AMVCA 2025 nominees Ini Dima-Okojie, Mike Afolarin and Elozonam Ogbolu sat down with host Tope Olowoniyan for the premiere of Lights, Camera, It’s My Turn. What emerged was less a glossy awards preview than an honest portrait of three rising talents navigating personal milestones, professional trials and the very mechanics of their craft.
When Validation Hits Home
“I told myself I didn’t care about awards… and then I cried,” Ini Dima-Okojie confided, recalling her first AMVCA nomination in 2023 for her role in ‘Flawsome’ in the Best Actress in a drama category. The moment of raw vulnerability—after years of insisting she was “just doing it for the passion”—set the emotional stakes for everything she pursues next.
Surviving the Skeleton Coast
Fresh from that confession, Dima-Okojie described the rigours of shooting ‘Skeleton Coast’, the thriller that earned her a best supporting actress nod in this year’s AMVCA, in Namibia.
By day, temperatures climbed past 40 °C; by night, they plunged toward freezing. Hyenas prowled just beyond camp. Working alongside crews from Nigeria, South Africa, Ghana and Namibia, she learnt that true dedication often happens far from red carpets.
“We had to pack up before the animals came out,” she laughed. “It felt like an expedition, not a movie set.”
Carving Out a Breakout Moment
For Mike Afolarin, success hinged on creative agency. When he discovered the pivotal father-son confrontation in ‘House of Gaa’ was slated for day one of production, he pressed the director to reschedule.
“That’s the most important scene in the film,” he argued.
His insistence paid off: by shooting deeper into the schedule, he delivered a nuanced, “relatable” performance that earned him his first AMVCA nomination—and a breakout spotlight among the very veterans he once admired.
As the conversation continued, creator Elozonam Ogbolu offered a masterclass in resourcefulness. Tasked with a time-freeze sequence for his three-minute short Who is Sarah?, he reached for the most ordinary prop—his dog’s chew toy—and filmed it against a green screen in his living room. Over late-night video calls, his brother in the Netherlands guided every masking and compositing step.
Watch the full episode of ‘Lights, Camera, It’s My Turn’
From tears of validation to desert trials, from reshuffling pivotal scenes to pioneering DIY special effects, Ini Dima-Okojie, Mike Afolarin and Elozonam Ogbolu exemplify what it means to work in film and digital media. Their stories underscore one truth: perseverance, authenticity and ingenuity are just as vital as talent.
