Well, I have studied media all my life; Broadcast, print, radio, theatre and so on. So there’s where my passion is. I have always loved media and wanted to do nothing else. I studied Television Production in addition to my Degree in Broadcast and Print Media and I love making programmes. After my studies, I got some experience with some independent production companies in London. I did work experience with the TV Station of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) in London for a short while and   I came to Nigeria and worked with a TV Station called MINAJ Broadcasting International (MBI) for about 18 months and then went back to England and started up Ebony Eyes Productions.

Can you expatiate on your education background in the media?

I was born in London and came to Nigeria for a few years. I actually did my primary school education in the country and then proceeded to Anglican  Girls  College in Onitsha for my secondary school education though I was there for one year in 1986/87. My family then went back to England and I went to College and the University there. I went to John  Keller  Girls  Secondary School and did the same topics being done here; English, Arithmetic, Sciences. I then proceeded to College and did a two-year Diploma in Media and took time out to find out that media was what I really wanted to do

Looking at you talking about media, were you a TV freak as a kid?

No, when I was growing up, I was a book freak; I did a lot of research reading books. I read fictions and non-fiction, science fiction and loved absolving information. I actually thought that I was going to be a writer to be honest. I really wanted to write, to become a journalist and write scripts for TV. I never thought about visual media then. So somewhere along the line, I saw myself in TV media. I don’t know how it started because I have touched on all areas; I’ve done advertising and worked in marketing so I loved media and have had a stint with almost every aspect but later, I specialized in TV production.

At what point in your life did you discover your passion for TV production?

I think maybe when I was in secondary school. As much as I loved writing, I could not just restrict writing for theatre, newspaper or the radio. I just discovered that I could actually write for TV and that was when I started creating stories. People would tell me stories and I would develop on them. I remember asking my friends what they dreamt about and then I would write it and add whatever I could weave around it abefore presenting it to them. They would say, ‘Oh you actually wrote this!” I thought if somebody can like this, they can as well put it on TV. So I started to make the connection between the words I wrote down on paper and actually having what I had written being on screen. And that was when it started.

Going retrospect to the time you choose an aspect of Arts when so many average Nigerian parents wanted their children to go for sciences and become doctors, engineers and so on, what were your parent’s reactions to your choice of discipline?

When I was in secondary school in Nigeria, I actually wanted to be a doctor because I had a lot doctors in my family; it was a natural progression. At that point in time   you either agree to what your parent’s wants you to do or decide to do what others want to do. But when we got back to England and I realized the choices that were available, I discovered that I really didn’t want to be a doctor. I don’t take pain very well; I can’t take injections. The only time I take medicine is when I know that my condition really needs the medication. And again, when I had Biology classes that you had to dissect a frog, I felt really obnoxious and I thought, no I can’t do this. This is just a frog and you had to do the same to a human being, I knew it wasn’t for me at that point. I chose writing. My parents were like, “How can you eat from writing?” but I told them they read newspapers. My father said newspaper is different. They just saw in the same way people used to see musicians and actors as non-entities. Eventually, they were not happy, especially my father but through perseverance, they actually saw I was determined and worked real hard.

You had hands on experience in the UK and in Nigeria. Can you give a comparison between the two places you got experience from? How overwhelming is working in the BBC compared to being at MINAJ?

I was at MINAJ for 18 months and in the BBC for a couple of months. There was a big difference in the periods I worked at the respective places. I got more experience working in MINAJ than at the BBC not because of the time factor but because at the BBC, just like every media in the West, it was very easy. I could pick up the phone and get every information I needed and email them on my mobile phone.

In MINAJ, you don’t do that, everything had to be done physically; you have to leave your desk, go and get into car or a bike or whatever means of transportation that would take you to your assignment and get your story.  There were not really equipments that you had access to. There was no library. There were no mobile phones or internet access. It was much more manual and demanding. You need to have a thick skin to be able to do your job and I cried a lot those days while executing my assignments. It’s all part of the experience that I have now but at the BBC, it’s a lot easier. I am not saying it was not challenging because they would like to know which library you went to, who you talked to and so on. I got good experiences working at both places both I would say I got more experience working in MINAJ.

Being a black kid growing up in the UK, were there an experience of racism?

No, I am 6 foot 3. I have no reason having that height but I had always been a very tall person. Again, I was an introvert then and when people realize that you are that way, they would leave you alone because they would think that you are a loafer or a snub. But they don’t realize it’s due to shyness which is something I still carry now. So I’ve always been one of the tallest people in my class so people always come close to me because they think, “nobody will bully me if I am next to KC.” But I never had any of those problems, this is not to say it doesn’t happen. I was just lucky.

You are 6foot 3 which is an admirable height coupled with beautiful face that  should have qualified you become  actress, a model or a sports person, why are you not any of these?

Thank you very much Kanu. I cannot be an actress because I am not very good at memorizing lines; I am very shy. Forget that I know you now and I am very comfortable talking with you but if you take me and introduce me to another journalist, I wouldn’t really open up as I am doing with you; I am very shy. But there are two persons in me; KC the private person is very shy but when I am working, if you see me on set doing production or something, I will take you down. I make sure I do my best. I can’t be an actress, I look at actresses as being very brave. Again, you have directors that issue instructions at you, ‘why haven’t you learnt your lines and all that. I can’t do it. I think actresses are very brave, even to hug a man on set; they are really brave. Also, I am 6foot 3, I wonder who I am going to hug.

And modeling?

I did that a long time ago in London for a charity concert for Breast Cancer and also for a HIV/AIDS awareness program. Someone saw me and asked me on a typical street in London if I had ever thought about modeling. I said no. they then told me they were doing a charity show and then I really wanted to help. I couldn’t go on because I am very shy.

You remind me of the American Marion Jones, close to the same height, pretty faces and same build, why did you not go for sports?

I was in sports. We had inter-house sports in school and I played basketball; I still do play because it’s a sport I enjoy a lot. I unwind playing basketball. Once there is a hook, I go and throw; you don’t need to have somebody play with you because you can bounce off the wall. I used to run and also enjoyed net ball when I was in school. The reason I switched from netball to basketball was because it wasn’t a physical sport. I also play pool.

Do you have any regrets not continuing in sports looking at the money it brings in?

I guess it all tends down to my circumstances and environment. When I was growing up, my parents were like, ‘focus on school.’ If I had been opportuned like some of those people that made it in sports to have been discovered by a scout and given scholarships to study and concentrate on the game, it could have been a different thing altogether. But I was never that lucky.

Do you have regrets about that?

I wouldn’t say regrets because if it had happened, great but it’s not something that came up so I can’t fuse over what never existed.

You have a production outfit in the UK, Ebony Eyes Productions, what sort of shows or TV programs were you exposed to as a kid?

A lot, I grew up watching Oprah with my mum; I watched a lot of American and British shows and comedy programs that had very good writers and actors. I think that even though you get actors to make your show, you need writers because it is their words that are going to come alive. I grew up with a lot of comedy and drama. News? Not so much. But I watched a lot of American shows. I also grew up watching a lot of Bollywood shows with sub titles because I don’t understand the Indian language. I watched a lot of Chinese film and so on. I love movies. It’s a great thing that Nollywood came up so fast.

Did you not watch some of our local shows?

When I was in Lagos, yes but when we went abroad, it was a lot of movies from the West. African movies were not much; it’s just now that we have Nollywood in England where you can subscribe and get DVDs. A lot of shops sell Nollywood films in the UK. You can even go to some cinemas in UK and watch Nollywood films just like Hollywood & Bollywood films but then, it wasn’t there. Now it’s more accessible. And now, I can’t remember the last time I watched a Hollywood or Bollywood film but I watched Nollywood lately?

What inspired you into starting up Ebony Eyes Productions?

I just decided to start my own production outfit and one of the reasons is because the kind of programs that I wanted to do is very difficult being done in England;  they don’t normally want to out do themselves due to the fact that they have their own interpretations. It was very frustrating so I decided to start up my production company and make the kind of programs that I want to make but more than that, the programs I wanted to make were programs that had to do with the African continent starting from Nigeria. I started Ebony Eyes and as the names implies, it’s from the eyes of a black person. I decided to do in addition to family entertainment, documentaries; we make programs that help the environment.

When did you start?

In the beginning of 2004.

What challenges did you face then?

The challenges that I still face now which is finance. The easy part is having an idea and setting it up. You then have to go and convince people to believe in it and sponsor. It all boils down to finance and back you up in the particular program that you are making; they ask you who are the audience and which network it would show. That would determine what they give you and how much they give you. So it’s all about money.  

You mentioned having done some works, can you inform on what you have done?

I have worked with companies that do talk shows, or drama and news. It’s just like everyday home entertainment. I have worked on news a lot.

What was the first production you had?

It was a documentary on human trafficking and it was done the same year we started Ebony Eyes Productions. In fact it started the day I opened; I had the documentary focused on Edo  State where there was alleged to have a high prevalence of human trafficking to Italy especially young girls. We met some of the victims that were hired into Europe to become commercial sex workers. That was the first production we did.

Did you do it on your own or you did it for a client?

No, I did it on my own. Like I told you, there are a lot of topics within the continent and also there is always a lot heard about trafficking coming out of Africa part especially Nigeria and particularly Edo  State. I wanted to do something I actually wanted to go and see for myself. That was part of the reasons we did it. You can never do enough on it but you try as much as possible to create awareness.

How did you feel starting your first production on the same day you started?

I felt great. It was great because even though you never think about giving up, you always wonder, can I go far? It was like taking steps are after the other and you keep imagining if you can go on. Even when you think that nothing is happening, that there’s nothing forthcoming, you start having doubts even as your funds keeps funning low. And then the next things is you pick up the phone and call somebody, and he tells you sure, this is what I can give you. You become confident again that at least, that would take you one more step. I met a lot of people while doing that documentary; I met the former first lady of Edo  State as well as the former Vice-President’s wife. She was really incredible. We had access to her NGO, WOTCLEF which offered us access to the victims as well as other relevant information. We decided. We also went down to Edo  State to meet the people and talk to them. It’s wasn’t about money; they didn’t pay me and I didn’t pay them.

Taking a look at the entertainment industry recently, you’ll agree that we have advanced to a level?

I will say we have fared very well because now we have an incredible music industry. The music and movie industry have really done much now. I don’t know much about sports. In terms of music, fashion and film, I think we have done very well there because apart from the fact that it has actually blown up, its number one in Africa, people in England and the U.S now subscribe to watch Nollywood movies. It started about a month ago in the UK. That is something we never thought would happen in our time, it seem impossible, Nollywood 24 hours on SKY. It’s not cable, its satellite. You know what I mean. People in America have access to it. It’s amazing and you can actually have your feel of Kenneth Okonkwo all day long.

And then there is music, I mean, talking about people like P-Square, D-Banj. I love their music.

Who are your favourite Nigerian artistes?

I don’t have a favorite artiste but I like the tracks; I like that one by P-Square titled, No One Like you.” I think that song was written for me. I love all the albums of Tuface and the Mo Hit Squad. I like Eedris Abudulkareem. I don’t know these guys but I love their music. They are at part with musicians in the West, so we don’t always have to look out for P-Diddy and the rest. When I was growing up my favourite artiste was Oliver D’Coque, his highlife was something. While we were at Lagos, he lived a few building away from us and I used to listen to his songs during numerous occasions in his house.

Your area of focus now is on Talk show; do you think the ones we have at the moment are vibrant enough?

Yes I think so because there are a lot of issues to be discussed. Though the ones we have are few when compared to what is obtainable in the West. But there is room for everybody as what they are doing in different. Though the format needs to be worked upon.

Oprah Winfrey show is the most popular talk show in the world, what do you think is that magic she has that our talk show hosts here don’t have?

Oprah has been on for 22 years while Inside Out has been on for 10 years. There is a big difference and it takes time. If you go back and watch her old clips, you would discover that she has gone through a lot in addition to her physical appearance and in her relationship in life; she talks about everything in life. She has come through a long way in life. 10 years ago she wasn’t the number one show in the world, it takes time. Some of the shows here lack research; it’s not enough to take a show and go to a studio and point and shoot.  

Hear Me Speak is your brainchild, what inspired that?

I wanted to do a show in addition to showing the positive side of Africa. I just wanted to have a show for young people to have a platform to be able to discuss topics that they wanted to talk about. That was the reason we same up with Hear Me Speak. The title was perfect for what we had in mind; it’s not called the KC Kalu show, it’s not about me but about the people who come for the show and discuss the topics that we feel is important to them. That’s the reason we got started.

What is the objective at the end of the day when these young people speak?

The problem is that a lot of times, youths are always talked about on the negative; we started researching into this since 2004 and found this fact. It’s always about them doing fraud or yahoo or something.  And what you have here is what we get there in the West; a lot of negative things about African youths and Nigerian young people in particular. Whenever you read the papers, you discover politicians announcing that they are doing something on youth empowerments.

In the African mentality, young people are meant to be seen and not heard and that very much applies to the African setting now. The whole point of the program is that, not only are these kids seen, they are heard. They express their opinion. It doesn’t mean what they say is going to be done, but they must be allowed to express their opinion.

What unique features will Hear Me Speak offer that will differentiate it from what

we have at the moment?

First of all, there is no holds barred unlike other talk shows that you can tell what they have. Secondly, its topic led; it’s not about me. So our topics are versatile. The topics vary.

How far will the show spread?

The show is not about Nigeria only that’s why it’s Hear Me Speak coming from Africa. Though we started from Nigeria, we will do it in various parts of Africa; we are looking at Ghana, South Africa, North Africa etc. we will do different series in different countries and then air it everywhere.

How soon well the show commence on air?

Very soon, maybe even before you publish this interview. We will let you know on the TV Stations it will be shown though it will start transmitting from next month in the UK.

You are tall, beautiful and admirable, tell me about your boyfriend and what qualities do you look out for in a man?

First of all, he has to be funny; I am a funny person not in the sense of jokes but having fun. As much as I take things seriously, guy has to be funny because under the umbrella of fun is a kind person, an accommodation and puts you first. When a guy is like that, it makes things easier.

What turns you off?

Mmegbu (ill-treatment) because under the umbrella of Nmegbu comes small mindedness, meanness, frustration. I can’t explain it.

How do you see Nigerian men compared to their foreign counterparts, do they stand out?

Nigerian men are very vocal unlike British men that are always afraid of sexual harassment. The western man might be scared that you might report him for sexual harassment but Nigerian men are not shy in coming forward. And even when you keep telling them no, they keep coming on you. It’s like you have to tell them why it is a no. And then you are thinking, it’s because I am not attracted to you or because you are with somebody or because I am not interested. But Nigerian men will always like an explanation from you. But you almost prefer that because they tell you how it is. If they like you, they like you; they don’t play games.

Are they romantic?

Hmmn! No man has ever bought me flowers so I don’t know. (laughs)

There is this perception that very tall ladies are very intimidating to Nigerian men, have you experienced that?

I have heard that as well. Yes, they find it difficult to approach you so it’s either they send a friend or they find another way to you. But the ones that do approach you will do so just because of your height. It can be intimidating but it goes both ways.

Have you found that guy?

Let me think about that? Denzel Washing is married, No, I have not found him yet. It’s not to say I am Miss Perfect.

So guys can apply right?

Of course, they can apply through Ebony Eyes Productions

Robot  # 1 | 06.04.2008 11:27

Kenechukwu Kalu, a young lady who has gone through different aspects of TV and independent productio...Read the full article.

Baby  # 2 | 19.04.2008 18:41

What can I say.KC is my cousin so I might be a bit biased but without a doubt she has had this vision for a while and I am glad that it is finally coming to fruition.Nigeria needs to present a more positive outlook in a lot of ways so this is a good avenue to portray that.It is even more important to provide our youth with a forum to express themselves without fear and to discuss issues that are important to them. Kudos to KC.