One of the fast -rising actors in Nollywood movie industry is Damola Olatunji Olufemi. He hails from Edunabon in Ife North Local government Area of Osun State,
Nigeria and He is the second child in a family of six.
He had my primary education at the Sijuade Nursery and
Primary School and then to Seven day Adventist Grammar School and Bodlan
Grammar School, Ile Ife, before he proceeded to Yaba College of
Technology, Lagos where he studied Electrical Electronics.
Damola had always wanted to be a Naval officer or an engineer. He grew up during the military regime and he love the way the officers comported themselves. He loved the naval officers particularly because of their uniforms
Damola mimicked people a lot. He always emulated popular people and when he got to the higher institution, he joined a campus fellowship drama and that was the beginning of my career. Also during holidays, He would also go from place to place, participating in drama. After a while, and finding him on almost every stage where drama was presented in school, a lot of people thought that he was a member of the Arts department whereas he was in engineering department.
People started advising him not to waste time learning to become an engineer. He then began to pay more attention to craft, having realised that one’s potential was vastly different to one’s credentials.
Damola had always wanted to be a Naval officer or an engineer. He grew up during the military regime and he love the way the officers comported themselves. He loved the naval officers particularly because of their uniforms
Damola mimicked people a lot. He always emulated popular people and when he got to the higher institution, he joined a campus fellowship drama and that was the beginning of my career. Also during holidays, He would also go from place to place, participating in drama. After a while, and finding him on almost every stage where drama was presented in school, a lot of people thought that he was a member of the Arts department whereas he was in engineering department.
People started advising him not to waste time learning to become an engineer. He then began to pay more attention to craft, having realised that one’s potential was vastly different to one’s credentials.
He started with presenting/broadcasting initially at NTA 10 with Jare Ayo-Martins on his magazine programme ‘Night Out at 10’. They used to do reality playlets and people would phone- in to comment on the programme. This spurred Damola to go into full time acting. After a while, things just started falling into place and with the help of people like Yomi Fash-Lanso, he started getting roles. He also attended different workshops and seminars on drama and film acting, while he also got some training at the Institute of Theatre Practitioners Association of Nigeria (ITPAN) because he felt, at that time, he needed to be trained in acting, especially as he was formally trained as an engineer.
Damola Olatunji also begged to disagree with the notion that Yoruba movies lack content. Yoruba movies are highly subscribed in Nigeria and abroad, and if they lacked content or meaning, this wouldn’t be so. Although, some producers may tend to overflog issues, it doesn’t mean that it is generally bad. Even in the English movie genre in Nigeria, at a time we had repetition of titles such as ‘Blood on my hands’, ‘Blood Diamond’, ‘Blood on the altar’, blood this, blood that…but each had its own meaning.
According to him,We must learn to accept that. Everyone wants to produce movies about popular stories and make profit. That is just it. It is not peculiar to Yoruba movies alone. However, we have good writers in Nigeria.
Damola Olatunji stated that he produced his first movie in 2009 and since then, he didn’t produce another because he pursue perfection. He believe what is worth doing at all is worth doing well. His movie, 'Tipa tikuku' is still doing well in the market and people still call him till date to appreciate his good work.
Damola Olatunji However disclosed that he have a new project therefore fans should watch out for it. He
will be bringing the New Movie to all the Higher Institutions first before taking it to Cinema.
However, Talking on the challenges facing the Nigeria Movie production he said,Funding is the major requirement that is still a cause of headache for most film makers in Nigeria.Unfavourable competition in the sense that those who are bigger in the business do not want the upcomers to take over, piracy, funding, etc.
Commenting on what is in vogue in the Industry, the mass production of comedy moveis is to ease people from stress and the hardships people are facing in the country, people need some form of entertainment which will make them laugh. So, as entertainers they have to adapt and give people what they need.
Damola Olatunji fashion is as simple as a gentleman because he love dressing casual except when I am on set.
He therefore advise up and coming actors to be focus and identify your talent.
He love playing golf when I’m free, then I love watching movies.
To crown it, Damola Olatunji love praying a lot. He love reading the Bible and he is a very shy person but very bold while acting.