On-the-rise actress, Joke Lawal is living up to the title bestowed on her in 2016 as Nollywood New Bride by White Cowry Awards as the one-time City People Awards nominee is rapidly becoming a force to reckon with in the make-believe world.
The Moshood Abiola Polytechnic graduate who dumped her degree in Business Administration in pursuit of her passion for acting in a chat with Potpourri has revealed what she hates about being an actress and what she would love to see a change in the movie-making landscape.
“I would like to change people’s perception of actresses. A lot of people think of actresses as prostitutes, they see us as people who are not worthy of marriage and having a family. If I have the power this is something I will like to change. I will also like to see a change in the way our stories are written and interpreted, and in the quality of our film productions. Another thing I would like to change too is, how poorly actors are paid. As a producer, I will like a situation where I can pay every actor that works on my project even if the person acts in just one scene. As an upcoming actress, I acted in movies and didn’t get paid but because I was still new in the industry I didn’t have a choice. God help me, these are things I will like to change in the movie industry,” she said.
The actress also explained why actors in the English-speaking sector appear to be more affluent and comfortable than their Yoruba-speaking counterparts.
“In the Yoruba part of the industry some people have the idea of doing what I call padi padi, where for example, I work on your production for free and you will do the same for me. I don’t really like that idea but then I have some people that I work for without collecting money because it is my way of appreciating them for giving me opportunities in the past. Meanwhile, I have acted in some English series like Hustle, Battleground and others and I got paid for my work.
Joke Lawal began acting in 2009 and has featured in films like ‘Alayaki, Aye La Bowo and many others but it was the movie ‘Campus Life’ that shot her into the limelight.
