Nollywood filmmaker Kunle Afolayan has appealed for government support to sustain the operations of KAP Film Village and Resort in Oyo State, saying he has invested more than N8 billion of his personal funds in the project.
Afolayan made the disclosure during an interview with former Minister of Finance, Kemi Adeosun, on the Nidacity podcast, released on YouTube on Tuesday.
The filmmaker said the facility has had no access to public electricity since its establishment, forcing the resort to rely entirely on diesel-powered generators.
He said the sharp increase in diesel prices had made the cost of running the facility unsustainable, adding that the resort was at one point at risk of shutting down earlier this year.
“I believe so much in this country. We haven’t had electricity in KAP Village since the beginning. So we’ve been running on diesel,” Afolayan said.
He explained that although a friend offered to supply diesel on credit when the resort faced financial difficulties, the arrangement was not sustainable in the long term.
To reduce its dependence on diesel, Afolayan said the company invested about N200 million last year in a green energy system.
According to him, however, the renewable energy installation is not sufficient to power the entire facility, prompting discussions with other stakeholders on expanding its capacity.
“We did one last year, which cost about N200m, but it’s not enough to power the entire resort,” he said.
Afolayan said government agencies should consider providing grants or other forms of support to private investors who commit substantial resources to developing the creative industry.
He argued that his N8 billion investment demonstrated his commitment to the country and deserved some form of government intervention.
“I know people are not even doing one quarter of what we’re doing, and they get a lot of grants from government,” he said.
The filmmaker also explained that the 100 rooms at the film village were constructed after the production of his movie, Anikulapo, exposed the accommodation challenges faced by cast and crew members.
He recalled that some members of the production team had to stay in private homes and bring household items from their residences because adequate accommodation was unavailable.
“When we shot Anikulapo, we didn’t have accommodation. We were squatting in people’s houses. Sola Sobowale and Bimbo Ademoye even brought their cottons and freezers from home. So I had to build 100 rooms in the film village to make everyone comfortable,” he said.
Located in Oyo State, KAP Film Village and Resort has hosted several major Nollywood productions and is among Nigeria’s major privately funded investments in creative industry infrastructure.
