The Things He Carries: Bolaji Kekere Ekun

Soure: NDANI

We think it’s safe to say that Bolaji Kekere-Ekun, knows how to rock a backpack better than most. High off the recognition of his feature in the ‘I Am Sean John” campaign, the filmmaker continues to carve a niche space within the film industry in Nigeria, and throughout the diaspora. Known by many for his short film “Nkiru” and Tiwa Savage‘s music video “Ife Wa Gbona”, the niche space Bolaji occupies deserves recognition for it’s simultaneous accessibility. For the next edition of “The Things He Carries” we had a great conversation with Kekere-Ekun on what to expect from him next and of course the items he carries with him throughout his days. Check out our exclusive interview with filmmaker Bolaji Kekere-Ekun below:

When I moved back in 2010- I looked around at the entertainment scene and culture scene and saw that it was really growing. People were having a lot of events- the art scene was booming, but no one was documenting any of it, so I started going out with my camera to different events- shooting things and putting them online on the 37th State blog which celebrates African culture and lifestyle so that’s how we got the idea for 37th State. It’s a collective of different filmmakers, trying to do interesting things. It’s that simple.

I don’t have a profound story on wanting to be a filmmaker. I wanted to do my master’s and at the time I was doing music and I used to write a lot and watch films so I was like what can I do that’s going to combine my three passions? Film seemed like the obvious choice,  so I applied to two schools, USC and UCLA. UCLA said no and USC said yes, and USC was the better school, so it worked out.

Film school was great.  It was like play to be honest.  It was interesting being in a place where everyone is at the top of their game; there was constant pressure and expectations were really high but I made some great connections and some good friends so it was a good experience.

Right now 37th state has a few projects- Hennesy Artistry which started in July and it’s ending in October, but we do all the video production for that, and that’s been fun. I just got back from France- filming D’banj being D’bjanj- crazy entertainment.

We’re also working on a documentary on agriculture in Nigeria so I just got back from Kwara state. We we were filming the launch of a rice mill, which was interesting. It’s great being able to explore and document different parts of the country. While were there we also took some great shots from the 37th state blog. We saw these cattle herders, who have this crazy sense of style and they hang their cellphones from their necks- dressed fashionably while chasing cows!

For myself? I am trying to decide what to do next. I have a few ideas for a short film, a few scripts ready, I’m jus trying to deicide what is best to do first. My long term plan is to do 3 short films and a feature film after that, but I want to perfect my craft- I don’t want to rush into making a feature film. I also want get the business end of it right because as an artist- it’s very easy to get lost in your art but there’s a business side to it, so now before I go out and do any crazy projects, I want to make sure I have an effective business model in place. I also have a web series that I wrote, which is a comedy- so we’ll see how that goes. I’m also working on a TV show with a friend of mine, fellow 37th state filmmaker and Osiris Entertainment CEO Abba Makama, so we’ll see how that goes as well

So I got an e-mail one day from the Sean Jean PR agency and they said they were doing a new campaign this year and they didn’t want to use model. They were looking for real people and wanted someone international. They said they took note of my work and wanted to use me. When they asked me if I wanted to be featured I was like ‘hell yeah!’ but at first I was a bit cautious that it was a high level e-mail scam- like they targeted me specifically you know? it wasn’t till the ticket worked at the airport that it actually sunk in. Actually- once I passed immigration! It was a good experience, I was there for 4 days and it was great meeting people. It was my first photo shoot- I usually don’t do that kind of thing ever. The money from the campaign was donated to a charity called Bake for Change based here in Lagos. They do a lot of good work in Lagos supporting children and the elderly.

IN MY BAG

Let’s do it like this- as a filmmaker and the head of my business at any point in time I have to be ready- in my bag you’ll find DVD’s and cases just in case I need to burn a DVD. You’ll find a internet handle because I always have to be connected to check up on the blog or general business. Of course my laptop which I always need. I also carry a book and right now I’m carrying a book by a friend of mine Helen Oyeyemi- her latest Mr. Fox inspired a short film I wrote. I always like to keep up on her stuff, she has a very poetic style of writing so it’s very inspiring.

I’m also a bit of a sound snob. I take sound very seriously. In film school my concentrations were directing and sound design- so I’m a qualified sound designer and mixer which means when I’m watching a film I like to hear everything and of course you need really good headphones for that (Bowers & Wilkins available at Amazon).

I’m always trying to promote a balanced image of Africa- things that make people proud to be African. I don’t know that I’m part of the film industry here, yet. I have one short film that I’ve completed so far (Nkiru)- it went out online and it was me testing the waters seeing if I could keep a bit of Nollywood sensibility yet, also make it accessible to an international audience. I just wanted to make something. The next thing I did that was sort of film-esque was the music video for Tiwa Savage “Ife Wa Gbona”, which had a story. It got seven nominations at the Nigerian music awards and we even won two. For me it was great that what I wanted to do, which was promote an African image that people can relate to- we achieved. Hopefully with my next film we can get that balance right again. We’ll see what happens.