Getting to know Desmond Elliot of Nollywood

Background
I was born to a Yoruba father and an Ibo mother. I grew up in the Northern part of the country and I am married to an Akwa-Ibom woman. I had my primary education at Air Force Primary school in Jos from where I went to St John’s College also in Jos. I studied Economics at the Lagos State University, Ojo, Lagos and graduated in 2003.

Marriage
Although people say I got married late but the truth is that I dated my wife for about eight years before we finally got married. My kind of job may have exposed me to the opposite sex but the truth is that my wife means the whole world to me. I appreciate my wife and I married her basically for love and nothing else. She is so understanding and caring. These are the two vital attributes I find lacking in most women of today.

A true Nigerian
I understand the three major Nigerian languages but I speak more of Hausa because that is the language I grew up with.

Relaxation
I basically relax with my wife whenever the opportunity comes, especially if I am in town and not involved in a tedious job. I have a special form of relaxation, I just choose a suitable time and free myself from every form of stress.

Turn off
I don’t like people flashing me. I mean if you want to give a call, go ahead and do so, it is of no use flashing me.
Why I run from women
Women chase me because I am an actor and if they don’t do that it simply means that I am not yet an actor. In fact, being chased is not the issue, what matters is that whenever I perceive that I am about to be chased, I run. I run because I have an ambition, which I don’t want women to ruin for me. I run from them if they want to go beyond the level of being my fans to another level.

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Femi Branch - From MTN Advert to Nollywood

Femi Branch on the marble

My first big step in acting was when Professor Ola Rotimi took me under his wings and told me ‘young man I think you have a future in this thing’. He made me into a project along with some other people like Jude Orhoha and others. He took interest in us and mentored us and that really gave me the footing, the strength that I have in what I do. Since then it’s been fun," he laughed, with a mien that suggested he was battling with nostalgia.

"I would like to think it takes less acting skills to do commercials, but it is acting all the same because its like you playing a part, trying to be someone that you are not; trying to convince people that okay I use this product, or that I have spent so much time testing the product and I’m recommending it to the audience."
"Stage is not financially gratifying as screen but it is something that most of us who are passionate about still take every time out to do and, most of the time when we do we don’t consider the financial side of it.

"We do it because we love doing it and we want to keep it alive. And I’m hoping, before the end of the year, to still be involved with at least two stage productions and to be able to commit more time and resources to stage later in my stage productions, because I write stage plays and produce,"

"I think Femi is worlds apart from Oscar Lord Williams. When it comes to romance, actually you should ask whoever has been a victim of the romantic side of the real me, my wife – Ibitola - being a good example. I’m more attuned, more sensitive and more romantic; more loving than Oscar Lord Williams though they share some similarities.

"Oscar and Femi share the same dedication to their job, commitment to vision. So, it’s not all negatives about the young man called Oscar, there are some good sides to him though his perceptions are sometimes a little weird,"

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Fortunes Changed Liz Benson Fortunes

Her appearance in the television serial, Fortunes, in 1993 changed the course of her life. The TV soap brought her fame and fortune. At about the time of her spectacular rise to stardom, the Home Video as a medium of entertainment had become popular. Coming to movie prominence with Glamour Girls in 1994, Liz Benson has appeared in so many home videos that her face is better known than that of any other actress. Some of the movies where she played the leading role include True Confessions, Shame, Yesterday, Evil Men 1 and 2, Trial, Pureman, Scores to Settle, Izaga, Chain Reaction, Sunset in Africa, Stolen Child, Burden and many more.
A resolute and courageous lady, Liz lost her husband (Samuel Gabriel Etim) when she was in her mid-20 and unlike some women whose world would crash after the demise of their husband, she has faced life struggles and successfully raised the three children all alone as a single mother. She has made a huge name for herself in acting.

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