Sodimu declares war as pirates hijack October 1

Another pirated movie pits Nollywood practitioners against faceless copyright offenders, CHUX OHAI writes

Nearly two months after popular actor and filmmaker, Kunle Afolayan, said, in an interview with our correspondent, that he was not prepared to release his current movie titled ‘October 1’ in DVD format till he had finished with other distribution channels, copyright offenders hit the streets of Lagos with pirated copies of the film on Monday

As pirated copies of ‘October 1’ were openly sold for N500 each by roadside hawkers in different parts of the city, actor Yemi Sodimu, in what looked like a show of solidarity to the filmmaker, confronted some people found selling the pirated film in traffic and single-handedly confiscated several copies between Tuesday and Wednesday.

But investigation by our correspondent on Thursday showed that Sodimu’s action did not begin and end with the seizure of Afolayan’s pirated movie. The celebrated actor also seized pirated copies of Ayo Makun’s ’30 Days in Atlanta’, which has been described as one of the highest selling Nigerian movies in recent time.

Several hours after Sodimu unofficially started this unexpected, yet inevitable campaign, he wrote on his Facebook page, “Time to ignore the government and wage the war ourselves. I seized these copies of ‘October 1’ and others in the traffic today. Please join in this war. Let’s stop the madness NOW.”

With this statement and the implied invitation to fellow Thespians, as well as other concerned Nigerians, Sodimu has introduced a new dimension to the war against the activities of faceless pirates and other copyright offenders who have been feeding fat on the intellectual property of Nollywood practitioners for many years.

The continuous onslaught by faceless pirates, believed to be operating from undiscovered hideouts within the popular Alaba International Market in Lagos, has been a source of constant anxiety to Afolayan and other Nollywood filmmakers.

Once, the celebrated filmmaker had, in an interview with our correspondent, viewed the current trend among pirates to reproduce highest grossing Nollywood movies in DVDs with great concern.

Earlier, Nollywood producer and chief executive of G-Media, Chief Gabe Okoye, had an unpleasant encounter with suspected criminals at the popular Alaba International Market, who allegedly pirated some Nollywood movies currently distributed by his company. The films include Mahmood Ali-Balogun’s ‘Tango with me’, Kunle Afolayan’s ‘Phone Swap’ and Obi Emelonye’s ‘Onyeozi’.

Apart from leaving a sour taste in Okoye mouth, the encounter seemed to have exposed some of the real forces behind the continued existence of piracy in the country.

Before then, realising the extent of the leakage of ’30 Days in Atlanta’, Makun wrote an open letter to the Inspector-General of Police, Mr. Suleiman Abba, requesting an urgent investigation of the illegal sale of pirated copies of ‘30 Day in Atlanta’ in the streets.

He wrote, “The continued dominance of piracy will lead to producers refusing to make more movies for fear of incurring losses. Producers who go ahead to make movies may be unable to pay back the loans accessed due to the activities of these vandals. Miscreants should not be allowed to steal the intellectual property of honest and hardworking citizens with impunity, while the owners impotently look on.”

Also in July 2014 and less than three weeks after Half of A Yellow Sun, a film adaptation of the award-winning novel by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, opened in the cinemas in Nigeria, scores of itinerant vendors were observed hawking pirated copies of the movie in different parts of the Lagos metropolis.

A leading movie marketer and distributor in Lagos had confirmed that the copies of the film sold on the streets were pirated.

However, seasoned filmmaker, Kunle Kelani, who has also been a victim of piracy, roundly condemned the latest attack on ‘October 1’.

In a statement made available on Thursday, Kelani

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