Jaiye Kuti, an actress and filmmaker, has expressed her dissatisfaction with the growing tendency of actresses turning into content providers and dancers to promote their films.
Kuti, in an Instagram post, spoke about the emotional toll this trend takes on filmmakers.
She recounted feeling pressured to dance online to promote her film, even after investing heavily in its production.
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The actress expressed sympathy for her colleagues, citing actor Odunlade Adekola as an example of celebrities turning to dance as a means of promoting their work.
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She further observed that a growing number of actors are now producing skits to attract attention to their films.
Kuti called on viewers to support the film industry by embracing its changing online promotional strategies, emphasising the importance of audience appreciation and encouragement.
She said in part: “I have seen an ongoing discussion online concerning Executive Producers/Producers dancing to their movies.
“Do you know that some Executive Producers go as far as selling what they have to make a good movie? It is getting tiring and emotional for me
“When I made my movie, which was on Prime Video, I didn’t need to dance, and I made my money, which even earned interest.
“I spent money on my second movie with my partner, yet I still had to go to the street to dance to create publicity for the movie.
“It is bad, and I feel for me and the rest of us. There was a time when Odunlade was dancing, and I wanted to cry.
“After spending so much on publications, radio tours, billboards, and others, we’d still be required to come out and dance; it is bad. Actors have turned to skit makers just because they want to sell their movies. Viewers, you need to help us”.
Kuti also commended Funke Akindele’s dancing skills, noting that not everyone has the same talent or ease when it comes to dancing.
She stressed that everyone possesses their own unique strengths and talents, adding that a quality film will eventually speak for itself.
“Not everybody can dance like Funke Akindele. God made everybody beautiful and imbued all of us in different ways. Everybody has a place in art.
“It is not everybody that have that strength of Funke Akindele. Funke Akindele is a natural dancer. But please, when the film is good, you will know”, she said.
This sentiment mirrors Jemima Osunde’s recent criticism of actors being forced to become dancers by default as a means of promoting their films.
