Ofu Obekpa :Fabmimi's Interview with Benue-Born Hollywood Producer,Black Panther Star.

Nigerians are taking over the world ,the population is increasing and the people both home and in diaspora are doing great making the country proud.One of such persons is Hollywood actor,Ofu Obekpa.Ofu a Nigerian-American filmmaker and founder of Skyrunner Productions recently screened his  film "Klippers," a new thriller/suspense film about love, hope and redemption. The film follows the story of a psychotic man who sends an assassin to kill his ex-wife and the brother who would do anything to save his sister. Obekpa wrote, directed and starred in the film.

Ofu started his movie company Skyrunner Productions which creates feature films for audiences worldwide in 2007. The company is committed to creating projects that initiate emotional, psychological and social impact while showing diverse views through cutting edge entertainment.

Obekpa who hails from Benue State  has a bachelor's degree in business administration/marketing from the University of Maine at Machias. After graduation, he was accepted to the NY Film Academy within the master's program in acting, but his father wanted him to pursue something more stable like chemical engineering. Obekpa knew that wasn't his passion, but he struggled for recognition from his father and acceptance of his choice in career path.
Obekpa went on to earn a master's in film production with an emphasis on production and post-production work from the Recording Radio and Film Connection Institute after his father convinced him to learn the business of filmmaking in addition to its more technical aspects.

 Before his break with "Klippers," Obekpa struggled to fund his initial short films. He would often go without groceries just to have the budget to fuel his film making passion, but his passion and determination pushed him to pursue his dreams.
Obekpa is optimistic about the future. He has a strong faith in God and wants eventually to be able to give back by feeding youth in Africa, building community centers, and providing support for arts education for youth. To learn more about Obekpa and his new film "Klippers" as well as view photos and video clips from the film, visit SkyrunnerProductions.net.

Ofu Obekpa also portrayed King's Guard in Black Panther.He is happily married to an Asian woman.
Ofu was in Nigeria recently to premiere his new move,KLIPPERS at Ozone Cinema ,Fabmimi Media had a brief chat with him.Below.

Congrats Ofu on your new movie ''KLIPPERS'',i guess that's why you are in Nigeria.
Can you tell us a bit about yourself?
I am a God fearing man, who loves making movies that transcends cultural barriers.
What attracted you to begin a career as an actor?
I think it’s more of a calling to become an actor/filmmaker.
I started in the United States where I reside. I’ve been acting since I was a kid and only stopped when I was in college studying Business. I was running away from this to be honest, you know, my mum used to be a stage director, my sister read Theatre (Art) too and that is a major part of my life. My dad was preaching science to me like most Nigerian parents which wasn’t fun for me. So, I went to college, in the University of Maine, just a little over two and half hours from Massachusetts and I studied Business Administration/Marketing. When I graduated, I went to a school for film, a recording studio and institute. They have different locations and I went to the one in Atlanta, undergoing mentoring under Kelvin Christopher at Right Media Studios where I had a hybrid programme studying production and post-production including editing, colour grading and all that.

What inspired you to start movie production?I was inspired to do this as a way of showing what I could do on my own. There are issues I don’t want to go into but bottom line is I like to finish what I started. It was about time to tell a story and this movie is the result of all that. I had a lot of learning to do on Hollywood sets including Captain America, Black Panther as well as some independent shots along with commercials.

When was your first role as an actor? The played “The nativity stage play,” I was 5 years old. 
What has been your greatest accomplishment as an actor?
The process of breaking down a script and being on movie sets.

Have you progressed in your acting career as you have expected?
Yes, still aspiring and growing...

Did you start your acting career in Nigeria or in US?
Nigeria as a kid then I put a pause on it.


Who is your favorite actor, and why?Benedict Cumberbatch is my favorite actor.
He is a natural and believable.

Tell me about what you're working on now.
It depends, I am working on multiple things, commercials/events/movies.
When you suffer a setback, how does that emotionally affect you and your work?
You learn to separate the two. Stay prayed up and you’ll be good.

Tell me about a time where you had difficulty with a character. What was the role and why was it challenging?
 N/A
In which area would you like to improve as an actor?
The more you practice anything, the better you become...
What do you do outside acting? 
I make movies...

Do you have any plans of starring in any Nollywood movie?  If the opportunity comes, I’d be right there. You can see my specialty, my specialty is combat. I have martial arts experience. Those fighting scenes in the movie, I choreographed them. That I can say that I’m really good at. I like the people I work with and I like to add value at every point and I am open to different genres so why not?

As a Benue son, is there any project you are proposing to promote and encourage the movie industry back home

Yes but with time and the right resources...

Watch the trailer or KLIPPERS







Profile Source :Newswire, Skyrunner Production.