January 14, 2021

A woman of about 53 years saw one of my films sometime ago and started shedding tears. That is one of the best reaction and feedback I have gotten since my venture into film making. I hope to be able to create a virus in such a way that my film becomes a tool for total transformation of the human soul. Kenneth Agabata is a Dancer, Choreographer, Fitness Trainer & Filmmaker. Here he takes us through his idea of film and dance films in particular. He has made a couple of short dance films from Oblivion (2019) to Be Kind (2019) both of which are unique in the world they belong. FR: Tell us about your decision to venture into making films KA: My decision to venture into filmmaking reels from my passion for telling stories with dance. I’ve always believed that dance is a very powerful tool for telling stories, because before man had written language there has been body language and dance is probably one of the best forms of body language out there… in my opinion. So I figured that film making is actually a good way to visually tell my stories and reach out to the large audience that need to hear these stories, not forgetting the fact that I like to be different in everything I do. I decided that dance film hasn’t really been harnessed in Nigeria and therefore could be what sets me apart in the world of film making. FR: What would you like to achieve with your films? KA: I want to be able to tell stories that affect people’s lives, I want to be able to touch people’s lives with my film. A woman of about 53 years saw one of my films about somedays ago and she started shedding tears, that is one of the best reaction and feedbacks I have gotten since my venturing into film making. I hope to be able to create a virus in such a way that my film becomes a tool for total transformation in the society. “Oblivion is a dance film about a happy couple cut mid-air by the bloody band of herdsmen” FR FR: What are the challenges of making a dance film especially in an industry such as ours? KA: I feel one of it is financing. I am not like super rich, and I am just making films out of passion. So I think that affects everything since there is no commercial intent to it at the moment, so having to find like-minds that are ready to believe in your dreams at this moment and want to participate for almost free could prove challenging. Also the technicalities needed in achieving an almost perfect performance can be quite mind blowing, from getting an actor that can dedicate his time and effort towards interpreting a character and also dance well- sometimes it is about getting an actor that can dance or a dancer that can act- to creating a choreography and having it conform with the space available for action. A lot of things come into place, especially when a place is not available to rehearse the choreography before shoot or when you cannot lock down a street before the shoot, these could be quite challenging. And lastly, there is the problem of availability of personnel. Since they work on subsidized payment, getting them to honour your schedule can prove tasking, so basically it is the technicalities and finance. FR: What would you say is the future of dance films in Nigeria? KA: Well, the production of dance films in Nigeria especially as a measure for societal change hasn’t really been explored in Nigeria, one would wonder if it is due to the physical strain as much as the mental and financial, but seeing the growing interest in dance and having youths such as myself being interested in dance films, I believe that we can get to a point where this style will be shown regularly on our screens and Nigerians will want much more than the normal thereby making it well recongnized, and hopefully, we will get it right and have enough investors that believe in our work enough to drop the bills. FR: Tell us about your inspirations and mentors in Nigeria and why have you chosen them? KA: As weird as this might sound, my inspiration comes from God Almighty. I think I have a gift of seeing and feeling the things around me: people’s pain, people’s anger, the little mishaps in the society which others would see and probably pass over, but then to me it is these things, which I will term “the common” that build up materials for my thoughts and gives me the burning desire to go out and see what little change i can make when wielding my tool of dance, choreography and the process of filmmaking. In the process of doing this, I believe I am touching lives About my mentors: In dance, I have Chibuzoer Ikonta popularly known as Slim. He is the CEO Body Language. He has been a great “sensei” in molding my dance abilities and dance views. Apart from teaching me the dance styles, he has been like a big brother. He has helped keep the dance in me pure, real and not to derail. His passion and sense of direction, resilience has rubbed off on me and is a source that I can always go and tap from. For Film, I wouldn’t particularly say I have a mentor in Nigeria, but the one person I admire his works and thoughts is Solomon Essang, he is a Cinematographer and Director. I like him because I like his view about Filmmaking, his thoughts about the role of planning. He was actually the first person who gave me an insight on how to direct and shoot a dance movie, in terms of lighting, costuming, character development, colour choice, location choice and so on. FR: Which dance film do you

Conversation with Writer & Director Gilbert Bassey on his short film ANANZE AND THE ZIPMAN (2021)  “Your imagination is your power” The title subtly reminds me of the Ashanti folk hero – Anansi the spider and his adventures. Known for his mischief, wisdom, trial and triumphs.  Like the spider stories, Ananze and the Zipman circles around a dark web of corruption as our protagonist Zipman fights injustice. A film that require your listening ear as the filmmaker speaks through Zipman (Uzoamaka Aniunoh) as she delivers an impeccable monologue taking us into the world of her intent and actions.    “people like you blind us to the reality that all it takes to create real change is action. You lie everyday overstating your importance and power, thereby killing our moral to act.” FR: Your film is memorable in its conceptual framework, from writing to production design. Why did you make this film? GB: I made the film for different reasons: To make something that spoke to the situation of Nigeria in some way, shape, or form. I had to adapt the script to fit this desire. Originally, the script was about rape and revenge. But I had to rework the direction because I’ve not had a personal experience with rape and felt I wouldn’t be able to offer an ingenious depiction. FR: Great. Is this your first short film? GB: Nah. There’s this black and white 7-mins beauty, you can check it out here https://youtu.be/gFX8N5CuGtE . It’s titled Wole’s Revenge, it was made in 2019 FR: Wole’s Revenge is “beautiful”; an impressive visual metaphor evident in the film and as seen in your recent short film. What inspires your stories? GB: My interests, likes, and dreams (aspirations). I’m interested in the mind, life, self, progress, freedom, etc. I like spectacular stories, stuff that’s not normal. I like storytelling that messes with time and scene arrangements. I like sci-fi, action, thriller, fantasy, adventure. Mostly sci-fi and thriller. But I don’t like stuff that’s too weird sha. There’s a nice balance to have. Christopher Nolan seems to know how to strike it. Of all the things I dream of, a better Nigeria is at the apex of the apex. It’s so overwhelming that nothing seems to compare. As in, every other thing seems to flow from there. For example, a key function of most of my stories is to reshape the Nigerian mindset, or at the very least, present another lens from which to view our reality, one that’s solution driven as opposed to escapist or  complainist. FR: “..to reshape the Nigerian mindset…” In your recent film, how would you say you were able to do this? I see the socio-political commentary present, however, how does it intend to drive a solution as you have suggested? GB: Lol. I can’t say what it is because it’s political. However, it’s self-evident, whether you’re aware of it or not. Though I’ll admit, the goal of this one wasn’t so much to reshape a mindset as it was to introduce an alternate consideration. In my world, reshaping the mindset is a more positive act, one that promotes/suggests/propagates the right kind of ideas that I think could get us out of where we are. FR: Let’s talk about your idea of vengeance. Ananze and The Zipman is built around an act of revenge. Are you of the opinion that to attain peace, war/violence is expedient? GB: On the contrary, I think war is the worst thing that could happen. When the violence starts, it won’t take long before we forget why we’re fighting. Also, don’t forget that there are people with arms to sell and aid to give, and the moment war starts, their only goal will be to prolong the war as much as possible so that they can keep benefiting. This doesn’t even take into consideration the world political struggle that will ensue over which world powers will increase their influence in the African continent. Then the starvation. Oh the starvation. Also don’t forget the destruction, because of all things, this is the worst. When the dust settles, which country would we be living in? Whenever in doubt, look at Syria and what happened. If violence is to be the way, then only one kind can work. Targeted violence, one that is effective and doesn’t usurp the peace we currently enjoy. Violence that does its research to know exactly who the enemy is, and focuses its chaos there and only there. FR: What is your idea of superheroes? What would you define as their function? GB: In my view, the primary function of superheroes is to point us to the better parts of our nature. Their secondary function is to help us fulfill wishes we can never attain in real life. Some people could say that their function is to give us hope, but if that were true, that would be a lie. Superman doesn’t give me hope because I know his story is a total fabrication. I can learn from him, but I can’t draw hope from him. He doesn’t live in my world. Rather, I see what he stands for and it appeals to me. It helps me understand that that is good and the bad guy is bad. In Zipman’s case, her call to superhero hall of fame is the overriding sense of justice—which is taken so far that it becomes an evil unto itself (in her full character arc). Given the level of injustice in this country, it’s hard for one not to feel the need to create a superhero who helps retain some sense of justice. FR: “overriding sense of justice — which is taken so far that it becomes an evil unto herself” Is this what the red door means? (As we constantly see) That she is trapped in her own imagination/eagerness to revenge. GB: Oh…I’m not that meta. Haha! The red door simply signifies a transition into another layer of existence. Regarding the quote you referenced, I