By Bimbola Segun-Amao
‘Dawn in The Creeks: A Niger Delta Legacy’ is an engagement of the Niger Delta Legacy Board, The United States Department for Conflict and Stabilization Operation and The Stakeholder Democracy Network (SDN) to increase peace, stabilization and skills empowerment in the Niger Delta.
The prolific film maker, Jeta Amata was saddled with the responsibility of selecting 7 individuals each from 3 different states; Bayelsa, Delta and Rivers states and make them into film-makers within few days.The 7 trainees each from Nembe (Bayelsa State), Erema (Rivers State) and Ozoro (Delta State) communities were intensively trained on film making, conflict resolution, business and brand management.
More than a few were impressed at the premiere of the works of ‘Jeta-apprentices’ on the 27th of April, when thier produced TV series were premiered. The SilverBird Galleria was glamorously filled with celebrities, film makers and Niger Delta stakeholders to appraise the works of these youngsters.
We were not denied the selection process of the 21, as the screen opened with Jeta’s search and selection of these unique personalities. Many who were unemployed, okada riders and some ex-militants. The board had high hopes that the trainees would be able to use their newly-acquired skills to give voice to the non-violent and transformative stories that abound in their communities. They were expected to write, produce and direct their own films at the end of their training. And this they did, without anyone influencing or vetting their stories.
Dawn in the Creeks is the outcome of this project, including Save our soul from Nollywood Academy – Ozoro, and Truce which was produced by the team of 7 from Nenbe.
I spoke with Mr Adewale Ajadi, of SDN, Stakeholders Democracy Network.
In this entire project, how does SDN come in?
SDN is the main delivery arm for the program in Niger-Delta and in Nigeria and I’m the lead for that delivery in SDN for this program, so I head a secretariat that is still within SDN that is there to develop the strategy in conjunction with the Americans, we are there to execute this strategy and we also have Niger- Delta Legacy board that is there to take the strategy beyond the Americans support. 
The board works with my team, my team does what is agreed with the board, so we’re the ones that do all of this together on behalf of the board and on behalf of the Americans. We ensure that the project thrives.
The Secretary said after this season, the American Embassy is pulling out and it’s going to be run by the board, do you think it will be that viable?
Yes we are going to run it, that is my responsibility to make sure that it is viable, so we are going to put in a lot of effort to ensure it’s done, we are going to make sure there is the right kind of partners around the table, good commercials and volunteers, we are going to make sure that the product we are pushing forward which is the TV program is itself commercially viable. So far, we have signed on with at least 6 networks to show the TV program across the country, we are hopeful to get corporate sponsors and individuals.
How many seasons are we looking at?
We only have season 1 in the bag with 13 episodes, it commences in June and then will follow that up with season 2, season 3 and most likely there is going to be season 4.
I also asked Rev Fr Obi, The chairman of The Niger Delta Legacy Board some questions too
The project is concluded, the film is made, what happens to this set of 21?
We will keep them together and mentor them, eventually we hope we can buy equipments we can leave with them so that each of them could form one kind of a small company and make movie as a team, make profit from their movies but what we will do is that the reality TV showing where they started to where they are now will be on some TV stations nationwide season by season, it will be something like project fame, Nollywood academy but a reality TV that will be stuck in the consciousness of Nigerians so that they will see that it is possible to rise from being nothing to stardom without raising a gun at anybody. And then the next set of 21 will come 3 other communities from these 3 states.
Why these particular 3 states?
Well, our research has shown us that these core states are the states in which the violence is greatest or most than the other states in Niger-Delta and those 3 states are key to resolving the issue of violence in Niger-Delta that is why the board and the US State department resolved that we should focus on these 3 states at least for now but there is nothing that says that we may not be able to expand beyond the 3 states to other states in the country even to North-East Nigeria but for now the violence is related to oil-theft, political violence, bad governance and all that so we hope that when these issues has been addressed, it will be possible to move to other issues, first these 3 states are key.
So the project is majorly sponsored by the US state department?
Yes for now, they gave us the seed money to start but like I told you, we are about to establish a franchise “Dawn in the creeks” which will be a popular TV series, season by season and then the TV companies will make money by placing adverts there and then eventually it will become self-sustaining and there might even be money made by this board which will be ploughed into working in the Niger-Delta on various social issues, so this is the idea but we are now in the process of transiting from just being sponsored by the US State department to becoming a legal entity, a cooperate body with a franchise which many people and other interest group can tap into, this is what we are looking at.
Is it that the US state department chose Jeta Amata to direct the project or the Niger-Delta legacy board recommended him?
In the beginning, we didn’t know how to approach this but the most visible, most audible man we knew was Jeta Amata who was right there when Nollywood started, he was one of the earliest director that we know and he was already living in California in the united States so it was easy through the US states department to contact Jeta Amata, sell the idea to him, see if he will be able to direct and make something out of this, he accepted and took it on a his baby, so far he has mentored this babies, the rest of us are not film-makers so we don’t know what it takes in making movies but he has taught them and he promised us that within 10days, he will bring them from nothing to film-makers and this is what has happened.
And he did all of this in 10days??
Yes all of the training in 10days in Eko Hotels & Suites. After the 10days, we sent them to Calabar to learn how to run a business in Calabar they learnt small scale business. Beyond the film-making, they have been empowered to do something else.
I could not hold the astonishment to myself when it was mentioned that Jeta trained the 21 in 10 days. I walked up to him and asked. “You trained these film makers in 10 days, how and why did you do that?
Jeta: I had only 10days to make filmmakers out of them and then after the 10days they had to go work. My first film was barely a success, my second film is worse, it was not as good as what these guys did; I’m telling you. It’s called Alien Attack but I love it more than anything yet it’s not as good as what these guys did. Look if this is on African Magic and you walk past, you will seat down and you will never guess that the people who made it learnt it in 10days, you will never guess some of the people are okada riders, ex-militant and all that, would you guess? Exactly, so the 10days was it, I’d wanted it to be a 100days or more but I couldn’t afford the time but the little I had was what I tried everything in this world to do and so this is the result.
So will there be subsequent trainings or you are done with them?
Jeta: I’d already told them that I learn every day, I started in the analogue time editing cameras and I learnt digital so every new thing that comes out I learn so they know they have to do the same thing.
Does it mean that for the subsequent 21, there is just going to be another 10 days?
Jeta: It’s a model now, we have created a model and we going to work with the model.