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The Digest:

Nollywood box office record-holder, Funke Akindele, has issued a veiled response to filmmaker Kunle Afolayan's recent criticism of intensive movie promotion styles. In posts on her Instagram Story, Akindele dismissed suggestions that her energetic, dance-driven marketing strategy hinders others' progress, stating, "I'm not the one hindering your progress." She emphasized the industry is large enough for everyone to thrive and encouraged colleagues who find the current trend exhausting to "create your own path" or hire professional marketers. Her comments follow Afolayan's remarks describing such promotional demands as "draining" and questioning the financial returns of high-grossing cinema releases.

Key Points:
  • Akindele's response defends the legitimacy of her highly successful marketing model while rejecting any notion that it sets an unfairly demanding standard.
  • It reinforces her position as a commercially dominant force and advocates for a pluralistic industry where different promotional strategies can coexist.
  • The actress asserts her right to her proven methods, while indirectly challenging critics to innovate rather than critique successful existing models.
  • The exchange publicly frames a fundamental divide in Nollywood's business philosophy: mass-market engagement versus auteur-focused sustainability.
  • Coming days after Afolayan's comments, the timing turns a professional critique into a public discourse on success, jealousy, and methodology in the film industry.
The subtle yet pointed exchange highlights the competitive and evolving nature of Nollywood's commercial landscape, where marketing strategy itself has become a topic of artistic and professional contention.

Sources: Funke Akindele's Instagram Story posts

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