AFRICA’S MOST RESEARCHED FILM AUTEUR, TUNDE KELANI BAGS HONOURARY DOCTORATE DEGREE

Joseph Omoniyi and Bukola Lasisi

Africa’s most researched film auteur and culture advocate, Tunde Kelani, will be formally conferred on Monday, 12th December 2022, with the honourary academic award, Doctor of Letters (Honoris Causa), by the Lead City University, Ibadan, Oyo state.

The multitalented ace cinematographer, director, and producer had received a letter of nomination for the honourary award (Honoris Causa) dated 14th of September, 2022, signed by the Registrar and Secretary General of Council to the Institution, Dr. (Mrs.) Oyebola Ayeni on behalf of the Chancellor.

The prestigious award, which will be presented during the University’s 15th Convocation on the 12th of December, is in consideration of Tunde Kelani’s immense contribution to the arts, cultural documentation, and theatrical traditions of the Yoruba and African culture as well as to the recognition of his professional accomplishments as a photographer, media personnel, journalist, filmmaker, producer and cinematographer of repute.

The 74-year-old expressed his appreciation of the conferment, saying, “I associated with writers and academics from the beginning of my career, which gave my work a greater depth. I, therefore, appreciate the award from a reputable Institution, Lead City University. I shall continue to do my best to justify this honour and the support of my colleagues, family, friends, benefactors, and our audiences everywhere”.

The veteran’s portfolio of works has been a blessing and a vehicle of exportation not just to the rich cultural heritage and tradition of the Yoruba but also to promote the nation’s image, archiving the history of Nigeria, and educating the next generation.

MEET DR TUNDE KELANI

TK was born in Lagos on 26th February, 1948, but he didn’t grow up in Lagos. At age 5, he was sent to live with his grandparents in the ancient city of Abeokuta. He attended the Oke-Ona Primary School, Ikija, Abeokuta, and then the Abeokuta Grammar school for his secondary education. Tunde’s grandfather was a Chief (the Balogun of Ijaiye Kukudi), and Tunde was privileged to have witnessed most aspects of Yoruba ways of life, the Yoruba religion, Yoruba literature, Yoruba philosophy, Yoruba environments, and Yoruba tradition at close quarters. He was introduced to Yoruba literature early in his life and was greatly influenced by the theatre as the Yorubas had a strong travelling theatre tradition at that time. When he was in secondary school, he saw most of the great Yoruba theatre classics, including the Palmwine Drinkard, Oba Koso, Kurunmi, Ogunde plays and many more.

As a director of numerous blockbusters in English and indigenous Nigerian language, TK (as he is popularly called), whose career spans over five decades, has been lauded for uniquely proving the enduring value of African cultural heritage in general and precisely Yoruba culture.

After his secondary school education, Tunde Kelani was just a photography apprentice, learning the ropes to one day become a great photographer himself. But that was not the course his life would take. Instead, he became a trainee cameraman at Western Nigeria Television. He then saved up to study at the London International Film School in the 1970s, making his first independent film shortly after graduation. The Dilemma of Rev. Father Michael (Idaamu Paadi Minkailu) was adapted from a book written by the poet, academic, translator, and playwright with Adebayo Faleti, a Nollywood icon and the first-ever Yoruba news anchor in Nigeria. The screenplay for the film was done by Lola Fani-Kayode, the TV producer known for creating the classic series, Mirror in the Sun. Tunde also completed a diploma in the Art and Technique of Filmmaking at the London Film School.

While in London, he had a stint as a journalist. Tunde worked for the BBC and Reuters, covering the Ethiopian drought and travelling to Zimbabwe thrice to cover the nation’s independence.

The multi-award winner stands out among his peers and contemporaries, even younger filmmakers. He produces technically high-quality films, capturing sources that attest to contemporary human conditions and the core aspects of our cultural identity.

Kelani’s manner of presenting his movies marks him far from everyone else. From engagements with artists of the highest reputation and popularity, which remains constant, to his collaborations with intellectual personalities, which continue to have certain effects on the entirety of the themes, subject matters of his films, his plots, settings, costumes, and makeups all reflect deliberate efforts.

After his first independent film, a series of cinematography gigs followed some 16mm feature films, including Anikura, Ogun Ajaye; Iya Ni Wura; Taxi Driver; Iwa and Fopomoyo. By 1990, Tunde Kelani was the assistant director and acted in the first American movie to be shot in Nigeria titled Mister Johnson – an adaptation of the 1939 novel by Joyce Cary. Pierce Brosnan and Maynard Eziashi starred in the film.

With a preference for adapting literary works, he has been referred to as a ‘bridge between the first generation of Nigerian filmmakers and the Nollywood era’. TK fortified the proverbial bridge when he established a film school, Mainframe Film and Media Institute (MFMI), in Abeokuta, Ogun state. MFMI commenced operations in June 2016 to nurture a new generational capacity and hone the skills of the existing filmmakers for the challenges of tomorrow. MFMI’s faculties include Joke Muyiwa Fadirepo, Bola Bello, Femi Odugbemi, Wale Ojo, Niji Akanni, Olatunji Afolayan, Muritala Sule, Doyin Hassan, Ropo Ewenla, Steve Sodiya, amongst others are among the best hands-on-trainers in any part of the country.

In 1991, Tunde Kelani started his own production company, Mainframe Films and Television Productions, because he wanted to produce films and not just lend technical support. Having emerged from the world of theatre and literature himself, adaptations of books and plays for cinema are the core of Kelani’s filmmaking practice, and through them, he celebrates writers and their works to the generation he describes as a ‘public that reads less and less.

At Mainframe, he has produced movies such as Ti Oluwa Nile, Ayo Ni Mo Fe, Koseegbe, Oleku, Thunderbolt (Magun), Saworoide, Agogo Eewo, The Campus Queen, Abeni, Narrow Path, Arugba and Maami, Dazzling Mirage, Ayinla, Cordelia and currently working on late Sikiru Ayinde Barrister’s biopic.

Tunde Kelani exhibits a certain inner glow as a film father figure to those who wish to learn from him or aspire to be part of his projects. He does not only educate the younger generation in the art of filmmaking and cinematic practices, but he prepares them for taking over in the future, knowing that they will be required to shape the film industry in years to come. He has devoted himself to this for many years, one which he continues to undertake munificently and gracefully.

Though he might not call himself a fashion icon, his style is essentially afro-centric. From his aso-oke caps to his foot wears, every detail speaks of his commitment to African culture and makes his everyday attire a reminder of who he is. His T-shirts usually have slogans sourced from such African fabric as Adire and Ankara, just as his formal wears are. He is easy to spot from the crowd, what with his signature style.

Kelani has been instrumental in several film festivals in Nigeria. No wonder he was appointed by President Mohammadu Buhari as the Chairman of the National Film and Video Censors Board, which was seen by some of his admirers and contemporaries as a rare bull’s eye. A position he was said to have relinquished out of principles and sincerity of purpose.

Tunde Kelani Awards and Recognitions include but are not limited to the following:

• Recipient of the prestigious ‘Africa Reel Award’ at the Silicon Valley African Film Festival (SVAFF), California, USA, in 2012.
• NMA Lifetime Achievement Award in 2014.
• Member of Emmy Awards International Jury in 2015.
• Angenieux Award (Prix du Public) at Nollywood week 2015.
• African Magic Viewer’s Choice (AMVCA) Industry Merit Award in 2018.
• Ecran d’Honneur award at the 22nd edition of the Ecrans Noirs Film Festival in July 2018.
• He was elected to vote in the Directors Category of the Board of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, also known as ‘The Oscars’ in 2019.
• Leopold Sedar Senghor Prize for African Cultural Creativity and Impact in 2019.
• He is a visiting Fellow at the Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta, Ogun state.

He is one of the most successful movie producers. TK is married to Toun Kelani, and their union is blessed with two children.