By Adejumobi Oluwatomiloba 

Recently, Cheesemonger introduced a social media series tagged Firsts in collaboration with Film Rats Club. The intention was to provide a sort of minute historical insight into Nigerian filmmakers’ filmography, with attention focused on the first crew members they ever worked with. The question: Who was the first Cinematographer you ever worked with? was asked and there were enthusiastic responses from filmmakers.  Akinyosoye Elisha, was among some other filmmakers who responded to this thread. This prompted a brief conversation with the filmmaker to discuss his collaboration with his first cinematographer.

Elisha, on his Twitter( now X) bio, describes himself as the Best African Actor. The producer behind Life Film Productions, a YouTube-based TV platform, he has produced movies reflecting the Christian faith. One of his notable works, Hostile Rage, a 27-minute short, speaks on the destructive nature of anger and its consequences on marital homes, especially spotlighting issues like adultery. Producing aside, Elisha’s page is subtly littered with monologues and acting reels—some produced by Nutcases, further revealing his remarkable acting talent. During this interview, he not only recounts his experience working with CrownMike Adewunmi, his first cinematographer on the production of Hostile Rage a short film,  but also highlights the silver lining and creative growth that come with such collaborations. He also mentions two other works they collaborated on: The Ransom, a feature, and also, a student film they had both directed in 2019. 

On your collaboration with Crownmike Adewumi as your first cinematographer, you must have conceptualised a visual style and tone you wanted to achieve during the pre-production stage. What made you particularly work with this cinematographer? What set him apart from other cinematographers, and what made him your top choice for this project?

Thank you! So before my first work with CrownMike Adewumi, I had seen links to his previous works on Facebook and some short clips. Watching those clips and projects on YouTube gave me a feeling of confidence that he was the right person for the project.

It was a low budget production and he could achieve the aim with the kind of gadgets we had available, so it was an easy decision to bring him on the project. Also, we were both students of OAU ILE-IFE at the time, so we were near each other, so it was easier to work together.

Were there moments where he felt constrained by your direction or felt like his creative input wasn’t being heard?  Did you ever find yourself imposing your ideas on him, or could you strike a balance between sharing your vision and giving him the freedom to contribute his ideas?

Yes, we had quite a number of bent lines along the way, let me put it like that. But what made it easier to deal with was the fact that I was new in the job and he was more experienced. So I had to give in a number of times, although without compromising my idea of the project and vision. So sometimes, I had to let go of some things for his expert opinion, and he also had to let go of some things for my creative opinion. But I was always welcoming to ideas from him and other crew and cast members. That really saved us a lot of times during the project. 

What lessons did you learn from his expertise, if there were any?

One, it takes a community to make a film, you can never do it alone. Always be in good terms with your crew members, they can determine if your film will make it eventually or not. Your creative ideas will only come to life if you can make your crew and cast members understand the vision you see.

Could you describe what sort of Cinematographer he was at that time, based on his previous works?  And how exactly would you say his style aligned with your vision?

He was a budding cinematographer but way more experienced than I was at the time. He was very creative and could achieve anything with just little. 

Did you have the opportunity to work with him again after the first production?

Yes. We did a couple of projects afterwards. And in the future we’ll still do more.