Exclusive: marketing gospel films in Nigeria is not so fascinating – Wole Olaleye

The first-class gospel actor and broadcaster, Wole Olaleye has described marketing of gospel films in Nigeria as not so fascinating.

Wole Olaleye who was speaking with Gospel Film News publisher, Oluwafemi Dosu recently in an exclusive interview noted that marketers are not ready to market gospel films, adding that the best way to do marketing is for gospel filmmakers to do it themselves.

He stated that anything that has to do with religion people are not always keen about it, saying they tend to move back from it.

The gospel actor recalled an experience he had with a marketer some years back.

“I remembered there was a time I went to Idumota and was discussing marketing one of our films with Alloy (a marketer in Nigeria) and one boy just came in that day and said which christian film, the christian films that you will be begging God to sell 1000 copies.”

He continued: “That was around the time ‘Saworo ide’ (a movie by Tunde Kelani) came out and he was comparing Saworo Ide with the movie I took to him. He said look, Saworo Ide came out about two weeks ago and it sold over 10,000 copies and you will be begging God to sell 1000 copies if it is christian movie and I looked at him in the face that day and told him I give you seven more years, after the next seven years you marketers will be begging christisn movie producers to market their films.”

Olaleye disclosed that Exactly five years later, ANCEDRAM produced ‘Esin Ajoji’ and marketers were pushing themselves to have the marketing wright of that movie until it was given to Alloy and when Alloy finished the terms of agreement and they were going to renew it ANCEDRAM wanted to stop the renewal.

“We told him we were not going to renew it with him that we will withdraw it. He was like begging, begging that we should please that he was ready to mortgage his house to go on selling Esin Ajoji because it was a master piece. Maybe because it was a joint production and it was so powerful. Even at that he didn’t make enough noise and advert on it like any other secular film used to market. If he had done that maybe Esin Ajoji would have had more than tripple size of the output,” he explained.

The veteran film maker concluded that: “Generally speaking I would say marketing Christian movie in Nigeria from the so called marketers is nothing to write home about but I think the best way to do marketing is by ourselves. When we go out for outreaches, just take our copies along, whatever we sell we come back to the ministry and we can always use the proceeds to move on in producing more.”