Actress and filmmaker Efe Irele has opened up about her journey from corporate work to becoming a producer.
The talented actress described it as a path shaped by patience, learning, and refusing to cut corners.
Speaking at a gathering, Irele said many people do not know she started producing as far back as 2017 and 2018. She began acting in 1995, but before returning fully to the screen, she worked as an HR manager in a procurement and logistics company.
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“I quit my job because I knew I didn’t want to be there. I didn’t like it at all,” she recalled. She also ran an event management company, experience she said later helped her when she decided to produce.
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Irele said she learned by observing film sets and asking questions. She was disturbed by poor working conditions in 2018, from the way actors are been treated on set, to crew members. “I was like, ‘I don’t want this to be me,’” she stated.
Her first attempt at a big-budget film failed after raising millions from family and investors. She then chose to “start from the bottom” with smaller projects instead calling it the best decision because she could learn more.
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Irene later attended film school to study producing and filmmaking while noting that every producer must understand every department to avoid being misled.
She credited intentional planning for the success of her film ‘My Mother is a Witch’ which she co-produced with Victoria Akujobi and writer-director Niyi Akinmolayan after rejecting a director whose vision did not match the script.