‘I’ll come back to cinema if…; but I can’t dance to promote movie – Kunle Afolayan

Renowned Nigerian filmmaker, Kunle Afolayan, has said he would only return fully to cinema releases if filmmakers are not forced to exhaust themselves through aggressive promotional stunts, including dancing on social media, to sell their movies.

Afolayan made the remarks while speaking at the Lagos Business of Film Summit, where he reflected on the evolving demands of film promotion and the toll it takes on creators.

“For cinema, I’m one of the people who started the cinema gig, and dancing before anybody. I danced in London too, not just locally,” he said.

Recalling his early days in the industry, Afolayan noted that the process was both physically and mentally draining.

“In 2006, I did all the runs, and it was exhausting. I want to make a film if you can guarantee I don’t have to dance to sell that film. We need to come up with other strategies. How do we sell without exhausting ourselves?” he asked.

“I don’t know how the likes of Funke Akindele and others are doing it — creating skits every day, changing costumes all the time. I can’t do it,” he said.

Afolayan added that he has several stories that have been in development for more than four years and that he remains willing to bring them to life under more sustainable promotional models.

This is not the first time the filmmaker has expressed similar concerns. Speaking earlier at the watch party of his Netflix series, Aníkúlápó: The Ghouls Awaken, Afolayan was candid about what he described as the disconnect between loudly celebrated cinema milestones and the actual earnings that reach filmmakers.

“I don’t want two billion streams at the cinemas and end up receiving ten million naira,” he said.