Ph.D Economics - Creative Entrepreneur | Producer (Film, TV & Stage) | Sales & Distribution Executive | Academic | Human Being! Founder @konirewafilms
Lagos, Nigeria
Joined December 2014
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Let us Pray 🙏
Because in 2023, a group of young filmmakers looked at each other and said:
“We’re making a series.”
No big studio.
No giant machine behind us.
Just a crazy idea, a lot of ambition, and enough confidence to believe we could figure things out along the way.
And we did.
We raised money.
We built a team.
We wrote.
We rehearsed.
We shot.
We learnt.
We made mistakes.
We solved problems.
We celebrated.
We argued.
We laughed.
And somehow, somewhere between all of that, we made eight episodes.
At the time, we had a destination in mind.
We wanted to make something good enough to sit on one of the biggest platforms in the world.
That was the dream.
But the beautiful thing about dreams is that they don’t always take you where you thought they would.
Sometimes they take you somewhere else.
Somewhere you learn more.
Somewhere you understand the industry better.
Somewhere you realise that making a great story is only one part of the job.
There is the business.
There is distribution.
There is audience.
There is money.
There is strategy.
There is the question every filmmaker eventually has to answer:
“What happens after we make it?”
We are about to share that journey.
Because somebody watching this today may be sitting with an idea they think is too big.
Maybe you don’t have all the money.
Maybe you don’t have all the connections.
Maybe you don’t have everything figured out.
Start anyway.
Learn along the way.
Build with people.
Understand the art.
Understand the business.
And keep going.
Because one day, you might look back at the thing you were crazy enough to attempt and say:
“Wow. We really did that.”
This is one of those stories.
And we’re just getting started.
Let us pray. 🙏
#Getlust #konirewa #filmmaker #producer
Ọlọ́runrinú, PhD. 🕊️🕊️ #konirewa retweeted
Give me a hot minute. I need to gather myself and cry.
My first feature.
My first film is screening in London.
In Film Africa London.
I cannot believe my life. I’m forever changed.
Ọlọ́runrinú, PhD. 🕊️🕊️ #konirewa retweeted
Dear Ajayi has officially joined the race for the 99th Academy Awards, representing Nigeria in the Best International Feature Film category.
Grateful to the Nigerian Oscars Selection Committee and everyone who believed in this story.
Wider Nigerian theatrical release: November 13, 2026.
Ọlọ́runrinú, PhD. 🕊️🕊️ #konirewa retweeted
Use protection don't trust anyone. 😭
#day20
SOMETIMES THE RIGHT PEOPLE FIND YOU
Two more people we are grateful to have on GET LUST are Valerie Lawrence and Chuks Joseph.
Valerie’s story is one of those things that remind you that filmmaking is sometimes about being open to the people you never planned for.
We were already about a day into the shoot when the actor we originally wanted became unavailable because of another project.
We needed someone who could fully commit to our schedule.
There had been several recommendations before Valerie’s name came up.
At the time, we didn’t know her.
We looked at her work and discovered that she had also gone through EbonyLife Creative Academy.
Something just clicked.
We cast her.
And Valerie didn’t just come to act.
She became a major collaborator.
She supported the production financially.
She eventually became one of our Executive Producers.
And when we later started looking for sales and distribution opportunities, she connected us with different sales agents.
Then there was her performance.
She delivered.
Through all of this, Valerie remained the same person.
Kind.
Professional.
Supportive.
And genuinely invested in the project.
That is the kind of collaborator you pray to find.
Then there is Chuks Joseph.
Chuks and I also went through EbonyLife Creative Academy together, so we knew what he could do.
He had something we were looking for from the beginning.
Talent, presence and, honestly, the ability to combine good looks with serious acting ability.
He was one of the actors we had in mind from the development stage, and thankfully, his schedule aligned with ours.
He came on board and delivered a beautiful performance without making the process difficult.
Both stories are different.
But they remind us of something important:
The people you work with can become part of the reason a project succeeds.
Talent is important.
But talent with professionalism, generosity and a genuine desire to collaborate?
That’s something special.
Valerie and Chuks, thank you for giving GET LUST your talent and your trust.
We can’t wait for everyone to see what you did.
#GetLust #Konirewa #AfricanCinema
#day20
SOMETIMES THE RIGHT PEOPLE FIND YOU
Two more people we are grateful to have on GET LUST are Valerie Lawrence and Chuks Joseph.
Valerie’s story is one of those things that remind you that filmmaking is sometimes about being open to the people you never planned for.
We were already about a day into the shoot when the actor we originally wanted became unavailable because of another project.
We needed someone who could fully commit to our schedule.
There had been several recommendations before Valerie’s name came up.
At the time, we didn’t know her.
We looked at her work and discovered that she had also gone through EbonyLife Creative Academy.
Something just clicked.
We cast her.
And Valerie didn’t just come to act.
She became a major collaborator.
She supported the production financially.
She eventually became one of our Executive Producers.
And when we later started looking for sales and distribution opportunities, she connected us with different sales agents.
Then there was her performance.
She delivered.
Through all of this, Valerie remained the same person.
Kind.
Professional.
Supportive.
And genuinely invested in the project.
That is the kind of collaborator you pray to find.
Then there is Chuks Joseph.
Chuks and I also went through EbonyLife Creative Academy together, so we knew what he could do.
He had something we were looking for from the beginning.
Talent, presence and, honestly, the ability to combine good looks with serious acting ability.
He was one of the actors we had in mind from the development stage, and thankfully, his schedule aligned with ours.
He came on board and delivered a beautiful performance without making the process difficult.
Both stories are different.
But they remind us of something important:
The people you work with can become part of the reason a project succeeds.
Talent is important.
But talent with professionalism, generosity and a genuine desire to collaborate?
That’s something special.
Valerie and Chuks, thank you for giving GET LUST your talent and your trust.
We can’t wait for everyone to see what you did.
#GetLust #Konirewa #AfricanCinema
Ọlọ́runrinú, PhD. 🕊️🕊️ #konirewa retweeted
CASTING IS MORE THAN A NAME. #day22
Meet two people at the heart of GET LUST, Etta JoMaria and Chimezie Imo.
In the series, they play a couple.
He loved her.
She wanted more.
And eventually, she broke his heart.
But behind these characters is another story.
When we were casting Chimezie, he had already done some really good work, but he had not yet won the AMVCA Trailblazer Award.
We didn’t need the award to tell us what we already knew.
Chimezie could act.
More importantly, he had that we were looking for.
He becomes the character.
For Etta, the story was different.
We initially had someone else in mind, but the schedule didn’t work out.
Then she came on board last minute.
And I remember fighting hard for that decision.
Looking back, I am so glad we did.
Because she didn’t just play the lead.
She carried GET LUST.
We had challenges during production. We stretched her. We stressed her. We asked a lot of her.
But she understood us.
We had gone to film school together. She understood where we were coming from and what we were trying to build.
And somewhere along the way, she became one of our Executive Producers.
She didn’t just put her talent into the project.
She put herself into it.
Even her own resources.
That is why casting is bigger than popularity.
Don’t just ask, “Is this person famous?”
Ask:
Can they become the character?
Do they understand the story?
Can you trust them?
Can you work with them when things get difficult?
Because filmmaking will test your relationships.
And when the pressure comes, you want people who believe in the work as much as you do.
We are grateful for Etta....
And Chimezie.
Watch them.
Watch what they did with these characters.
And especially watch Etta.
Because I genuinely believe she is on her way to becoming a global superstar.
#GetLust #Konirewa #AfricanCinema #creatorsearchinsights
Ọlọ́runrinú, PhD. 🕊️🕊️ #konirewa retweeted
A new record has been set!!!! Together.. we have made history 🎉🎉🎉 51k of you showed up for us to break this record! My heart is full & I’m short of words. 🥹
Ọlọ́runrinú, PhD. 🕊️🕊️ #konirewa retweeted
A Kenyan-Nigerian co-production, produced by Josh Olaoluwa (Grind), is Kenya's submission for the 99th Oscars.
Kenya has selected Vincho Nchogu’s "One Woman One Bra" as its official submission for the International Feature Film category at the 99th Academy Awards.
The Kenya Film Commission announced the selection on 23 September 2026, saying the independent Kenya Oscars Selection Committee considered three submissions before unanimously choosing the film.
The Kenya-Nigeria co-production, written and directed by Nchogu and produced by Josh Olaoluwa, follows Star, a 38-year-old unmarried woman in a rural Maasai community who must establish her family lineage to secure legal ownership of her home.
The 79-minute film is in Maa, Swahili and English and stars Sarah Karei, Norng’aruani Kipuker, Amos Leuka, Irungu Mutu, Boniface Saitabau and Davina Leonard.
"One Woman One Bra" premiered at the 2025 Venice International Film Festival in Venice, Italy, as part of Biennale College Cinema.
The film returned to Kenya this month with its Nairobi premiere on 10 September.
#KenyaFilm #OneWomanOneBra #Oscars2027 #AfricanCinema
Ọlọ́runrinú, PhD. 🕊️🕊️ #konirewa retweeted
CASTING IS MORE THAN A NAME. #day22
Meet two people at the heart of GET LUST, Etta JoMaria and Chimezie Imo.
In the series, they play a couple.
He loved her.
She wanted more.
And eventually, she broke his heart.
But behind these characters is another story.
When we were casting Chimezie, he had already done some really good work, but he had not yet won the AMVCA Trailblazer Award.
We didn’t need the award to tell us what we already knew.
Chimezie could act.
More importantly, he had that we were looking for.
He becomes the character.
For Etta, the story was different.
We initially had someone else in mind, but the schedule didn’t work out.
Then she came on board last minute.
And I remember fighting hard for that decision.
Looking back, I am so glad we did.
Because she didn’t just play the lead.
She carried GET LUST.
We had challenges during production. We stretched her. We stressed her. We asked a lot of her.
But she understood us.
We had gone to film school together. She understood where we were coming from and what we were trying to build.
And somewhere along the way, she became one of our Executive Producers.
She didn’t just put her talent into the project.
She put herself into it.
Even her own resources.
That is why casting is bigger than popularity.
Don’t just ask, “Is this person famous?”
Ask:
Can they become the character?
Do they understand the story?
Can you trust them?
Can you work with them when things get difficult?
Because filmmaking will test your relationships.
And when the pressure comes, you want people who believe in the work as much as you do.
We are grateful for Etta....
And Chimezie.
Watch them.
Watch what they did with these characters.
And especially watch Etta.
Because I genuinely believe she is on her way to becoming a global superstar.
#GetLust #Konirewa #AfricanCinema #creatorsearchinsights
PRE PRODUCTION CHANGED EVERYTHING. #day23
Before we shot GET LUST, we went on multiple location recces.
We were checking locations, negotiating and trying to find solutions that worked for the story and what we could afford.
But during one of our final cast reads, something became very clear:
The project was bigger than the resources we had at the time.
We had planned to shoot for about eight days.
Eventually, we shot for roughly 21 days, in two blocks.
The first block was about 13 days.
It was rough.
Money was coming in while we were already shooting, so we had to constantly make decisions, adjust and keep moving.
For those first 13 days, we shot with one camera.
We had secured a deal with Sony, and that support helped us get through the first block.
Then came the pickup.
We had learned from the first block. We planned better, and this time, we got two Sony cameras for the additional seven days.
The second block went much more smoothly.
And that taught us something beyond production:
Sometimes, you limit yourself by the things you are afraid to ask for.
We could have simply accepted that one camera was what we had.
Instead, we asked.
We looked for brands.
We looked for partners.
We reached out.
And some people said yes.
That happened with more than cameras.
Locations.
Equipment.
Hair.
Makeup.
Costumes.
Production design.
People supported us in different ways.
And we will tell you about many of those people and brands as this story continues.
But here is the lesson:
Ask.
The worst thing that can happen is that someone says no.
So be daring.
Identify the brands that align with your project.
Find potential partners.
Make the pitch.
Ask for the support.
You may be surprised by who is willing to believe in what you are building.
GET LUST taught us that sometimes, the difference between what you have and what you need is simply having the courage to ask.
#GetLust #Konirewa #AfricanCinema
CASTING IS MORE THAN A NAME. #day22
Meet two people at the heart of GET LUST, Etta JoMaria and Chimezie Imo.
In the series, they play a couple.
He loved her.
She wanted more.
And eventually, she broke his heart.
But behind these characters is another story.
When we were casting Chimezie, he had already done some really good work, but he had not yet won the AMVCA Trailblazer Award.
We didn’t need the award to tell us what we already knew.
Chimezie could act.
More importantly, he had that we were looking for.
He becomes the character.
For Etta, the story was different.
We initially had someone else in mind, but the schedule didn’t work out.
Then she came on board last minute.
And I remember fighting hard for that decision.
Looking back, I am so glad we did.
Because she didn’t just play the lead.
She carried GET LUST.
We had challenges during production. We stretched her. We stressed her. We asked a lot of her.
But she understood us.
We had gone to film school together. She understood where we were coming from and what we were trying to build.
And somewhere along the way, she became one of our Executive Producers.
She didn’t just put her talent into the project.
She put herself into it.
Even her own resources.
That is why casting is bigger than popularity.
Don’t just ask, “Is this person famous?”
Ask:
Can they become the character?
Do they understand the story?
Can you trust them?
Can you work with them when things get difficult?
Because filmmaking will test your relationships.
And when the pressure comes, you want people who believe in the work as much as you do.
We are grateful for Etta....
And Chimezie.
Watch them.
Watch what they did with these characters.
And especially watch Etta.
Because I genuinely believe she is on her way to becoming a global superstar.
#GetLust #Konirewa #AfricanCinema #creatorsearchinsights
Ọlọ́runrinú, PhD. 🕊️🕊️ #konirewa retweeted
GET LUST is coming.
Do not get lost before then. #Getlusttheseries #GL
Ọlọ́runrinú, PhD. 🕊️🕊️ #konirewa retweeted
My Father’s Shadow’s sound design excels because it reminds us of how chaotic Lagos is. That thing you call silence is not silence at all. There’s so much going on all at once. Not a moment of peace —- that is the life we lead in this country and it is frankly exhausting
Ọlọ́runrinú, PhD. 🕊️🕊️ #konirewa retweeted
I remember seeing this for the first time at the cinema. For a good 5 minutes after the movie ended, I sat down and WEPT! I needed to gather myself before stepping out. It felt like I had entered someone else’s memory and found fragments of my own life in there. What a piece.
CASTING IS MORE THAN A NAME. #day22
Meet two people at the heart of GET LUST, Etta JoMaria and Chimezie Imo.
In the series, they play a couple.
He loved her.
She wanted more.
And eventually, she broke his heart.
But behind these characters is another story.
When we were casting Chimezie, he had already done some really good work, but he had not yet won the AMVCA Trailblazer Award.
We didn’t need the award to tell us what we already knew.
Chimezie could act.
More importantly, he had that we were looking for.
He becomes the character.
For Etta, the story was different.
We initially had someone else in mind, but the schedule didn’t work out.
Then she came on board last minute.
And I remember fighting hard for that decision.
Looking back, I am so glad we did.
Because she didn’t just play the lead.
She carried GET LUST.
We had challenges during production. We stretched her. We stressed her. We asked a lot of her.
But she understood us.
We had gone to film school together. She understood where we were coming from and what we were trying to build.
And somewhere along the way, she became one of our Executive Producers.
She didn’t just put her talent into the project.
She put herself into it.
Even her own resources.
That is why casting is bigger than popularity.
Don’t just ask, “Is this person famous?”
Ask:
Can they become the character?
Do they understand the story?
Can you trust them?
Can you work with them when things get difficult?
Because filmmaking will test your relationships.
And when the pressure comes, you want people who believe in the work as much as you do.
We are grateful for Etta....
And Chimezie.
Watch them.
Watch what they did with these characters.
And especially watch Etta.
Because I genuinely believe she is on her way to becoming a global superstar.
#GetLust #Konirewa #AfricanCinema #creatorsearchinsights
PRE PRODUCTION CHANGED EVERYTHING. #day23
Before we shot GET LUST, we went on multiple location recces.
We were checking locations, negotiating and trying to find solutions that worked for the story and what we could afford.
But during one of our final cast reads, something became very clear:
The project was bigger than the resources we had at the time.
We had planned to shoot for about eight days.
Eventually, we shot for roughly 21 days, in two blocks.
The first block was about 13 days.
It was rough.
Money was coming in while we were already shooting, so we had to constantly make decisions, adjust and keep moving.
For those first 13 days, we shot with one camera.
We had secured a deal with Sony, and that support helped us get through the first block.
Then came the pickup.
We had learned from the first block. We planned better, and this time, we got two Sony cameras for the additional seven days.
The second block went much more smoothly.
And that taught us something beyond production:
Sometimes, you limit yourself by the things you are afraid to ask for.
We could have simply accepted that one camera was what we had.
Instead, we asked.
We looked for brands.
We looked for partners.
We reached out.
And some people said yes.
That happened with more than cameras.
Locations.
Equipment.
Hair.
Makeup.
Costumes.
Production design.
People supported us in different ways.
And we will tell you about many of those people and brands as this story continues.
But here is the lesson:
Ask.
The worst thing that can happen is that someone says no.
So be daring.
Identify the brands that align with your project.
Find potential partners.
Make the pitch.
Ask for the support.
You may be surprised by who is willing to believe in what you are building.
GET LUST taught us that sometimes, the difference between what you have and what you need is simply having the courage to ask.
#GetLust #Konirewa #AfricanCinema
Ọlọ́runrinú, PhD. 🕊️🕊️ #konirewa retweeted
~ One of my favourite scenes in My Father’s Shadow is the scene with the gatekeeper and Folarin. Everything about that scene is pure cinema! Show! Tell! Acting! When the gatekeeper left a message for his wife, those few seconds Folarin had alone, the way he embodied that feeling! I felt it to my bones!
So many nuances in the film. I love, love it all! Every scene kept showing us what had happened, but for some, they might never understand / get it until the end of the film.
Ọlọ́runrinú, PhD. 🕊️🕊️ #konirewa retweeted
Dear Nollywood producers,
I'm BEGGING....
I know say economy hard but...I'm BEGGING...
When U collect money to do the project. Your number one priority should be doing the project FIRST!!!Not how much U will first chop for yourself.
You're killing the industry. Abeg nau
Ọlọ́runrinú, PhD. 🕊️🕊️ #konirewa retweeted
I’m genuinely excited for the conversations this new film I’m producing will spark.
It’s been such a stressful pre-production ride, but I’m so thankful that things are looking up.
