomplish what you needed to and what you got done with $300.
Speaker 2:Okay, first of all, remember when I said everything is all about teamwork, teamwork, we work as a team. So $300 back then was approximately half a million in my end. So when he sent the money, I first of all, before he told me he was selling a thousand dollars over, I already, I have already done the project which I was waiting for him to ask me what is the estimation, you understand, for the budget. But the equipment we had to use the tripod, the sound, the light and the every other stuff. So when he mentioned um, okay, he's sending a thousand dollars over, so I said no, that that's way too much, that's way too much. 300 can run the job, so he can use the rest for his other expenses over there. Because, like I said, it's all about teamwork and um, I got some team members who worked with me who just did it for free for me. All I had to do was just to pay for their welfare, because sometimes I also do it for them for free, believing that probably one day, when we get to the top, we'll all remember ourselves how we helped each other, because anything about the movie is all about how do I use it. In the africa say you scratch my back, I scratch your back, so yeah.
Speaker 2:So I called some of my teammates. I called them. I said I have this friend who is, who wants to make something like this. This is what is involved. I know I didn't tell them that he's trying to send a thousand and I said no, because if I should do do that, a lot of them is going to blame me.
Speaker 2:I said why this opportunity to you know? So I just told him that it's $300, that's the budget. So we are going to work according to the budget. So what we did was he sent us the money through Western Union. He sent us the money through Western Union. So we got to the bank, we created an account bearing his film name let's just say he's making a film like, let's just say, he's making a movie called Texas. So we opened an account writing Texas official film. So we created an account and that's where we deposit the money. And so each day we pull out and run today's expenses after the end and make an account to him and, uh, edit the one we have done for the day and send to him until within three days or four days, I think we are able to complete our own site what was your impression when you first started working with other artists across the?
Speaker 1:you know, across our lovely ocean, that we have separating us.
Speaker 2:Man. It was the biggest break of my life, honestly, the biggest break I have long been waiting for. You see, I have met a lot of people on Facebook, so when I try to lay my request out on what I do, they all see me as a scammer. Within one minute they blocked me. So, but yeah, but it never made me to hate anybody, because mankind is evil. All right, mankind is evil. So I never hated those people that blocked me on facebook messenger. I never hate any of them. But one thing my father always said if you get scammed, it shows that you are greedy. Only a greedy person gets scammed. That's something I know.
Speaker 2:So, um, when I first got this impression working with this first guy I was. That was the biggest break of my life, even though I got nothing tangible out of it. But I was happy to say this project, I was part of it. This project, I was part of the team that made it happen. So I don't care what he made from it or whatever he made from it, as long as somebody will see me tomorrow say hey, I know this guy. If you're children, this guy's movie is an African, he's an African man in this guy's movie. Yeah, yes, yeah, that's me. That's me. It's not all about the thing, it's not about the fan, but I want them to like. I'm trying to create a legacy. So I think this is my first step, because a journey of a thousand miles begins with a step. So I think that was my first step and, by the grace of God, we'll keep pushing.
Speaker 1:Well, it's interesting that you didn't blame the Westerners, that you're trying to reach out to grow your own network for blocking you. Network for blocking you because, as somebody who has also gotten emails from Nigerian princes asking for money, it's a very common thing that happens over here and it's difficult because we know that there are filmmakers and artists and trustworthy people that exist in different countries and even some countries that maybe have certain conflicts that make things very uneasy to be able to be productive and have a fruitful life as an artist. And it's really interesting that you finally got your first break when it came to having somebody actually being willing to send you any bit of money at all, and then you showed integrity. It's like no, that's like a reverse scam. You're giving money back.
Speaker 1:You could have kept the other 700 bucks and then, just, you know, been like ah, and then just spent 300. And, honestly, even if that happened like nobody would have batted an eye because it would have because it wasn't like. That's not necessarily a lot of money, but, um, if anything that you know that certainly I admire that, I personally admire that.
Speaker 2:But if I am in my own end in my own end. Minimum wage here is 20 a month. A minimum wage, okay a month yeah, minimum $20 a month. That's a minimum wage, okay, so, like you, an American, right you're?
Speaker 1:an.
Speaker 2:American. Yeah, one thing, one thing I have understand about you people, your people, what I've asked on about your people you people don't like people begging you. Instead, you want people to make a deal with you yeah, you're not wrong, that's exactly right.
Speaker 2:Yes, even if you don't like begging. Instead, you make a deal. That is something I've come to realize All the while I've been begging for I've been begging for people to give me work, let me do, give me work, let me do so. They just see it as a scamming way. So when I say to this guy I would like to strike a deal, this is what I do, this is what, in case you need, just let me know. And that's what happened. Yeah.
Speaker 1:Well, because you're completely right, we try to.
Speaker 1:The way we interpret as helping one another is making sure that we're both, because things are expensive over here and so that's why we have to make a lot of money just to be able to have like a normal kind of life, and it converts differently to other countries, to other countries.
Speaker 1:But uh, so the way that we interpret it as helping one another is to make sure that we both get a little something out of it. You know, unless it's like in between really really close friends, where we'll just do each other favors, like favors really only happen when and you're a close friend or a relative with somebody. But when it comes to like just working with people, we we don't necessarily have a tight community aspect, culturally speaking. When it comes to like working with our neighbor just to do them a favor, in general, normally we try to compensate them in some way. Now, in the film community, here it's universal, like not a lot of people have a whole lot of money, unless you're in the big industry, you know, like Hollywood or even Atlanta or something like that. Tell me about what you'd like to end up seeing for your own country when it comes to being able to have a thriving filmmaking and art scene at large seen at large.
Speaker 2:Well, I would say, you know, before I start a question, you know, one thing you need to know is that a lot of people come into this film stand just because of the money. Some people come because of the fame, want to be seen like every other normal person hmm, you understand, yeah, so, yeah.
Speaker 2:So I'm not. I'm not saying it because I'm at an interview, I'm just saying it because that is the fact and the truth, right. So? So, like I have a lot of projects I would like to execute, I have a lot of projects, a lot of script I've written I would like to execute. Not that I don't know some prominent producers or directors to give it to so we can work together, but because of there's a way I have positioned it right from when I was little that this is how I want it to be.
Speaker 2:So I'm not going to use that of desperation to just to bring it out, because greed is also in this film stuff. Greed is also there. So and people are envy, jealous that you're making more fame than me. Either they come to you and attack you physically or spiritually. You know, a lot of things is really really in this thing. So I want to see myself as a normal person, so that all evil eye will not be on me. Yes, and I want to do it. I want to shoot my own movie in the future in a way that I am not stepping on anybody's toes, you understand.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:I just wanna do it as to entertain and satisfy people. Laugh, forget your sorrow. We leave the world like one family, because some people say for you to be successful, you must be ready to step on some toes. If you want to be successful, successful, you must be ready to step to step on some toes if you want to be successful. You must be ready to step on some so many tools if you want to be successful. So I wanna, I wanna shoot. I wanna shoot my own movie like a normal guy, by not you know, referring or talking to somebody indirectly. I want to just shoot it as a normal thing. I don't even want any academy award, I don't even want any of your whole stuff, because one thing that attracts us is when you're doing fine, and the reason why somebody is doing fine in a movie is because he's working with the right people. If you want to be successful, work with the right people, and if you have to work with the right people while you're working with the wrong people, just be patient. Patient is always the strongest key, but nobody has that. You just be patient.
Speaker 2:If you're feeling the pain, feel the pain. It's part of the training. Feel the pain even if you do the deal, you get cheated. Nothing comes to you, no problem, let it go. But what is yours is yours and nobody can cheat nature. That's one thing I've always believed. So now that I have, I have a lot of people I can work with, but once I've seen the lifestyle, so I don't want to make a mistake that will lead me to regret. So like I am now, I'm not a rich guy, neither am I poor guy. I live comfortably, understand so so I I believe in no distant time, by recommendation, truthful, honesty and loyalty, I can still find people. My main passion is to work with people internationally. My main passion is to work with people internationally, international contacts, and that is why most of my friends on Facebook if you at least up of, let me just say, 20% out of the 100, 30% will say this guy's an honest guy. Right, this guy's an honest guy.
Speaker 1:How have you learned to filter people that are worth working with? What? How have you learned to filter people who are not good to work with?
Speaker 2:how do I sorry?
Speaker 1:how have you learned to filter out people who are not great to work with? Well, where does your judge of character him?
Speaker 2:oh, I see. Well, number one is communication. When you try to keep up with the communication and the person seems that he is not interested in that, that is a that, that is to say he doesn't have your time, yes, and when? Then threw away your trust? When they threw away your trust and one thing I know is that trust is the first mobility to disappointment so when they threw away the trust and you guys lack communication ideas, like you now doing this podcast, as we are friends, if you can't gain anything from me and I can't gain anything from you, what are we doing? We are certainly doing nothing.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:Yeah, so we are just deceiving ourselves going around the circle. So and that's one thing about friendship as you an American over there, me, I'm an Nigerian over here in Africa, it's by the distance, but there are a lot of things we can do in common that can be, for you and I, betterment without even not seeing each other or even shaking hands. So what we just need is that two things trust and patience. So, to me, to judge someone's character is just communication. If you don't keep up with communication, then uh, I don't think we're doing anything.
Speaker 1:Okay, I mean those are fair points. I want to circle back to a question that I think I asked, but I veered off of in a different direction. It's a podcast If you don't have one side tangent it's not a podcast. What?
Speaker 2:do you think Nigeria needs, as a country in order for its local filmmaking scene and its art scene to be able to grow and have much more financial backing and stability? What what we need? It's a lot, but to my own view, my own view, I don't. I had I put it. Now how do I break it down? Okay, let's use football, for instance. Let's use football. Okay, yeah, if there's a like kind of the world cup is coming up, so, um, a lot of people in high places will just use money and fix their own person in in those places due to because they know people, but normal every circumstance. What they do is they send out scout agents to go into the streets, those ghetto streets, look for people who are good in skills, different skills, all around the states. That is what you should spend the money on and this boss money to them. They go into the street, look for people who are, who are skillful, people, who can play in the street without knowing they are being watched. So when you notice this guy is good in this, you bring all of them together. You bring all of them together, educate them in a modify, in this modern century way. Educate them, lecture them, give them everything they need, because so far as it has to do for the nation, the nation can provide everything they need. Then what we do is that to to give them more talent. You can even invite a foreign coach outside who has the huge experience to impact more knowledge on them about this experience. Then you push them to the front line. Not somebody who just came back, somebody who has not been in Nigeria for over 15 or 10 years. He just came back from abroad and he used money and say let him play for his country. Those people are looking for fame. They just they just want to be famous. They just put them in the field, train them. They say they are good for fame. They just they just want to be famous. They just put them in the field, train them. They said they are good in this, they are good in that. But look at people of brazil. That's what brazil do, and a lot of people, a lot of european countries, they also do the same. So my country, my country what's my country really really need? My country need to be on the lookout like create an audition, create a show. Let people come and show their talents. Even if they create a show, create the audition. People will still come from behind with their money and fix their own people, removing the other people aside. That is the problem, not that people cannot.
Speaker 2:So we thank God for YouTube. We thank God for Facebook. We thank God for social media. This time we don't have to go to anybody again to do anything. You can build your own content, creator yourself and post Anybody one of you can view. It wasn't back then. We used to travel from state to state, from street to street, looking for people to hire us. That we can do this, because that doesn't show your talent to a human being. Right now, none of that is possible anymore. You can do your own stuff right in your own house. You can do your own stuff right in your own house. Put it on TikTok, youtube, facebook, instagram. You know name it. So we thank God for all this technology that has advanced so far in order to help us to showcase our talents. Yeah, so if not for Facebook and Instagram and TikTok, I don't think I'll be able to find somebody like you here?
Speaker 1:Probably not. Probably not. Honestly. If it wasn't for YouTube and Facebook and Instagram, I'm not sure how I would have a podcast. Frankly, that's how I find my guests and that's how I get to know people. It's the same. It's the same. I think certainly youtube has given a lot of power, even though it's you know, it's, it was a us born company.
Speaker 1:It's given a lot of power back, uh, into the people of a lot of other different countries. It's not just the US, and I think people from my country are a little bit insulated because we have a really large country. We don't really need to necessarily worry about what's going on elsewhere, because we have our neighbors down the street that might be losing their mind or there's some other thing happening in another state elsewhere in the US, in the in the US, because it's. But there's a lot of other cultures that, yeah, I have go ahead.
Speaker 2:Yeah, likewise. Likewise here too, and that's why it's called chapter. Each movie has its own chapter in every state, so it depends on the chapter you are registered to. I'm talking about my own country, so whatever thing is going on, whatever thing they want to do, their own chapter can look after it. But they have an overall chairman in the whole country in charge of the whole chapters. We call it the Atoz Guide of Nigeria, agn. So it depends on the chapter that you are. Like me, I am in the east chapter, so we have our own chairman.
Speaker 1:Oh, those chapters are. The chapters are the um, the jurisdictions and the districts. That's what they're called there.
Speaker 2:Okay yeah, yes, yes. So, except if the national chairman wants to see you, you have to fly to the headquarters to see the national chairman.
Speaker 1:I see, yeah, well, tell me, I want to know a little bit more about your personal craft. You said that you've written some screenplays, and I'm curious if you had the funding available to accomplish the screenplay that you would ideally like to be able to see come to life.
Speaker 2:What would that?
Speaker 1:story be about, and how do you think you would go about doing that?
Speaker 2:okay, um, for some reasons I will not go deep in what I've written, because it's like something like let's say, I have already sold the copyrights. So, yes, because what I, what I do is, um, what I do is um, I write, I submit proposals. People, if they buy the, if they buy the idea, then buy the story from me. So that is why sometimes when you see a movie, instead of saying story, you see written, written by. Okay, let's just say I'm john, I sold my story to james, so they will now write written by james. Okay, james, so they will now write written by James. Okay, yeah, except, except I have contributed, like I also contributed in the making of the film. Then let's say, along the line they will now write based on the story by John Smith, you understand?
Speaker 2:So most of my stories I've written was all about politics. Most of the scripts I've written but the one I have personally, which I haven't released yet I still hold it onto myself Must be part of the movie, from beginning to the end, because it's a great movie that I have written right from when I was 14. So, yeah, so I still have tower. But most of my stories are stories of politics, blackmails, how they blackmail each other. If you want to be a governor, you want to be a president, want to be a senator, the kind of black males and kind of black males they go through so that your opponent can step down for you to climb into power, and how it leads to violence. And you know a lot of them I've written so far.
Speaker 2:I've also written the one about love, yeah, which is just a prince, and you know, here and there I've written also, and the one I'm currently writing, which if anybody buys the idea it will. That's why I'm trying, if you can go international. It's actually a church movie, kind of from a demonic that has to do with the catholic demonic church, like casting out demon, like an exorcism. So somebody who's an exorcist to cast out demons. You pray, you know you cast out the demons and you know, you just have to do about the church, the catholic church.
Speaker 2:So, uh, you know, praying, bringing out the demons, and you know I'm still writing, actually. So I haven't come to the end of the story yet, because one thing that motivates me in writing is this I don't just sit down and form something, so I take what happened to me each day when I go out, everything that happens around me as I come back during the day, I bring it together, compile it up and I make a story.
Speaker 1:Yeah, when do you feel most inspired in order to be able to write?
Speaker 2:Oh man, well, myself, like I love writing, I love writing. I love writing because when I was in high school, I studied literature to the end, I was the overall best in literature and I won it six times in a row from 2007 to 2012. The best student in literature won it six times in a row. I still have the awards here in my closet, so I spend most of my time in Shakespeare, julius Caesar, you know, a lot of things I read about.
Speaker 2:The literature is there. I have a Tempest Romeo and Juliet. You know a lot of it.
Speaker 1:So classic literature, not just literature, it's the classics and the greats.
Speaker 2:Yeah, so I have a lot of. I have like I love writing, I love writing, I write a lot, so I just love writing.
Speaker 1:Well, I'm also a screenwriter, so I tend to get off into my own head, and sometimes it's very distracting, which begs the question from when. I'm curious about you is when do you feel like you're able to focus the most, and how do you set your environment up when you're going to write? How do you do set your environment up when you're going to write? Do you block out, how do you block out distractions? What do you need as a writer in order to do your best work?
Speaker 2:you think yeah, what I need is honestly what I just need, even if it's a remote job, something that can make me stay away from the outside world, something that can make me not to be answerable to somebody at any point in time. I want to be my own boss so that I can be able to achieve my own aim, because, although one has to survive in one way or the other, so if I was like financially stable, just like have like a small thing going on, a job that doesn't take much of my time during the day, let's say a job who only takes six hours of my time a day, then I can be able to use the rest for my own personal stuff. But right now, the kind of stuff, personal stuff but right now, the kind of stuff I'm into now, the kind of job I'm into hospitality need my services 24 hours 247. So I only it was only there was there would be a particular day. There will be no rush hour, so I just have to rush, do what I gotta do in the film style and come back.
Speaker 2:Even right now, a lot of people are still calling hey, will you be coming out, john? There's a movie, there's a okay, there is, there is this guy who is making an arabic thing somewhere in, somewhere in the town. He's actually from china. So, uh, when he was saying, say, we have this guy who's good in this, but his job always takes him away, and this thing I'm doing, this job I'm doing, is not something that I have to just quit because I gotta survive. I got bills to pay, you understand.
Speaker 2:So, um, so that is, uh, if I can just get something that can just take less of my time, but no matter how little I aim, so far as that it can foot my bills, then let's say, the little one I'm making on the movie side is the one I'm using to sustain my life and my future, or the little job I'm doing is the one to help me take care of my bills and I can be able to pursue my dream. So, maybe, if I start making the little fortune out of life, I can set up a business that, um, I can employ people, people who don't wish to be in the movie stuff, who wish to be distant. They can be able to work for me and I sit at home, do what I gotta do, be my own boss. You understand so and that's why, although there is a guy who is trying to help me see if he can get me a remote job I can do from the US to here.
Speaker 2:So, he was like. So I said, even if it's $100 a week I'm willing to take. It's really, really cool for me. So I just pray, I find one, pray, I find one, and if I find that kind of job, then also I now get people who really want to work with me in this field. Man, within one year, within one year, man, we're going to make the biggest break of our life. Honestly, I have a lot to say.
Speaker 1:What about your associates and your friends that you work with locally? What do they think about the local film scene in your area, and have they also tried to reach out to other people to work with internationally? What has your conversations with them about topics like this been like?
Speaker 2:topics like this been like. Well, I have my friends here in my own local end, here. Like I always told you, greed and selfishness has always been the problem to mankind. You might, okay, you and I might be friends and we work together. Things are moving fine. You're saying something and I'm saying something. Everybody's happy. Then I tried to lure in my fellow African. He was, he is gonna do everything to make sure that you and I are separated, to bring confusion and problem so that you and I can be separated. Then he can rip all the glory, be in descent and the holy guy. So, like everybody, anybody who is coming into your life, there's an interest the person is after. He's not just coming for anything, but interest. If they don't have any interest in you, they wouldn't be messing around with you. So when they see that you're not giving them a chance but you are trying to see if they can prove yourself and if the more you give them, that you cut out any reason.
Speaker 2:They don't have any reason, they don't have any reason to come close to you. So in my own local end, here in my own local end not that I don't have people I can associate with, but I do it just business, just business okay when you're working on projects business Okay.
Speaker 1:When you're working on projects with your associates, what tends to be the most difficult obstacles that you guys have to overcome in order to be able to get the project accomplished?
Speaker 2:Nothing else. We call it rubber. Do you know what is rubber?
Speaker 1:no, what's rubber money?
Speaker 2:it's the same here, yeah, money what else? Again money, and there's what we call a wolf. Do you know what is a wolf?
Speaker 1:if it's money again, then I don't know a woof means money that came surprisingly.
Speaker 2:Like you, you will ask go and buy an orange and you are given one dollar. Then you called and said orange has increased in the market. It's now $10. So they now sent you $9 extra, but you bought the orange $1. So you have $9 to yourself. So now if you happen to go with somebody to the market to buy that orange, he will now say bring the awoof money, let's share.
Speaker 1:Oh, okay said bring the awoof money, let's share oh okay, so it's like so, when that guy difference in the increase of price yes.
Speaker 2:So when that guy wanted to give me one thousand dollars, I knew I knew that three hundred dollars was for the job. But because I don't want to spoil that first engagement, that first friendship of trust and that number one business, that was why why him and I were still having the meeting I said no, it's 300. Because if those my friends were aware there is one thousand, they will insist I should collect the one thousand. But I'm still going to collect the one thousand so that they will not see me as the bad guy like they will not see themselves as the bad guy, me, the good guy. So that was why I decided to do the business, the negotiation with myself, one-on-one with the person, because if we happen to get a one thousand dollars and at the end we spend 300, uh, the remaining 700 is their wolf. We're now sharing.
Speaker 2:But for me to maintain that friendship I know that you see, robbery is easy, robbery is very, very easy. But the problem is after the robbery. That is when problem comes. Sharing, sharing, that is where the problem always comes. You will see a successful robbery, they will rob successfully, but at the end they will still get caught. And why they get caught? After the robbery that is the problem. After the robbery, sharing the sharing is the problem. So if we go down the robbery, that is the problem. After the robbery, sharing the sharing is the problem. So if we go down 700, that is special, say, hey, I do this, I did that, so I should have this one. This all said, no, I did this, I did that, I should be the one to have this one. So I wouldn't want anything to jeopardize my team, at least not now with money. That was why I had to cut it down on time. Anybody who's willing to walk from his heart and take the little he can take home should come. If you don't want to, that's the door you piss off.
Speaker 1:How does your sense of honesty and integrity affect the way you write stories?
Speaker 2:way you write stories. Yeah, my father, my father. You know. I grew up with my dad, right from when I was little to 2020 when he died. My father died five years ago, so my father was a policeman. He was an honest policeman.
Speaker 2:My father worked in the police force for 35 good years, from 1975 to 2010,. He worked in the police force for 35 years and retired me that a lot of people say, hey, your fellow cops, they are building houses, they are buying cars, but you, you just wanna waste, carry the government job on your head. At the end, no compensation. My dad said his pension and his gratuity at the end of the service is okay for him after 35 years. My dad would just pay $1,600. After 35 years of working as he's graduating. He was paid $1,600 back then.
Speaker 2:So what am I saying? Is this Assuming my father lived the life of corruption and theft, because he always warned and said when you are into all these things, there are just two things waiting for you. One is either you live a bad life or you give birth to bad children. These are the two things my father always said. So, assuming my father was into all those corruption stuff back then, which they are still in there. But look at them today, those people who's who said they got money from the police through bribe and corruption? They are building houses. Look at their kids today. They are all drug addicts. Some of them are even in jail for drug trafficking, cocaine and the rest due to because they will grow up in a place where they get everything in a platter of good. But me, where I grow up. Before you get anything you have to suffer first of all. Once you suffer, you will know how to value it because you suffer to get it, so you will not waste it.
Speaker 2:So my inspiration is my father. My inspiration is my father. I know how he used to beat me up for some mistakes I always do. He would say do you know what that cost? Do you know what this thing cost? So it doesn't make me to hate him, it makes me to be careful, to be more careful next time. So I still live with that principles and these are the same principle I'm gonna pass on to my kids, though I'm not married yet. I'm not married, hopefully soon. So my biggest inspiration is him. My biggest inspiration is him, and I see the way he argue with his colleague in the office. Whenever I close from school I visit him in the office. I see the way he argued with his colleague in the office. Whenever I closed from school I visited him in the office. I see the way he argued with his friends and the kind of english word he speaks. It really motivates me. I would just write it down. I will write it down.
Speaker 2:There is a, there is a place, my father said. My father made a statement to this guy that really thought she saw. So there was this guy who always bullies me in school. He always bullies me, so it it becomes in public. I told him the same word. My father told the other guy and this guy was like he calmed down.
Speaker 2:Everybody was like, wow, who gave this guy this, this knowledge? Who gave you this knowledge? So I just said, I just smiled and said that's my life. So I remain grateful to my father. Even in death I'm still grateful and loyal to him. So I keep saying that God bless his old bones and he continue to rest in peace. So he was my biggest inspiration back then. Even till now he's still my inspiration because I still live with his principles. So it hasn't landed me into jail. Nobody can go to any station and say there's a complaint about me, there's a misconduct about me, if I want to join the military today, my records are clear, my data is all clear because I live a life of honesty. The only problem I get with people of your kind, the amer, is just that I'm a black man, so they feel that everybody's a thief, everybody's a scammer. Yes, we are all searching for our daily bread. Like there is this comedic quotes. I always say. I always tell people do you know the only scam that God gave us?
Speaker 1:What.
Speaker 2:The stomach, the stomach, the stomach.
Speaker 1:Yeah, you're not wrong.
Speaker 2:Yeah, if not for greediness. If not for greediness like what you're going to eat and put in your tummy, I don't see any reason why somebody have to steal from somebody, somebody have to dupe somebody or defraud somebody. The stomach is the only scan God gave us. So everything we are doing is what we have to put from, like have to put food in the table to put in our mouth. So I don't blame anybody who choose that way of life. So I don't blame anybody, because everybody has to survive. But it's certainly not good and it's evil, put in the sight of man and in the sight of God as well. So I believe that hard work pays. When they say God bless you, it's when you work hard, when you work truly hard. That is when God will come and bless the hard work. Then you will see the fruit of your labor. So back to your question. My father is my biggest inspiration. He is my biggest inspiration.
Speaker 1:What if more Westerners reached out to you know, as an example, people like yourself in Nigeria or elsewhere? What do you think would be a great way to? One, approach them in a way that lets them know that they're serious about potentially working together. And two, making sure that they know that who they're talking to on the other end is also an honest person.
Speaker 2:Okay, well, well, that is, um, that's, and I've always said maintain honesty. If you maintain honesty, people will be willing to grant you audience to hear what you have to say. If they buy the idea, they will say the only question they need to ask is how do we make it happen? Then you will say this is what we're gonna do, so you maintain honesty and loyalty. So in this film, in this film industry, nobody is small. Even the smallest child in the town who is also an actor, a, a director, is not small.
Speaker 2:You just have to bow, mellow down, humble, bow to your superiors, respect them so that they can carry you along in what they are doing when you finally have your wings strong, because birds, birds they don't just start flying, they fall down and get up, you understand. So when they fall down, they get up, they fall down, they don't just start flying, they fall down and get up, you understand. So when they fall down, they get up, they fall down, they get up until their wings are more stronger. So when you work with these people, you humble, despite the fact. They are selfish, they are greedy, they are wicked, they are evil. Yes, be patient, work with them. By the time you've created enough contact for yourself and you have mastered the game, know how the game works, then you make your hit.
Speaker 1:Where do you hope to eventually grow as a filmmaker and a storyteller, and are there any other technical skill sets that you think that you would like to learn in order to be able to accomplish what you'd like to do?
Speaker 2:well, each day that passes, we will learn. Nobody's perfect, you understand. Hmm so, mm-hmm, so, um, so what? I? I just hope like. I just I just hope for the best. I don't know, I mean fair enough fair enough.
Speaker 1:It's like I don't know what's gonna happen, but I hope it's okay, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, sure, sure, sure.
Speaker 2:So all you have to do is just keep your hands clean, uplift your hands, just do the right thing and leave the rest for nature.
Speaker 1:That's the thing that I've noticed about a lot of your responses. Is that it which gives me a little bit of an insight into you know, one perspective of Nigerian culture is that you've broken a lot of. It seems like society is broken up into those who respect their neighbor and those who treat others the way that they would like to be treated, and then there are those who take advantage of one another. Would you say that that is an accurate read into what I'm starting to see?
Speaker 2:Okay, okay, okay Okay. You see why it is rumored that America is the country that has the world power right yeah.
Speaker 1:Now let me ask you one question. Have you sometimes wondered why you guys hardly quarrel with each?
Speaker 2:other I'd say it's probably because we're a young country and there's a lot of siblings. We act like siblings. I think, no, that's not it, this is it All right.
Speaker 2:You guys speak one language with one voice. What kills other countries is tribalism, different languages, different languages, different understanding. If you are a president, you will prefer somebody from your own tribe, your brother, to be in the same power with you, kicking the other tribe people out. So the other tribe will try everything possible to kick you guys out, for them to be in power. That is the only thing that is killing Africa Tribalism, different languages in one country. This one is from this tribe, this one is from this. This tribe, this one is from this tribe. This one is from this tribe.
Speaker 2:The majority will be oppressing the minority and that is the commotion. If they can do it in a way that this tribe on your own, this tribe on your own. But it's just that what I have, you don't have it, and what you have, I don't have it. So we feel like we need each other, but still, even if we get to the power, you still want your own brother, your own person, your own tribe, to be there, and me, I will be feeling cheated, even if we try to separate. You have oil, I don't have oil. You have good, I don't have good. So we need each other. That is the problem. That is the problem tribalism. This tribalism is the problem. If we speak one language, we will be talking with one voice, planning with one mind, engaging on works, with one honest box.
Speaker 2:This one will say I am from this tribe, I don't know the next person that is coming into power if he's going to retain me, so therefore, let me steal as much as I can now that I am in this particular government, in this regime, because I don't know the next tribe that will come if he's going to retain me because we're not from the same tribe. So let me steal as much as I want. And when this one we go, another one we come, it will now say let me steal as much as I want, forgetting that there are people back home waiting for results. So these are, these are the kind of scripts I write and these are the kind of stories I want to make with people, to tell the world like sometimes it's not all about the film, it's a message, to tell them that this is our problem. So these are the things I want to do and, by the grace of god, I will achieve it in my own lifetime and I will be alive and make it happen. That's one thing I've always said to myself these are the kind of politics script I want to write to pass a message that this is our problem.
Speaker 2:Okay, if what is happening in this country is giving me concern, I will write a story, I will do my research, I will write a story and say it, and then we see it indirectly, in an irony way, that this is the problem. This is certainly their problem. Perhaps if god touches their mind, they might say, okay, let's see, since we have made a movie like this and it's quite touching, but it's so touching, let's see if we can make an adjustment with this here and there. Yes, and even if the movie goes far, even if the movie goes far and we make a fortune out of it, at least 30 percent should go to that legion that is suffering from that thing that we wrote about in, in a way to support, because this is a sign from god. That said, uh, okay, this is a way, and once we make the first move, you see, government will come in.
Speaker 2:So these are the kind of stories I really want to write. These are the kind of things I want to do, not all this. Hey, hey, hey, fuck you asshole. Hey, fuck blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah Right.
Speaker 1:Well, it's been absolutely wonderful. You're my first international guest, so thank you for coming on. It's been great getting to see and hear other perspectives, because this is something I've been wanting to do and to talk to other people outside of my own borders. I hope to get a lot of other countries you know, eventually on the podcast, but it's been a pleasure getting to know you. Is there anything that you would like to leave with the audience as a final thought?
Speaker 2:Thank you so much. Whenever you need me, we're always ready. Anytime, any day, we're always here.
Speaker 1:Okay, We'll do Well, John. Thanks for coming on the podcast. I appreciate it.
Speaker 2:Thank you very much.
Speaker 1:Have a good one.
Speaker 2:You too.