WCW- OMONI OBOLI

Yaaaaay! It's another Wednesday and we all know what that means.

OUR AFRICAN WOMAN CRUSH WEDNESDAY!!!

Today we'll be celebrating someone from the movie industry, a beautiful Nigerian lady who is determined to make a difference in her profession. She is none other than Mrs. OMONI OBOLI.

Omoni Oboli is a Nigerian actress, scriptwriter, film director, producer and digital filmmaker. She studied at the New York Film Academy and has written several screenplays, including The Figurine (2009), Anchor Baby (2010), Fatal Imagination, Being Mrs Elliott, The First Lady and Wives on Strike (2016). In 2018 she starred and directed the comedy film, Moms at War.

She was Born on the 22nd of April 1978 (age 42). Oboli was born in Benin City, Edo State. She is a descendant of Mosogar in Delta State. Omoni Oboli studied Foreign Languages (majoring in French) at the University of Benin, and graduated with honors (2nd Class Upper division) She is an actress, a scriptwriter, a director, and a producer. She has been active in the industry since 1996; went for a break, and then carried on from 2009 till date. She is married to Nnamdi Oboli and they are both blessed with three wonderful children.

Omoni began her movie career with her first movie role in Bitter Encounter (1996), where she played a secretary. Her next was Shame. She then went on to play the lead female character in three major movies; Not My Will, Destined to Die and Another Campus Tale. After enjoying a brief career in 1996, Omoni left the movie industry to complete her university education. She married immediately after school and did not return to the industry until a decade later.

Omoni has several screenplays to her credit, including her film Wives On Strike as well as The Rivals, a movie she co-produced with her friend and won the prize for Best International Drama at the New York International Independent Film & Video Festival. It was the first Nigerian film to be premiered since the festival’s inception in 2003 need. The movie was given a 3-star rating out of 4 by the festival's judges.

Omoni has played lead roles in mainstream films, including: The Figurine (2009), Anchor Baby (2010), Being Mrs Elliot, and Fifty (2015). She is also the first actress from Nollywood to win Best Actress in two international festivals, (that are not organized by Nigerians or Africans), in the same year (2010). This she did at the Harlem International Film Festival and the Los Angeles Movie Awards for her lead role in the movie Anchor Baby.

In 2010, she won the award for Best Actress Narrative Feature at the Los Angeles Movie Awards, and the award for Best Actress at the Harlem International Film Festival. Omoni was nominated for the Best Actress in a leading role award at the 2011 Africa Movie Academy Awards.

In 2014, she won Big Screen Actress of the Year award, at the 2014 ELOY Awards, for her movie, Being Mrs Elliott. In 2015, Omoni was awarded the Sun Nollywood "Personality of the Year", She has directed several movies such as, Being Mrs Elliott, The First Lady, Wives on Strike, and Okafor's Law.

On 14 August 2017, Omoni Oboli took to her instagram page to share a post announcing her new deal as the Brand ambassador of Olawale Ayilara's LandWey Investment Limited.

Omoni Oboli set up a charity organization, "The Omoni Oboli Foundation" to use her celebrity status to bring well-needed relief to the plight of the less privileged women and children of Nigerian society. The foundation has been able to embark on several projects which include the following:

The feeding of street children in Lagos.

Feeding and giving over two hundred poor and disadvantaged children at Delta Steel Complex, Aladja, a fun day with practical gifts.

Broadening the mindset of the less privileged children by taking the children of Ecole Divine Nursery Primary and Secondary School to a milk factory to see how it is made and packaged.

She had once said, "Ever since I started directing, I have seen a rise in female filmmakers in my country. My ultimate goal is to produce content that entertains and educates an audience, while also remaining socially relevant. I want to build a vibrant local film industry in Nigeria that has a global appeal because of our work, instead of the number of our productions".

Omoni has described Tyler Perry as a great influence in her producing career, how he had managed directing, producing, acting (multiple roles at once) and scriptwriting.

Omoni Oboli has never let anything or anyone discourage her through her journey. She's had so many highs and lows through her journey of being a figure in the movie industry. It's a good thing to celebrate a hardworking lady and emulate her good attributes She is a major source of inspiration for future filmmakers.

Connect with her on twitter & instagram @omonioboli

Facebook: Omoni Oboli

YouTube: Omoni Oboli

See your all next Wednesday. Do have a lovely day, cheers!

Written by

Myrtle Tam'Daniel

Author & Content writer