By: Ukan Kurugh
For a couple of days running into weeks, the social media was entertained with pornographic movies acted in Makurdi the Benue State Capital. A situation that painted the state in negative light. While the story was paddled from one youth to the other in what became talk of the town, I wasn’t in a hurry to post about it but resorted to an intensive investigation about the circumstances that birthed such a production.
I have made my findings as my report comes even with verifiable contacts for inquisitive minds.
While the Actors Guild of Nigeria (AGM) and the Association of Movie Producers (AMP), Benue State Chapters were quick to denounce the movies and the actors contained therein, it is pertinent to note that, in December 2016, the Actors Guild of Nigeria in collaboration with the producers of the movie who were alien to Benue State advertised an audition for the production of a movie titled “Desperate Models” and personally invited some of the actors in question to be part of it, hence they had a reputation of acting in local movies within and outside the state.
The meeting/auditioning was held at Eunice Resort, Makurdi where these actors agreed to be part of the movie. The Actors Guild of Nigeria through her president, one Benjamin Ugwueze who can be reached on 08036291236 handed the said actors contract forms and informed them of their move to take 30% but later settled for 5% from the earnings of actors who were yet to be registered with the professional body. The Association of Movie Producers too were in the know of this and followed the production of the movie. Mrs. Roseline Okoli who is their president can be reached on 07035154070.
The producer of the movie that the actors had put in for (Desperate Models), Mr. Derick Walters, a Benin man based in Lagos started the production in late December, 2016 but complained of shortage of finance and said he was going to Lagos to reinforce and come back to continue the production in January.
It was on that ground that he left. Prior to his return, the movie which was yet to be finished rented the social media with huge pornographic scenes and bearing two titles of “Feast of Death” and “iPhone 7 Bae” that the actors and actresses know nothing about. The producer as at the time of this report is at large/on the run and can not even be reached.
Now one Lawrence Agbo known popularly as Born-Again with phone No: 08138351618 who was a production crew member of the movie is reputed to know the Igbo boy identified as Marizo with phone no: 07066427125 who acted the pornographic scenes and who operates a provision shop at the second campus labour market of the Benue State University Line A, shop 2. The Marizo as my secret investigations unearthed procured the girls he sexed in the video. The girls which I have come to understand are cheap prostitutes who sleep with men for as low as N2000 and would consider collecting N7000 for a sex scene as manna from wherever.
Marizo, I gathered is based in Makurdi but could not really locate his home address. When I called him over his involvement in the video, he bluntly told me to believe what I wanted to believe and never to call him over the video again and consequently terminated my call. On a second call, he told me he never knew what I was talking about and he never acted in a movie and doesn’t know any girl or co-actor who played in the video. Finally, he warned me not to call his line again.
Now, on separate calls and visits to some of the actors who have become subjects of social ridicule and shame, their versions seem to corroborate with each other. For Jacinta, who said she was not given a full script and acted as a good girl among two friends. She said the movie they were acting was “Desperate Models” which was about campus life and that she had no pornographic role to play and wondered how those scenes got included in the cut and join video that went viral. She said she didn’t recognize or met any of the girls that were slept with on camera and wondered why one would believe that she, a graduate will do that. She was rather scared that, the movie was now splited into two “Feast of Death” and “iPhone 7 Bae” with patches of unrecognized cut and join pornographic scenes.
For Steve, he said he doesn’t have the courage to go nude on camera and wondered why the producer or whoever brought in the pornographic scenes was so bent on ruining them psychologically. He said, it was better for the producers to have compiled their pornographic movie separately without trying to bring their legitimately acted scenes to mix with pornography and give them a bad name. He said, the closer his scenes were suppose to come to that was where he was to romance his girlfriend in the parlour and nothing more. He concluded that he had 15 scenes in the movie and non of them was close to what they saw in the video’s that were making the rounds.
For Evelyn, to the best of her knowledge, nobody was given that role among them that knew each other. At most it was just some romantic gesturing and nothing more, which were normal in contemporary movies. She lamented the negative image this act of falsehood has cost her and revealed that, when she made to confront the producer, the man offered to pay her a good sum to forget the whole thing which she refused.
For a movie that was incomplete and the producer promised to come back for the completion in January, as at yesterday, the complete movie was uploaded on youtube where N7000 is required to be paid before one can download and so far, 600 people have subscribed to the movie, giving the producer an amount of N4.2 Million so far, while the innocent people are taking the shame of a exploitative attitude.
On the logical submissions of my investigations, I would rather be rhetoric than vindictive or assuming:
1. It is true that, in movie productions, various locations and scenes are used and once you do not have a part to play in a particular scene or location, you may not be invited or allowed to show up. Therefore, it is possible to input that, the pornographic scenes were shot without the knowledge of the actors and actresses who are now facing psychological and emotional harm for being part of the movie.
2. The movie these known actors and actresses played and were being paid for was “Desperate Models” and not “Feast of Death” or “iPhone 7 Bae” as released by the production. An act that logically can be perceived to be of sinister motives.
3. It is beyond considerate imagination to suggest that, a graduate and or a person who is into regular movie acting, though local movies will collect N7000 to play nude on camera. When she or he is paid more than N7000 to be decently dressed in movies.
4. The Actors Guild of Nigeria (AGN) and the Association of Movie Producers (AMP) had an active role in the initial production of the movies but rather chose to abandon these actors and to deny them when the chips went down.
This is clearly to the effect that, they advertised and introduced the producers of the movie, worked hand in hand with them, they in fact were responsible for the payment of the actors and actresses and deducted percentages from the monies that were to be paid these actresses for non-registration with the professional bodies. But didn’t want to be implicated and their chapters possibly frowned at or visited with sanctions from the national bodies and therefore had to denounce knowledge and or involvement in the production of the movies.
5. That the fact that, the producers and other managerial personalities linked to the movie are now all at large suggest to the fact that, they are fleeing from the grave consequences of their act,which they know is counter-legal, demeaning of the persons involved, morally reprehensible, culturally frowned-at and physically not recommendable.
It is therefore the view of my independent and painstaking investigation that, the producers of
the movie may have only played a smart one on the images of innocent people to attain their evil motive that may be of business advantage to them, hence such a collection is reputed to earn huge downloads and views which many of us have already done.
I have attached evidence of the initial movie the actors were auditioned for “Desperate Models” and believed they were acting. Evidence of the open denial and denouncement of the producer of the said movie and the negatively affected actors by the Actors Guild of Nigeria (AGN) and the Association of Movie Producers (AMP) have been tendered. Infact, the Vice-President of AGM was on most locations with them while the production lasted. I have equally tendered the munched conversation between the producer and one of the actors where he begged and pledged to do anything she wanted as compensation for the harm done her. All this to satisfy inquisitive minds.
As a matter of advice, the law enforcement agents be engaged to declare the producer and the managerial crew of the movie wanted and be tracked down from wherever so that appropriate justice be meted on them. Equally, a written petition signed by the affected actors be sent to the national bodies of the AGN and the AMP, with evidence of their shady involvement in this negative story and that, the Benue State Chapters of the associations be suspended or their leadership sanctioned.
As a matter of public advice, we must not be quick to draw a curtain on issues that make the headlines especially where they seek to give out a bad name to another. Online media outfits must equally engage in investigative journalism and should not be in hurry to break news with the selfish end of engendering traffic, mention at this juncture must be made of one Walexxobaofnaija, owner of naijabazeline.com and others in similar trend.
We all have sisters or female relatives and friends and don’t forget, one day, it could be your turn to stand in defense of perceived misconduct when you know your person to be innocent.
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