Press Kit - Monterey Media

 BASED ON THE BEST-­‐SELLING NOVEL BY CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE A MONTEREY MEDIA PRESENTATION SHAREMAN MEDIA AND BFI PRESENT IN ASSOCIATION WITH METRO INTERNATIONAL ENTERTAINMENT AND KACHIFO LIMITED IN ASSOCIATION WITH LIP SYNC PRODUCTIONS LLP A SLATE FILMS PRODUCTION OF A FILM BY BIYI BANDELE STARRING:
CHIWETEL EJIOFOR THANDIE NEWTON ANIKA NONI ROSE JOSEPH MAWLE JOHN BOYEGA GENEVIEVE NNAJI ONYEKA ONWENU DIRECTOR: BIYI BANDELE SCREENPLAY: BIYI BANDELE EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS: YEWANDE SADIKU, MUHTAR BAKARE, GAIL EGAN, NORMAN MERRY, PETER HAMPDEN DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY: JOHN DE BORMAN BSC EDITOR: CHRIS GILL PRODUCTION DESIGNER: ANDREW MCALPINE MUSIC BY: BEN ONONO CASTING BY: JINA JAY Drama Runtime: 113min ©2012 Shareman Media Limited / The British Film Limited / Yellow Sun Limited MPAA: R monterey media inc. Half of a Yellow Sun 2 S YNOPSIS
ONE LINE SYNOPSIS HALF OF A YELLOW SUN is an epic love-­‐story weaving together the lives of four people swept up in the turbulence of war in 1960s Nigeria. SHORT SYNOPSIS Olanna (Thandie Newton) and Kainene (Anika Noni Rose) are glamorous twins from a wealthy Nigerian family. Upon returning to a privileged city life in newly independent 1960s Nigeria after their expensive English education, the two women make very different choices. Olanna shocks her family by going to live with her lover, the “revolutionary professor” Odenigbo (Chiwetel Ejiofor) and his devoted houseboy Ugwu (John Boyega) in the dusty university town of Nsukka; Kainene turns out to be a fiercely successful businesswoman when she takes over the family interests, and surprises even herself when she falls in love with Richard (Joseph Mawle), an English writer. Preoccupied by their romantic entanglements, and a betrayal between the sisters, the events of their life seem to loom larger than politics. However, they become caught up in the events of the Nigerian civil war, in which the lgbo people fought an impassioned struggle to establish Biafra as an independent republic, ending in chilling violence which shocked the entire world. A sweeping romantic drama, HALF OF A YELLOW SUN takes the sisters and their lovers on a journey through the war which is powerful, intensely emotional and, as the response of readers around the world has shown, it is a story which can touch everyone’s heart. LONG SYNOPSIS Lagos, 1960. Nigeria is celebrating its new status as an independent country, free from the British rule for the first time in nearly 60 years. Twin sisters Olanna (Thandie Newton) and Kainene (Anika Noni Rose), who have recently returned from studying in England, prepare for dinner with a senior government minister at their parents' home. Their father is keen for the idealistic Olanna to take up a government position but she announces that she will instead be moving to the university town of Nsukka to take up a post as a sociology lecturer, and to be close to radical university professor Odenigbo (Chiwetel Ejiofor). Kainene is scathing of her sister's lover, whom she labels The Revolutionary. The more hard-­‐nosed of the two, she will be heading up her father’s business interests in Port Harcourt. Later that evening, Olanna and Kainene attend a party where Kainene, a notorious flirt, catches the eye of Richard (Joseph Mawle), an English journalist who is about to take up a position teaching English at Nsukka. Richard immediately falls for Kainene and they begin a love affair. Meanwhile, Olanna heads to Nsukka to take up her post at the University and is reunited with Odenigbo, moving into a flat nearby him and his illiterate houseboy, Ugwu (John Boyega). They settle into a contented and social existence, with lots of evening entertaining, discussing politics with fellow intellectuals over wine. However, the peace is shattered when Odenigbo’s Mama (Onyeka Onwenu) visits and immediately attacks Olanna’s upbringing and education, calling her a monterey media inc. Half of a Yellow Sun 3 witch and demanding that she leave her son. Odenigbo causes further upset when he does not leap to Olanna's defence, on the grounds that his mother is a simple village woman. They make up together and plan to start trying for a baby. Meanwhile, a coup in the North of the country, based around resentments against the Igbo ruling class, leaves Lagos under the control of the army and Olanna and Kainene rush back to see their parents. While Olanna is away, Odenigbo’s Mama returns and brings Amala (Susan Wokoma), a young village girl, to help her. After a drunken evening, Odenigbo sleeps with Amala. Olanna immediately senses his betrayal on her return to Nsukka and leaves Odenigbo. Olanna refuses to see Odenigbo until he tells her that Amala is pregnant and is keeping the child. She goes back to him, but in an act of revenge, Olanna impulsively seduces Kainene’s partner, Richard. Odenigbo discovers this on his return and is outraged at Richard, but realises that he cannot take the moral high ground under the circumstances. Mama brings Odenigbo’s new born daughter to him telling him that Amala is refusing to keep her. Initially Odenigbo plans to send her to be brought up by Amala's family but when the childless Olanna holds her, she decides that they will keep the little girl. They call her Baby, and Olanna asks Kainene to be her Godmother. However, Richard’s over-­‐eager house boy, Harrison, lets slip that Odenigbo had confronted Richard, and Kainene guesses Olanna’s betrayal, creating a seemingly irreparable rift between the two sisters. Meanwhile, riots have broken out between the Hausa people from the North and Igbo people from the East of the country. Prejudice builds up against the Igbos, but Olanna remains defiantly proud of her background. At Kano airport, Olanna and Richard pass each other, before the army arrive and begin to segregate the civilians. Olanna has left already, but all other Igbos are rounded up and shot in cold blood, to the horror of Richard who witnesses the massacre, before returning to London. Olanna arrives at her Aunt’s house to find that the violence has spread to this neighbourhood too, and she sees her beloved Aunt die at the hands of rebels before escaping. As East Nigeria declares itself an independent state called Biafra, and prepares to take up arms against the aggressors, Odenigbo, Olanna, Ugwu and Baby are forced to evacuate Nsukka, leaving everything behind and fleeing to Mama’s house in Abba. Odenigbo asks Olanna to marry him and after denying him for so long, she accepts. Civil war spreads south to Abba and the family are again forced to move on. Mama defiantly refuses to leave her home and the others are forced to depart to Umuahia without her. Olanna's mother travels to her to try to persuade her to come to England with them, but she will not leave her family. Odenigbo and Olanna’s wedding day arrives but the celebrations are shattered when an explosion rips through the village, the target of an airstrike by Northern government forces. They are forced to escape to the jungle, hiding from the bombings whilst teaching the local children. Having been encouraged by Odenigbo to finish his education, Ugwu is now teaching alongside Olanna. Odenigbo tries to return to Abba to find his mother but finds out that her village was attacked and she has been killed. Richard makes the decision to return from London to be with Kainene who has been forced to evacuate Port Harcourt and is now running a refugee camp, to help cope with the hundreds of thousands of homeless and starving Biafrans. Olanna and family move nearby and, through a series of visits and against the background of such trauma, she and Kainene begin to rebuild their monterey media inc. Half of a Yellow Sun 4 relationship. In a desperate move, the Biafran army has begun to train boy soldiers and Ugwu is forcibly enlisted. Kainene hears that he has been killed and tells a distraught Olanna. She takes out her pain and fury on Odenigbo, who is drinking himself into despair. Olanna and her family are forced to evacuate as they are bombed once again. This time, having run out of money, they are forced to take refuge in Kainene and Richard’s home. In order to get hold of desperately needed supplies for themselves and the refugee camp, Kainene heads to Ninth Mile Road, a dangerous stretch across the Biafran border, but does not return. Olanna and Richard search for her to no avail. A call comes in which Richard desperately hopes is word of Kainene but in fact is news for Odenigbo and Olanna – Ugwu is still alive. As the war ends with Biafra's surrender, Ugwu returns to the family but Kainene is still missing. Richard continues to search for her, ever more hopelessly, as Olanna, Odenigbo, Ugwu and Baby return home to Nsukka to rebuild their shattered lives. Q UOTES
“A well-­‐acted, finely wrought epic… The faultless ’60s art direction helps to bring the milieu to life, as do Mr. Ejiofor’s and Ms. Newton’s typically stormy performances.” – The New York Times “Superb performances, particularly from Thandie Newton and Anika Noni Rose. This geographically restless story can hardly fail to engross, particularly with Newton at the top of her game.” – Variety “The film is gorgeous, evocative, and easily the highlight of Newton’s achievements as an actress” – Vanity Fair “Great performances from richly drawn images… Chiwetel Ejiofor, turning in yet another superb performance this year.” – Indiewire “An epic and striking adaptation… Powerful and moving performances” – Screen Daily “A brilliant directing debut” – The Huffington Post “Terrific. It’s a fascinating story.” – Access Hollywood “Great performances (notably by Chiwetel Ejiofor and Thandie Newton)” – Entertainment Weekly “A rich and passionate saga” – The Village Voice “Newton remains a dynamic presence throughout” – Slant Magazine monterey media inc. Half of a Yellow Sun 5 F ESTIVAL
monterey media inc. Half of a Yellow Sun 6 HALF OF A YELLOW SUN PRODUCTION
STORY “It’s essentially a love story," Biyi Bandele introduces his feature film debut, an adaptation of the internationally best-­‐selling Orange Prize-­‐winning novel of the same name by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. He elaborates, "It’s about people falling in love and the sacrifices you have to make sometimes when you are in a relationship.” More specifically, he explains, “It is about a generation of Nigerians who grew up in the 1960s, which is when Nigeria along with most African countries gained independence. And this was a generation of Africans, of Nigerians, who were so imbued with confidence, with enthusiasm, with optimism about the future of the country and of Africa. Before the end of that decade things begin to unravel before them, around them, and the dream they had for that country becomes very, very complicated.” For the author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, the story was an intensely personal one. She explains: “Much of the story of Odenigbo in the novel is based on my father’s own experiences. My father had just returned from the US with his new PHD in Mathematics, was eager, like most of the other educated Nigerians of his generation, to join in the task of nation building after independence, and then things fell apart: the coup, the massacres, the war. My father and his friends lost their innocence in that war.” The scars of the conflict are still present in families across modern-­‐day Nigeria, none more so than Adichie’s. “In my family, nobody really spoke about what they had experienced until I began to ask questions while researching the novel. Almost everything that happens in the novel is based on something that happened to someone real, a family member, a family friend, although I changed some details.” ADAPTING A BEST SELLER See interview on CNN: CNN Interview Biyi Bandele Nigerian born playwright and novelist Biyi Bandele came across Adichie’s book soon after it was published and it had a dramatic impact on him, as he explains: “I was completely bowled over by the sheer scale of it. Chimamanda’s writing is phenomenal.” The book held a particular poignancy for Bandele as he outlines. “Because I was born in Nigerian during the Nigerian civil war, it is a subject that has always fascinated me and I have always wanted there to be a book or film about Biafra." He thought the story would make a great film, and his immediate thought was to send the book to Andrea Calderwood, who had recently produced Kevin Macdonald’s THE LAST KING OF SCOTLAND. As Bandele continues: “She read it and came back a week later and said, yes, I agree it will make a great movie.” Producer, Andrea Calderwood picks up the story. “What I loved about the book was that it’s a very strong human story. It’s quite a universal story about these women making very bold choices in their lives. It’s set against the backdrop of the Nigerian civil war, a very significant time in Nigeria. Chimamanda’s book felt to me like a universal story about universal human emotions but those monterey media inc. Half of a Yellow Sun 7 emotions are heightened by being in a state of war. So we felt that you didn’t need to have any prior knowledge of the Nigerian civil war in order to understand the story." The book's best selling status across the world proves that point. Calderwood continues, "I think what draws people to it is that it really is about these women in particular, making very surprising choices, and what they decide to do with their lives and how they deal with their relationships." Calderwood explains that Adichie was happy for Bandele to translate her book to the screen over others who had approached her as she very much respected his novels and theatre work. According to Calderwood, "She felt that she would be in very safe hands and that Biyi would be the person to understand all the nuances and complexities of what she was writing about. She was very generous in the way that she allowed Biyi to take it and turn it into something else.” Bandele adds, "Whenever she was in London we would meet up and I was incredibly passionate about it and I think that came across." Bandele describes the challenge of turning a 500 page book into a film of under two hours. “It’s like translating something from one language to another. In order to make it work you have to find new idioms, new ways of saying the same thing in a new language.” He continues, "I was trying to capture the essence of the book. I had to decide what was going to stay in and what was going to stay out. The book for instance is told from the point of view of Ugwu who is the houseboy, and Ugwu is a prominent character in our movie but I decided I wanted to tell the story through the eyes of Olanna.” And what of Adichie's response to the script? Bandele decided against showing it to her at that stage, because of the change in focus. When it came to showing the novelist the final film, Bandele describes how terrified he felt. "I actually stayed away from the screening, even though I was in the neighbourhood. Then I got a phone call from Andrea saying she loved it!” When Bandele later met up with Adichie she told him that she was glad not to have seen the script beforehand as her faith in him was justified. As Bandele tells it, “She said, ‘You got the book! You absolutely got the book.’“ Thandie Newton, who plays the lead character Olanna, had read, and fallen in love with, the novel even before being approached for the film. "I was completely entranced by the idea of trying to distil the elements of the novel into the movie. But the real turning point for me was meeting Chimamanda. It gave me on the one hand permission to portray those dearly loved characters and on the other, to leave a lot of the stuff behind. I realised Chimamanda was very relaxed about the film being made; she was curious, excited, but seemed very clear that the book will always stand alone and that we were a cousin of the book." For Yewande Sadiku, one of the Nigerian based Executive Producers, backing a film based on this particular best-­‐selling book made complete sense. She explains that as well as being an important story to tell, it held much promise for a broad international audience. As she puts it, "It has great significant cultural value. It’s an adaptation of a book the world has demonstrated that it can relate to." “It has made me aware, once again, how different films are from novels. They are such different forms, and achieve such different things” says Adichie. She hopes that fans of the novel will also see it that way. “I think they’ll love it, as I did, as long as they realize that a film is never going to monterey media inc. Half of a Yellow Sun 8 merely replicate a book. It’s such a strange thing to see an adaptation of one’s book, to see characters I made up suddenly translated to the screen. I was worried that I would dislike it. After I saw it, I wanted to say ‘thank you’ to Biyi and the actors.” IN LOVE AND WAR: WAR For Bandele, a key reason for choosing this film, and why he had originally been so moved by the book, was because he felt the story of his country's civil war, which lasted for three years from 1967 to 1970, was not being told. As he explains, "Immediately after the war we had this flurry of literature about it, and then nothing. And it just became the elephant in the room, it became something that dominated absolutely everything but nobody talked about it. I felt that Nigeria as a nation needed a form of healing, and that healing could only start once we started talking about that elephant in the room, the war." At the same time many of the team agree that the rest of the world's knowledge and awareness of this period of history has been overshadowed by other events that were taking place at the same time in Vietnam and on US soil with the Civil Rights Movement. It was an important story to tell not just to Nigerians, but to a wide international audience. “We decided that we wouldn’t try and recreate the scenes of the war,” explains Bandele, “partly because it’s not something that our characters experience directly. But we did want to set a context of what’s happening in the wider country, so we used newsreel as a way to do that.” Another impetus for presenting the war in this style is outlined by Andrea Calderwood. "The Biafran War was one of the first ‘media’ wars. It was one of the first times that people around the world were shown very graphic pictures of what was happening in the war; that it was a region under siege. We felt it was appropriate to use some of the newsreel of the time to give a sense of how the war was being reported and how it was being represented, which wasn’t always the same as the way it was being experienced. The war was being mediated through the news reporting of the time.” "It’s a universal story," says Thandie Newton, "not just the fact that it happened around 1968. There are similar situations going on all over the world and I think it focuses more on the family than the actual politics."The film opens on Olanna and her twin sister Kainene (Anika Noni Rose), prosperous twins, who are very well-­‐educated, at the beginning of their adult life. In a parallel sense we see a newly independent Nigeria starting out on what looks like it will be a wonderful journey. Later, everything starts to break down. The internal tensions within Nigeria that have been hinted at result in a coup, and violence starts to break out and the characters have to start to react. LOVE As the war unfolds, so do the central relationships unravel. Thandie Newton encapsulates the film, "...as a Gone with the Wind in Nigeria. It’s not just about the political scene, it’s also about this couple, Olanna and Odenigbo, who go through personal crises and who then have to deal with epic national crises." Chiwetel Ejiofor, who plays Olanna's university professor lover, talks about the emotional monterey media inc. Half of a Yellow Sun 9 upheavals that take place amidst the geo-­‐political changes that were going on. "Whilst charting the political changes that are happening in Nigeria which lead to the Biafran war, we also chart the story of these relationships. The story focuses in very specifically on these characters who are involved in these very complicated relationships that are Odenigbo, Olanna and her sister Kainene and Richard (Joseph Mawle) who’s a British journalist who’s living in Nigeria. So that’s the emotional heart of the story and around those characters this very complex, chaotic situation is unfolding." Ejiofor continues: "The film is a very warm and very deep and exciting love story that occurs in a country that is undergoing a seismic shift and falling into a kind of brutal, free flowing turmoil. And through that this beautiful humanity is discussed and arises in this small group of characters that we follow. Around all this, we find a country being reborn as something else and I think these characters as well." OLANNA AND KAINENE At the heart of the film are twins Olanna and Kainene. Calderwood explains that what Bandele decided to concentrate on in the film, which is slightly different in the novel, is their personalities and the difference in their personalities. As she elaborates, "Olanna is the one who is more idealistic. Her way of contributing to the new Nigeria is to go off and be a university lecturer and she has fallen in love with Odenigbo, who’s described as a revolutionary professor. He’s a bit of an armchair Marxist which was part of the culture at the time. So in that sense, Olanna represents the idealism of people wanting to give something back to the country through education." On the other side, Calderwood continues, "Kainene is more business-­‐minded, she’s a sharper character. She is taking on the family businesses, which is also very impressive for a young woman at that time, in 1960." Adichie reveals that the very reason Kainene and Olanna are twins is to highlight their very different approaches to life and the world around them. “Age is important in Igbo culture. A younger sibling has to show a certain respect, a certain deference, to the older. I wanted the sisters to start off being the same age, so that the tensions and complexities of their relationship would be based solely on their different personalities and experiences, and not on any age difference.” Bandele depicts the differences in the twins as follows: “Olanna is a very focused woman. Very strong, but unlike her twin sister Kainene, who has a pretty in your face attitude to everything in life, a pretty ballsy way of doing things, Olanna is much more considered.” However as Odenigbo finds out to his cost, she is a tough person when she needs to be. He continues, “She can be quite formidable, quite scary. I love her character." Thandie Newton talks of the significance of the twins to the story: "Each seems to represent different sides of Igbo society. Kainene is very much the elite brigade of Igbo, and Olanna is more interested in the socialist aggravating for political change. So they show two sides of the coin." FINDING THE CAST
Casting a well loved novel can ignite debate when viewers will have their own set ideas about the characters. Calderwood talks about these particular challenges. “We wanted to try and embody the spirit of the characters in the book. It doesn’t really work just to try and be literal about how monterey media inc. Half of a Yellow Sun 10 you transcribe the book to the screen. I think that’s what people will find when they come to the film -­‐ that Biyi’s done a fantastic job in capturing the spirit of those characters and their relationships.” For the roles of Olanna and Kainene, Andrea Calderwood talks about wanting to find two actresses who had complementary personalities and energy, as she explains, "Because the defining characteristics of Olanna and Kainene are quite different, the idea was to find two actresses whose energy would complement each other". She continues, "Thandie Newton is an actress who I’ve known for a long time and worked with more than once over the years. She’s an incredibly accomplished actress. When we approached her about the role of Olanna, she really embraced it as a role that she wanted to immerse herself in. Chimamanda describes Olanna as her better self, an idealised version of herself, and we introduced Thandie and Chimamanda to each other quite early on in the process and they got on fantastically, and I think Chimamanda found that Thandie was somebody that could really embody the spirit of Olanna, as she’d written her. Bandele says that he really wanted to work with Newton, who he considers one of the finest actors of her generation. However his first idea for her was not for Olanna, as he explains. "Initially I was actually considering her for Kainene and then I realised she had played Kainene types quite often in the past and she had never played a character like Olanna. I remember the first meeting I had with Thandie about the character and I had sent her the script previously and asked her to read Kainene. I got to the meeting and we spent about two hours there and Thandie just laid into me why she thought Olanna was the character she should play not Kainene, and what really convinced me was the sheer passion that she had." He knew she would make a powerful Olanna so had to go back and rethink his casting. The decision to cast her certainly paid off in the eyes of the author. “I love Thandie Newton as Olanna,” Adichie says. “I was very moved by Olanna. Thandie Newton’s performance is nuanced, the character is both strong and vulnerable, just as I imagined her.” He describes how he went on to cast Anika Noni Rose: "I had seen Anika in The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency, a TV series directed by Anthony Mingella in which she plays a secretary. When I saw it I wasn't actually looking for someone to play Kainene. I came across her name and I was surprised to find out that she was African American. But I knew that if anyone could carry off the character of Kainene it was Anika." Newton was thrilled with this casting: "I already knew Anika Noni Rose from working on COLOURED GIRLS a couple of years before and we struck up a very, very good friendship very quickly. We just clicked and we always joked about wouldn’t it be great if we could work with each other again. I actually emailed Biyi saying ‘wouldn’t Anika Noni Rose be amazing for this role’ and he’d already set up a meeting." Their closeness is a reason that Newton thinks that their on screen relationship works so convincingly, as she explains. "I think one of the reasons we can really get to very touching places, places of real poignancy and emotion and tenderness, is because we have so much fun off camera." As well as sharing a love of the era, the women shared so many ideas off screen that playing on screen twins came naturally."We are really fascinated by the contradictions that display themselves in the movie. You’ve got these two people who love each other more than anything and yet one sister hurts the other sister in ways that you could never imagine. We were very keen to make that as real and as honest as possible." monterey media inc. Half of a Yellow Sun 11 “Kainene is someone who can be construed as someone cold, someone chilly,” Anika Noni Rose explains. “She’s actually just very matter of fact because she’s also a caretaker; she spends a lot of time taking care of her sister. Maybe not in the way that she would want to be taken care of.” Whilst she loves her sister, Kainene far from approves of her choice of man. “I’m constantly on him which of course she doesn’t want to hear. But of course it’s not just about dislike it’s the fact that I don’t think they’re right for each other.” Life becomes even more complex and difficult as Rose explains. “Olanna has an affair with Richard -­‐ there really seems to be no turning back from that. It is the ultimate in betrayal, when the person you shared a womb with, makes an effort to take what is yours, to ruin something that finally feels right in your life. It’s extraordinarily ugly, painful and very hard to come back from and the only thing that made it forgivable was the fact that war came. Because war became more horrid, more ugly, more painful than that hurt, than that rift. Kainene actually has a line in the film when she says ‘there are some things that are so unforgivable, that they make other things easily forgivable,’ and it had to come to that point for her to say ‘ok, this no longer matters’.” OLANNA AND ODENIGBO As for Olanna’s on screen partner, Thandie Newton talks about how she had also worked with Chiwetel Ejiofor previously, including on his debut feature. "Chiwetel and I have played three different couples now in movies. He was saying: Spencer Tracy and Katherine Hepburn!" Bandele describes Ejiofor’s character. "Odenigbo is this... we kept calling him a would-­‐be Fidel Castro. He is a left wing academic, he is a math teacher at a university and he and Olanna meet and fall in love. He is somewhat of a hot head, always making grand political speeches and there was a danger with that character that if I hadn’t found the right actor for it, of that character coming across as one dimensional. Chiwetel just brought his vast, amazing skills to that character and Odenigbo is an amazing character in the movie.” He continues to explain that Ejiofor, who based the character on his own Nigerian Igbo grandfather, and he had been talking about working together even before the script had been written, and so had watched the development of the film from the beginning. Bandele concludes, “I think Chiwetel’s performance in this movie is one of his best in years and he is an actor who is always at the top of his game." Ejiofor outlines how he came onboard the project. "I’d known Biyi Bandele for a long time. I mean for many, many, many years and I’ve always been a huge fan of his work and his writing and I loved the book. When I heard that Biyi was doing an adaptation I knew that it was going to be an exciting project. So seven years ago, Biyi first spoke to me about playing Odenigbo and I was immediately keen to do it." He continues, "Biyi’s always had a clear understanding of what he wants this film to be and his writing is very rich and sparse at the same time which allows all the emotions in without over telling anything. His script is so detailed and he’s so precise on the emotional journey that he is trying to tell and the richness of that journey that it becomes very pleasant to work with him." Ejiofor describes his character. "As an Igbo, Odenigbo, his name literally translating as the sovereign of Igbo, royalty of Igbo, he’s also a tribalist. Intellectually he is pushed from the changes in government without realising that they would actually lead to the pogroms [organised killing of minorities] which started against the Igbo population in the mid Sixties and then the outbreak of full scale war once Biafra had seceded from the rest of Nigeria." monterey media inc. Half of a Yellow Sun 12 Bandele elaborates on the passionate discussions he would have with Ejiofor. "Quite often with Chiwetel we would exchange ideas and in the end what would end up in the screen would be a combination of what came from him and what I was suggesting. I would sometimes get text messages from Chiwetel at four in the morning about a scene we were shooting that day. I’m like, go to sleep man! But, it was great, he is a professional." Thandie Newton explains how evident it was that for Bandele and Ejiofor this had become a labour of love. "It has a depth and a history and it resonates with both of Biyi and Chiwetel in a profound way." For Adichie, “Chiwetel Ejiofor is a perfect Odenigbo, in every way, in addition to being arguably the sexiest man in the world. He brings something true and seamless to the role.” Ejiofor for his part was thrilled to be cast against Thandie Newton once again, and to have an instant rapport with her on screen. "I was very excited that she was on board to play Olanna because she has an effortless grace to her; beautiful and intelligent but also easy with that. She is very charming and generous as an actor and phenomenally talented. So a package of everything you want to work with, especially in something as delicate and intricate as this, because you are playing a few different levels in these relationships. Not only are they trying to negotiate their own romantic issues but they are also in the midst of this conflict, in the midst of all this destruction and still trying to work out their relationship." KAINENE AND RICHARD The third key relationship of the story is Kainene’s with Englishman in Africa, Richard, played by Joseph Mawle. Mawle describes his character as “a loner, a traveller, who finds himself in a land that makes sense to him, in a simple sense. He’s a combination of things: he’s a philosopher, he’s an artist, he’s a writer but he’s a man looking for his own belonging, looking for his own identity, and he certainly felt that he didn’t have an identity in England. Actually he feels more comfortable in Africa which manifests itself very much in this presence of Kainene". Mawle goes on to reinforce the sense that love and war are inextricably linked across the film, as he explains: “I think the love story is a larger part of our telling and the war helps push that forward and we understand how strong a bond is when things are going horribly wrong on the home front and yet, even though one participant within it is able to leave at will, he is constantly coming back into this fray because of this person. It is very much about her, it is her that’s keeping him there, not Africa, it’s Kainene herself, and his love.” Anika Noni Rose talks about her powerful on screen love affair. “We meet at a party and something sparks immediately between us. I think people have sexual spark immediately often but rarely do people have sexual spark that then lasts. We actually have that and it turns into a very honest and true love. They have a very honest relationship; they know each other and love each other for exactly who they are and when it becomes dishonest, it comes as a bigger blow than it would have been because of that. Kainene is someone who’s actually quite guarded, so for her to open herself up to this man who is quite lovely and very smart and interesting is somewhat devastating to her.” Mawle found Anika Noni Rose quite unlike her hard-­‐headed character, as he tells it: “She’s earthy, honest, vibrant... She plays an extraordinary character that she is very different to in real life, so definitely two sides to Anika. They don’t have any parallels apart from their inner want to please and be liked, loved and be kind.” monterey media inc. Half of a Yellow Sun 13 A MODERN AFRICA For Biyi Bandele, a draw of the book was that it shines a fresh new light on African characters, as he outlines. “The fact that you have these educated middle class characters, intellectuals who were not victims. I’ve lived in London actually longer than I’ve lived in Nigeria and quite often I’ve gone to see a movie about Africa and always, always it’s the same story. It’s about victimhood." The strength of the female characters in the novel was a very deliberate move by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. “I very much wanted to write about the war through the eyes of women. The war changed gender dynamics. In Biafra, women were active members of the militia, women traded across enemy lines to keep families alive, women took on many roles that they might not have been able to if the gender power structures had not been disrupted by war.” “There is something undeniably modern about these female characters”, says Calderwood which was one of the attractions of the novel for her. She continues, "I think they make very surprising choices over the course of the film and I think that’s something that can appeal to a modern audience, particularly a modern female audience, is that we have this idea that people in the past possibly lived more constrained lives. We also have an idea that people in Africa somehow don’t live as full and rich lives as people in the West. I think that was the thing that we really wanted to get across, that these are very modern characters with a very modern outlook; they represent the new Nigeria, they’ve made very positive choices in their lives." "These people do exist in Nigeria,” Bandele goes on to explain. “We had a screening for some of our Nigerian financiers, and in the screening there was the president of a bank in Nigeria, a pretty major bank, who was a woman and she saw it and said afterwards to me: That’s my story; Olanna -­‐ that was me in the Sixties. And she had all these stories about her friends who are all quite successful in what they do right now, and it is a very modern story." FILMING AND FUNDING IN NIGERIA
Andrea Calderwood talks about how they set up the film to appeal to an international audience but with Nigerian roots. "It seemed like an opportunity to do a film that told Nigeria from the inside.” Having worked on a number of different films shot and set in Africa, Calderwood says these were films that were shot by international teams with international finance. This was to be different however, as she goes on to explain. “With this film we felt we had a real opportunity to tell a film by a Nigerian filmmaker based on a Nigerian novel and with a very strong Nigerian story but one that had international appeal. One of the things we wanted to do was to confound our expectations with the story; to tell a completely fresh and original view of Nigeria to people from outside Nigeria who had never seen it before.” In fact Calderwood explains how this was also crucial to the creative process. “The only way for us to really protect Biyi’s vision of the film and for him to tell the story the way he wanted to tell it was to have Nigerian investment." Bandele picks up the story explaining that the imperative for finding part of the finance from his home country partly came from a pragmatic sense that as a first time filmmaker, he is only known in the UK for his theatre work. He was also determined to work as freely as possible, as he explains. "I knew that I had to find Nigerian money to support it also because I didn’t want to make the kind of movie that I knew some of the backers would want me to make. I didn’t want to make a movie about perennial victims and I didn’t want a movie that you watched and all you felt was just monterey media inc. Half of a Yellow Sun 14 sorry for the characters, and absolutely no empathy on a human level; you didn’t see yourself mirrored in them, they were just an unbeknown other. I knew that the kind of person in Nigeria who would invest in the movie would feel exactly the same as I did, that they would think we’ve never seen a movie like that and It’s time we made it ourselves." He continues that having said that, the UK funding was also absolutely crucial. "The plan was always to make it a UK, Nigerian production." Calderwood explains how they worked with executive producers Yewande Sadiku and Muhtar Bakare, who are team behind the Nigerian publishing house Kachifo, which published both Bandele's novel Burma Boy and also Half of a Yellow Sun. "Kachifo was set up in Nigeria with the aim of Africa being able to tell its own stories. That’s its mission statement. We discussed with them the way that we would like to finance the film, with Nigerian as well as international investment, because we felt that that gave Biyi as a first time Nigerian filmmaker the better opportunity to make the film the way that he saw it. We did not want to be influenced too strongly by the expectations of US financiers or UK financiers. So we could realise our ambition for telling a universal international story but from the Nigerian prospective. Kachifo set up a dedicated film fund, the Shareman film fund, particularly to raise the funds for this film but also with the ambition to finance subsequent films that had a similar ethos and were also stories coming from the Nigerian and African perspective." Yewande Sadiku talks about how important it was for them to be part of the emergence of a new level of Nigerian filmmaking, as she explains, “I don’t think it’s lifted the game yet, I think it’s in the process of lifting the game. One of the things that attracted me about the project; after we first got involved I started to wonder about the Nigerian film industry. About the size of the Nigerian industry in terms of the number of productions but that is not quite matched by the quality of what comes out of it and when I think about Nigerian music and where Nigerian music has come to, Nigerian music is very highly respected across the world, Nigerian music has come of age in many ways but I believe that the film industry is still maturing. Nigerian film has grown to what it is today despite the lack of support.” That all said, Sadiku reinforces that whilst this is very much a Nigerian film, it is also in many ways an international film and an international project. “It’s a fine collaboration I would say between Nigerian, UK and world producers.” For Chiwetel Ejiofor, filming in Nigeria became an integral component of the film. As he outlines, “Nigeria is definitely a character and some of the chaos of it is fed into the story and I think that the fact that the people understand this specific piece of history so well is really important with crowd scenes. They can slip right into the emotional journey because that’s actually a generation ago. Actually a lot of the people here were kids when it was happening so they can slip right into that. They know this story, they know these characters they know this world." Andrea Calderwood talks about how she was humbled by the commitment that people showed to the film, as she outlines, “That went from people like Yewande Sadiku, the Executive Producer, who had to persuade all the other investors to come in and to work on the film. That also applies to all crew members who chose to work on the film. We had a fantastic international crew, with very experienced crew coming from the UK and from South Africa. A large proportion of the crew were Nigerian as well, some of whom who had great experience of working in films and some who were quite new to the experience too and that team really gelled to work together. There was a team of people on the film that we genuinely could not have done the film without." monterey media inc. Half of a Yellow Sun 15 "I think the combination of the Nigerian crew we were working with,” continues Calderwood, “who bought their expertise and their knowledge of casting for example or their knowledge of what was available in the area, to the South African crew that bought their resourcefulness and their refusal to be beaten by the circumstances, and the UK crew who bought their expertise -­‐ that was what was fantastic about it, the cross-­‐fertilisation of different levels of expertise and experience." Calderwood outlines the decision to shoot the film in Calabar in Nigeria. Bandele had discovered that there was a fully equipped film studio there which had been built in 2008. "The Nigerian film industry tends to not have full scale production. The ‘Nollywood’ industry, as it’s called, makes an incredible amount of films every year which are done in a more domestic scale so we were the first full scale feature film to come to Nigeria. Part of the reason we decided to shoot it in Calabar was because the studio was there as a facility, but also it had a range of landscape and buildings within Calabar that we could use for all the different parts of Nigeria." The other reason that Calabar worked so well is because the story of HALF OF A YELLOW SUN travels from Lagos to Nsukka, which is a day’s drive away, and then covers a huge range of landscape as the family have to flee from the different stage of the war. They had to represent lots of different places in Nigeria including Kanu, in the North which is a completely different looking area than Lagos in the South or Nsukka in the East. They also had the studio to build the interiors, representing the opulence of the interiors of Olanna’s and Kainene’s family at the beginning of the film, a university professor's house and a new 1960s built university. As Calderwood explains, "There’s a lot of the state of the art buildings and architecture in Calabar that we wanted to use to represent the prosperity of Nigeria at the beginning of the film. We were able to find buildings in various places in Calabar that could represent the different cities in Nigeria that the film was set in, but also to show the gradual deterioration from the prosperous, vibrant, optimistic newly independent Nigeria at the beginning of the film to the Nigeria that is suffering from the war at the later stages of the film.” Calabar turned out to be a fantastic base for us for that reason and because it doesn’t have the security issues that other parts of Nigeria would have. It was a fantastic resource to us to base the whole production there and the government of Cross River State gave us huge support for the film because it was very important to them to show that it is possible for a production of this scale to be made in Nigeria and that an international film crew can come and work there." CREATING THE LOOK OF 1960S NIGERIA "Biyi was very clear from the beginning of the development process of the film that he wanted it to be a lush cinematic film that would give you a sense of the epic scale of the story,” explains Calderwood. “It takes a family from the very prosperous, optimistic beginnings at the start of the story to the ravages of war at the later stages of the story." Calderwood continues to talk about how they put together their team and the choices that they for the heads of departments. “We went for John de Borman, he’s a fantastically experienced Director of Photography and he is known for doing a very vibrant, colourful look for the range of films that he’s worked on. Also, Andrew McAlpine, the Production Designer who is responsible for films with incredibly strong looks like Jane Campion’s THE PIANO. He’s known for work that always has a distinct and deliberate colour palette and a very distinctive design." She elaborates, “Andrew McAlpine was really keen to capture a vision of Africa, a view that hadn’t monterey media inc. Half of a Yellow Sun 16 really been seen before; to have something as vibrant and colourful as the Africa you see in the pictures at the time. Nigeria in particular at that time was a very optimistic country. It has been a prosperous country again, it can be an even more prosperous country and that was something of that aspiration and ambition we wanted to capture." The team felt that the colour and the energy and the optimism of the characters was something joyful that could really surprise audiences and prove enjoyable to watching the cinema. "In his research for the production design,” continues Calderwood, “Andrew McAlpine looked at a lot of references from the period and the range of colours that were used in the architecture at the time, in the clothing at the time. That is something that John and Andrew worked on together, very closely. John de Borman also has an art school background, he is somebody that is very conscious of the colour palette and the visual look of the film." Joseph Mawle is also keen to point out the relevance of the vibrant design scheme. "I think it’s important people realise how much joy there is in this country rather than just the war torn images we have of children with kwashiorkor during that time, that there’s a celebration of colour there, of light.” He continues, “If you’re walking down the street, no matter the wealthiest or the poorest, everyone is dressed to the teeth, stunning colours. And I think that’s something else that John and Andrew have brought out magnificently, this palette to show just how rich this place is in colour, that it’s certainly not a grey land at all.” Biyi Bandele says it was a stroke of luck that he turned to Jo Katsaras, who is based in South Africa, to design the costumes. He tells of what happened when she was approached. “When she got the call saying that we were interested in her to design the costumes, she said, that’s funny because a year earlier there had been an auction of 1960s Nigerian costumes, and she bought them without a project in mind. And suddenly a year later she used a lot of them and she was incredible.” For her part, Thandie Newton remembers the beautiful costumes, and the make-­‐up. "Oh my god, I loved these costumes. Anika and I, it’s like we went shopping in the wardrobe department,” she laughs. “It wasn’t only that it was the Sixties, but that you’ve got these wonderful silhouettes... gorgeous. I mean the way people dressed -­‐ pencil skirts, beautifully tailored dresses, suits and a little hat thrown in now and again. And that really heavy black eye liner, blocks of matte lip colour; just refined and yet rocking, very sexy but chic at the same time.” The period look was given an extra vibrancy with the specific Nigerian aesthetic as Newton elaborates, “We were in Africa; we were in Nigeria so you’ve got these great fabrics and colours. So Jo Katsaras got to have this wonderful, eclectic palette to work with of not only the silhouettes of the Sixties and all that great London style, because both Anika and I herald from London in the movie. So we’ve got all that sophistication but we’ve also got this gorgeous, sensual, vibrancy in the fabrics and the colours and the texture of the Nigerian fashion.” FALLING IN LOVE Thandie Newton thinks the experience of watching HALF OF A YELLOW SUN leaves a lasting impression as she outlines. "I think what the characters in the story go through... it beggars belief, going through the Biafran war, managing to hold onto their families and have hope for a future. And to think that it’s based on absolute reality is just stunning. I think that the pride that you feel when you see your fellow men and women going through experiences like this, I think that it’s an important experience to have. I think it enriches our lives, to know that other human beings have been dealing with these situations just across the way. As the world gets smaller and as monterey media inc. Half of a Yellow Sun 17 technology allows us to become closer and closer, it’s really fantastic that we can have stories like HALF OF A YELLOW SUN where we learn about each other and celebrate each other and understand where people can take themselves." Newton hopes that people will take away with them, "a curiosity about Nigeria, about Biafra, about other cultures... and that you can explore and find incredible similarities and wonderful differences." Adichie adds: “When I watched the film, I was so engrossed that for a moment I forgot I had written the novel! I was deeply impressed by the actors.” Calderwood outlines her lasting ambitions for the film as follows. "The reason audiences will go and see the film is that they’ll connect with the people that are in it. For me, if people go and do that and if they just connect with these people’s story on a human level and learn a bit about the context, then we’ve done what we set out to do." “I think it is an engaging story on every level, for the heart and the mind,” says Chiwetel Ejiofor. From his perspective, the story may be set in Nigeria at a very specific time, but it’s a story that has elements that can be applied internationally, and has a very general appeal and relevance. As he puts it, “I feel that the real depth of this story is that people are struggling for a new relationship with themselves, with their country, with their politics. There’s an absolute sense of hope in the story and there’s a sense of hope in not only Nigeria, dubbed the developing world, but a hope of humanity outlasting the pressures of greed and the darker sides of our collective natures.” “I want audiences all over the world to see it,” concludes Biyi Bandele, “and know that lots of things happen in Africa and there are many, many Africas and this is one of them. I want people to leave the movie celebrating life even more, to fall in love with life, totally, unconditionally.” ABOUT THE CAST
THANDIE NEWTON – Olanna Thandie Newton made her film debut alongside Nicole Kidman in 1991’s FLIRTING. In 1994 Neil Jordan cast her as Brad Pitt’s maid in INTERVIEW WITH THE VAMPIRE: THE VAMPIRE CHRONICLES also starring Tom Cruise. Newton gained international recognition in the Merchant Ivory production of JEFFERSON IN PARIS in which she played Jefferson’s slave, co-­‐starring with Nick Nolte and Gwyneth Paltrow. In 1997 GRIDLOCK’D followed, in which Newton starred alongside Tupac Shakur and Tim Roth, and then Jonathan Demme's BELOVED in 1998, also with Oprah Winfrey and Danny Glover. In the same year, she was seen in Bernardo Bertolucci’s BESIEGED with David Thewlis, and in 2000, she was the female lead in John Woo’s MISSION IMPOSSIBLE II alongside Tom Cruise. She also starred in IT WAS AN ACCIDENT that year, appearing for the first time with Chiwetel Ejiofor. Jonathan Demme cast her again in THE TRUTH ABOUT CHARLIE (2004), alongside Stephen Dillane and Mark Wahlberg. That same year, she joined Vin Diesel and Judi Dench in sci-­‐fi adventure, THE CHRONICLES OF RIDDICK and took on the role in CRASH for which she won a BAFTA for Best Supporting Actress. Newton played a wealthy woman who becomes the target of Matt Dillon’s racist policeman in Paul Haggis’ film which went on to win three Academy Awards. monterey media inc. Half of a Yellow Sun 18 In 2006, Newton starred as Will Smith’s wife in THE PURSUIT OF HAPPYNESS and the following year as Eddie Murphy’s love interest in the comedy NORBIT. Also that year she played the jilted lover that Simon Pegg must win back in David Schwimmer’s RUN FATBOY RUN. ROCKNROLLA, Guy Ritchie’s 2008 London thriller, saw her playing opposite Gerard Butler and Tom Wilkinson. Two US presidential roles followed, as Newton portrayed Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, in W. (2008), Oliver Stone's film biography of George W. Bush, and shortly afterwards the President's First Daughter in 2012 (2009), a disaster film directed by Roland Emmerich. In HUGE, Newton co-­‐
starred with Noel Clarke in Ben Miller’s 2010 film about stand-­‐up comedy, and that same year, she was seen in VANISHING ON 7TH STREET, a horror with Hayden Christensen and John Leguizamo, directed by Brad Anderson. The next year she was seen in RETREAT, a three hander with Cillian Murphy and Jamie Bell. Tyler Perry directed Newton in FOR COLOURED GIRLS (2010) based around poems dealing with issues for women of colour, and then Perry directed and co-­‐starred with Newton in 2012’s GOOD DEEDS. Between 2003 and 2005, Newton had a pivotal role as Dr John Carter’s lover and later wife on the hit TV series ER. In 2013 Newton played the lead in detective TV series, Rogue, an original series for DirecTV, the second series of which she will start shooting later this year. In 2011, Newton performed in Ariel Dorfman’s tense moral thriller, DEATH AND THE MAIDEN on stage at the Harold Pinter theatre in London. Newton is actively involved in the V-­‐Day foundation. In 2011 she attended the opening of the City of Joy in Bukavu, DRC. It houses and supports women survivors of sexual violence and provides them with opportunities to develop their leadership skills through innovative programming. On February 14th this year she was actively involved in One Billion Rising; The Biggest Mass Global Action To End Violence Against Women & Girls In The History Of Humankind. Newton also spoke at the Ted Global Conference in 2011 on the topic of “Embracing Otherness”, which has been viewed over a million times. CHIWETEL EJIOFOR -­‐ Odenigbo Chiwetel has had an incredible past year having been nominated for a Golden Globe, SAG, AMPAS Award and winning a BAFTA in the category of ‘Best Actor in a Leading Role’ for his critically acclaimed performance as ‘Soloman Northrup’ in Steve McQueen’s Twelve Years A Slave, which won both the Golden Globe, BAFTA and AMPAS Award for ‘Best Film’. Based on a true story of a man living in New York who is kidnapped and forced into slavery in the Deep South in the mid-­‐
1800’s, Chiwetel stars alongside a stellar cast including Michael Fassbender, Lupita N’yungo and Brad Pitt. Well versed on stage, television and film, Chiwetel was seen last July in Joe Wright’s production for The Young Vic, A Season in the Congo about the rise and fall of legendary leader Patrice Lumumba. Next up Chiwetel will be seen in Half of a Yellow Sun based on the critically acclaimed novel of the same title. Both moving and horrifying, the drama concentrates on the varying effects the Biafran War has on the lives of four people; the film also stars Thandie Newton, John Boyega and Joseph Mawle. Chiwetel has also just finished filming Z for Zachariah alongside Chris Pine and Margot Robbie. Directed by Craig Zobel, the story centres on a small American town after a nuclear war. In early 2013 Chiwetel received great reviews and Golden Globe nomination for his starring turn in Dancing on the Edge, Stephen Poliakoff’s series for the BBC co-­‐starring Matthew Goode. In 2011 television audiences saw him in the award winning The Shadow Line, a thrilling drama for monterey media inc. Half of a Yellow Sun 19 the BBC in which he played lead character ‘Jonah Gabriel’ alongside a superb cast including Christopher Eccleston, Lesley Sharp and Rafe Spall. Chiwetel has also appeared in a number of films including Salt, alongside Angelina Jolie and Liev Schreiber and in 2009 he starred in Roland Emmerich’s action feature, 2012 opposite John Cusack, Danny Glover and Thandie Newton. The same year his performance in Endgame, Channel 4’s moving drama set in South Africa, earned him a Golden Globe nomination for the ‘best performance by an actor in a mini-­‐series or a motion picture made for television’. In 2008 Chiwetel was seen in three very different theatre roles; his performance in the title role of Michael Grandage’s Othello at the Donmar Warehouse alongside Kelly Reilly and Ewan McGregor was unanimously commended, and won him the 2008 Olivier Award for ‘Best Actor’, the Evening Standard Theatre Award for ‘Best Actor’, as well as nominations for the South Bank Show Awards 2009 and the What’s On Stage Theatregoers’ Choice Awards. His other stage credits include Roger Michell’s Blue/Orange in 2000 which received an Olivier Award for Best Play, and the same year Tim Supple’s Romeo and Juliet in which Chiwetel took the title role. Following his television debut in 1996 in Deadly Voyage, Chiwetel has been seen in numerous television productions including Murder in Mind, created by the award winning writer Anthony Horowitz, Trust (2003), Twelfth Night, or What you Will, (2003) and The Canterbury Tales -­‐ The Knight’s Tale (2003). His television performance in 2006’s hard hitting emotional drama Tsunami: The Aftermath alongside Toni Collette, Sophie Okonedo and Tim Roth earned him a nomination for a Golden Globe Award as well as an NAACP Image award. In 1996, Chiwetel caught the attention of Stephen Spielberg who cast him in the critically acclaimed Amistad, starring alongside Morgan Freeman and Anthony Hopkins. He returned to the big screen in Stephen Frears’ 2001 thriller Dirty Pretty Things for which his performance as ‘Okwe’ won him the Best Actor Award at the British Independent Film Awards, the Evening Standard Film Awards, and the San Diego Film Critics Society Awards. In 2003, he co-­‐starred in three films: Richard Curtis’ Love Actually, Slow Burn and Woody Allen’s Melinda and Melinda. 2008 saw Chiwetel star in Ridley Scott’s American Gangster, opposite Don Cheadle in Talk to Me, and in David Mamet’s Redbelt. Chiwetel’s other film credits include Kinky Boots (2005) in which he played the loveable drag queen ‘Lola’, the urban drama ‘Four Brothers’ alongside Mark Whalberg, Spike Lee’s heist film Inside Man alongside Clive Owen, Jodie Foster and Denzel Washington, and the Oscar nominated Children of Men, again alongside Clive Owen. In addition to his acting career, Chiwetel has also directed two short films, Slapper which was screened at the 2008 Edinburgh Film Festival and more recently Columbite Tantalite for the Guardian. ANIKA NONI ROSE – Kainene Tony Award winner, Anika Noni Rose is back on Broadway starring alongside Denzel Washington and Diahann Carroll in the revival of A Raisin in the Sun which opens April 3rd. She recently wrapped filming A Day Late and a Dollar Short alongside Whoopi Goldberg and Mekhi Phifer, expected to release this spring. On the big screen, Anika starred as ‘Lorell Robinson’ in Dreamgirls which went on to receive an AFI ensemble award, as well as SAG award nomination for outstanding cast. In addition, the Dreamgirls soundtrack received a Grammy Award nomination. Anika voiced ‘Princess Tiana’ in Disney’s The Princess and The Frog, featuring the first African American Disney ‘Princess.’ The film received three Oscar nominations and Anika became the youngest inductee to ever be honored as a Disney Legend. monterey media inc. Half of a Yellow Sun 20 Anika’s many film credits include: Imperial Dreams, which will make its premiere at Sundance this year, Half of a Yellow Sun, For Colored Girls and the comedy feature Just Add Water, Additional film credits include, As Cool As I am and the animated feature Khumba, where she voiced the character Lungisa. No stranger to television, Anika most recently starred in the Hallmark special The Watsons Go to Birmingham and appeared on some of the networks highest rated shows including her re-­‐
occurring roles on CBS’s The Good Wife and ABC’s Private Practice. In addition she guest starred on CBS’s Elementary and FOX’s The Simpsons (voice of Abie’s long lost wife). Other TV credits include: the A&E mini-­‐series Stephen King’s Bag of Bones opposite Pierce Brosnan, The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency for HBO/BBC/Weinstein Company, where she was nominated for an NAACP Image Award for "Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series." Anika won the Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Musical for her role in Caroline, or Change. She starred in in Deborah Allen's Broadway revival of Cat On A Hot Tin Roof, opposite James Earl Jones and Phylicia Rashad. She also starred in Footloose and the Off-­‐Broadway production of the Laura Nyro musical Eli’s Comin’, the Stephen Sondheim’s Company for the NY Philharmonic and PBS. Other stage work includes Juliet opposite Orlando Bloom with Gustavo Dudamel conducting Tchaikovsky live with the LA Philharmonic. In addition to the winning the Tony Award, Anika has also received The Theater World Award, The Clarence Derwent Award, a Drama Desk nomination, the Los Angeles Critics’ Circle Award, an Ovation Award and an Obie Award. She has also received NAACP Image nominations for her work on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (NBC), and Hallmark Hall of Fame: Mitch Albom’s Have A Little Faith (ABC). Anika has sung all over the world, including at the 79th Annual Academy Awards, concerts in London’s West End with Jason Robert Brown, the Vatican, the Kennedy Center and Carnegie Hall. She made her solo cabaret debut in New York as part of Lincoln Center’s American Songbook Series, followed by a concert at the Broad Stage in Los Angeles and appearances at the legendary Venetian Room in San Francisco. She is the celebrity spokesperson for the American Lung Association and has lobbied on Capitol Hill on their behalf, and started The Cora Lee Bentley Radcliffe memorial Fund, to assist mentally challenged children. She received her MFA from American Conservatory Theater and holds an honorary Doctorate from Florida A&M University. JOSEPH MAWLE -­‐ Richard Joseph Mawle's first television role was Sir Tificate in the BAFTA-­‐winning series Sir Gadabout, the Worst Knight in the Land (2002) for CITV. He went on to feature in Alex Holmes's mini-­‐series Dunkirk for BBC2 which won a Factual Drama BAFTA. Mawle came to national recognition through the BAFTA winning drama SOUNDPROOF (2007), which won him a breakthrough nomination at the Royal Television Society Awards. The year continued with two performances under the direction of Adrian Shergold, the first in Jane Austen's Persuasion for ITV and the second in the controversial gay drama Clapham Junction for Channel 4. In 2008, he played Jesus in The Passion for BBC/HBO. The following year he had roles in the critically acclaimed BAFTA nominated dramas The Street and Freefall. Mawle played The Ripper in James Marsh's The Red Riding Trilogy in 2009 and the following year monterey media inc. Half of a Yellow Sun 21 saw him star in BBC drama Five Daughters about the Ipswich prostitute murders, in Dominic Savage's TV film Dive and alongside an all-­‐star international cast in Agatha Christie's Murder on the Orient Express. 2011 was another busy year as he starred in DH Lawrence adaptation, Women in Love, with Rosamund Pike and Rory Kinnear. Mawle appeared as Benjen Stark in the smash HBO series Game of Thrones which gained an ensemble performance SAG Award nomination. In 2012 Joseph was BAFTA nominated for his role in Birdsong, alongside Eddie Redmayne. He has recently completed filming on The Tunnel for Sky Atlantic with Clemence Posey and Stephen Dillane. Mawle's film credits include the short film AFTER TOMORROW which won Best Short at Cannes and Philip Ridley's 2009 gothic urban fairy-­‐tale HEARTLESS with Jim Sturgess. He co-­‐starred in MADE IN DAGENHAM (2010) with Sally Hawkins and Andrea Riseborough and THE AWAKENING (2011), a feature film starring Rebecca Hall and Dominic West. Mawle first worked in the US with two action films THE COLD LIGHT OF DAY with Sigourney Weaver and Bruce Willis and historical mash up ABRAHAM LINCOLN VAMPIRE HUNTER, both 2012. March 2013 saw the release of Scott Graham's debut feature SHELL, which Mawle starred in. Soon he begins principal photography in Ron Howard’s IN THE HEART OF THE SEA Joseph Mawle's theatre credits include the male lead in Shakespeare's Troilus and Cressida at the Tobacco Factory, Bristol, Patrick Sandford's Hamlet for the Nuffield Theatre, Southampton, both in 2003, and Braham Murray's Anthony and Cleopatra for Manchester Royal Exchange Theatre (2005). He also played the title role in The Last Days of Judas Iscariot at London's Almeida Theatre in 2008. JOHN BOYEGA -­‐ Ugwu John Boyega is best known for his leading role in Joe Cornish’s BAFTA nominated ATTACK THE BLOCK (2011), a South London set zombie thriller in which Boyega starred with Jodie Whittaker. He has also been seen in JUNKHEARTS (2011), a drama starring Eddie Marsan, Tom Sturridge and Romala Garai. Boyega has taken leading roles in TV productions including Spike Lee’s Da Brick for HBO and the BBC’s My Murder, based on a true story about the gangland death of a London boy. Boyega has recently filmed BBC drama The Whale, a dramatisation of events that inspired Moby Dick. John Boyega has so far been nominated for a British Independent Film Award, an Empire Film Award, an Evening Standard Film Award and the Critics Choice Award for Most Promising Newcomer. GENEVIEVE NNAJI – Miss Adebayo Genevieve started her film career in 1998 and became the first actor to be awarded Best Actress at the maiden edition of the prestigious African Movie Academy Awards (AMAA) in 2005. Her popularity also transcends Nigerian shores. In 2009, she made history by being the only African actress to be profiled on The Oprah Winfrey Show. In 2010, she was featured as a ‘Connector of the day’ on ‘CNN Connect’ and soon afterwards she was profiled on CNN's ‘African Voices’. In 2011, she received National Honours from the President of Nigeria, and was named a Member of the Order of the Federal Republic (MFR). ONYEKA ONWENU -­‐ Mama Onyeka Onwenu is a multi talented artiste whose work as a singer/songwriter has earned her a monterey media inc. Half of a Yellow Sun 22 place in the ‘Hall Of Fame’ of Nigeria's best known and admired musicians. In a career spanning over 32 years, she has recorded some of Nigeria’s most memorable hits, and has collaborated with artistes including King Sunny Ade. She was awarded the Nigerian national honour Member of the Order of the Federal Republic (MFR), and plays ‘Developmental Music’, often raising awareness about social issues related to peaceful coexistence, family planning and the well being of women and children. As an actress, Onyeka Onwenu's contribution to the growth of Nigeria's film industry has earned her widespread recognition, including the prestigious AMAA Award. As a journalist, she wrote and presented the widely acclaimed 1984 BBC/NTA production Nigeria: A Squandering of Riches. It remains the definitive film about corruption in oil rich Nigeria. Onwenu is a graduate of Wellesley College, Massachusetts and the New School for Social Research in New York. She worked as a Tour Guide at The United Nations in New York before returning to Nigeria, where she has lived and worked since 1980, as an artiste, social critic and politician, campaigning for financial autonomy for Local Government Administration. She is a mother of two sons, Tijani and Abraham Ogunlende. ABOUT THE CREW
BIYI BANDELE – Screenwriter/Director A prolific Nigerian playwright, novelist and screenwriter now based in London, HALF OF A YELLOW SUN is Biyi Bandele’s feature film directorial debut. This first feature follows his distinguished career writing and directing plays for the Royal Shakespeare Company, Royal Court, and writing screenplays for the BBC and British and international film productions. Bandele has previously written and directed a short, THE KISS (2009), a psychological thriller. For television, Bandele wrote Not Even God is Wise Enough directed by Danny Boyle for BBC2 in 1994 and Bad Boy Blues for BBC2 (1995). He has also written a number of BBC radio dramas including Oroonoko (Radio 3, 2003), City of Spades (Radio 4, 2002) and Things Fall Apart (Radio 3, 1998). His prolific writing for theatre includes his adaptation of Aphra Benn’s Oroonoko, which was a huge hit for the Royal Shakespeare Company in 2000, and was successfully revived by New York’s Theatre for a New Audience in 2007. He wrote Brixton Stories for London’s Tricycle Theatre in 2001 and Yerma for the Edinburgh International Festival in 2000. The same year he worked on Happy Birthday, Mister Deka D at the Lyric Hammersmith in London. Earlier work, all in London. includes Thieves Like Us Southwark Playhouse (1998), Things Fall Apart, Ambassadors Theatre (1997), Me and the Boys, Finborough Theatre (1996), Death Catches the Hunter, BAC (1995), Two Horsemen, Gate Theatre (transferred to Bush Theatre, 1994), Resurrections, Talawa Theatre Company, Cochrane Theatre (1994), In the Grove... Royal Court Theatre (At the Tabernacle, 1994), Marching For Fausa, Royal Court Theatre (1993) and Rain, Yaa Asantewaa (1991). Bandele’s fiction writing includes Burma Boy published by Jonathan Cape in 2007 (published as The King's Rifle, Harper Collins in the US in 2009); The Street, Picador, 1999; The Sympathetic Undertaker & Other Dreams, Heinemann, 1994; and The Man Who Came In From The Back Of monterey media inc. Half of a Yellow Sun 23 Beyond, Heinemann, 1993. ANDREA CALDERWOOD -­‐ Producer Andrea Calderwood began her career in freelance production in Scotland, producing documentaries, short dramas and music videos with independent company Crash Films, before being appointed Head of Drama at BBC Scotland in 1994. At the BBC, she commissioned several hit TV series and mini-­‐series, as well as the feature films SMALL FACES and the Oscar-­‐nominated MRS BROWN (1997). She then joined Pathé Pictures as their Head of Production, executive producing eight feature films including Oliver Parker’s AN IDEAL HUSBAND (1999), Lynne Ramsay’s RATCATCHER (1999) and THE CLAIM (2000). Through her own production company, Slate Films, Andrea Calderwood's producer credits include Mike Figgis' experimental digital film HOTEL (2001); Shane Meadows' ONCE UPON A TIME IN THE MIDLANDS (2002); Kevin Macdonald's THE LAST KING OF SCOTLAND (2006) (winner of three BAFTAs and the Oscar for Forest Whitaker); HBO's acclaimed GENERATION KILL; I AM SLAVE (2008), directed by Gabriel Range and written by Jeremy Brock; two series’ of David Kane's THE FIELD OF BLOOD for the BBC; and Eric Steel’s forthcoming fly fishing documentary, KISS THE WATER (2013). Slate Films joined forces with Potboiler Productions in 2009. Calderwood is currently producing A LITTLE CHAOS (2014), directed by Alan Rickman and starring Kate Winslet and Matthias Schoenaerts. CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE – Author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie was born in Nigeria. Her novel Half of a Yellow Sun won the Orange Prize and was a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award, and her novel Purple Hibiscus won the Commonwealth Writers' Prize and the Hurston/Wright Legacy Award. The Thing Around Your Neck, her collection of stories, was shortlisted for the Commonwealth Writers' Prize for Best Book in Africa. The recipient of a MacArthur Foundation Fellowship, she was named one of the twenty most important fiction writers today under 40 years old by The New Yorker. Her latest novel, Americanah, was published in 2013; Dave Eggers called it “[a] moving intergenerational epic that confirms Adichie's virtuosity, boundless empathy and searing social acuity.” YEWANDE SADIKU – Executive Producer Yewande Sadiku has a keen interest in bringing organized financing to Nigerian film productions; she helped to raise financing (as Executive Producer) for HALF OF A YELLOW SUN, her first film production. She was one of ‘35 International Women Under 35’ featured in the October 2007 edition of World Business Magazine and in May 2012, she was one of 19 professionals awarded the Eisenhower Fellowship for International Leadership. She spent seven weeks travelling across America in April/May 2010 to better understand how their film industry is supported by the organized financial sector. She is CEO (Designate) of Stanbic IBTC Capital Limited and has worked as an investment banker for over 16 years, helping corporates to meet their financing needs and advising on corporate restructurings. MUHTAR BAKARE -­‐ Executive Producer Muhtar Bakare founded Kachifo in 2001 to “tell our own stories”. Kachifo, which trades under the name Farafina, is an independent publisher of literary fiction, popular fiction, textbooks, general interest books and the Farafina Magazine. Kachifo is the Nigerian publisher of Half of a Yellow Sun, monterey media inc. Half of a Yellow Sun 24 and many other outstanding literary works by authors such as Ben Okri, Biyi Bandele, Binyavanga Wainaina and Igoni Barrett. GAIL EGAN – Executive Producer Gail Egan is a qualified barrister and practised commercial law at Lincoln's Inn before joining Price Waterhouse Corporate Finance. She then worked for the International Media Group Carlton Communications. In 2000, Egan formed the independent production company Potboiler Productions with Simon Channing Williams. In 2009 Potboiler Productions joined forces with Slate Films, run by Andrea Calderwood. Egan has produced or executive produced thirteen films including Mike Leigh's ANOTHER YEAR (2010), HAPPY-­‐GO-­‐LUCKY (2008) and VERA DRAKE (2004); Fernando Meirelles' THE CONSTANT GARDENER (2005) and BLINDNESS (2008); MAN ABOUT DOG (2004) with Paddy Breathnach, BROTHERS OF THE HEAD (2005) with Keith Fulton and Lou Pepe, and Anton Corbijn’s forthcoming John le Carré adaptation, A MOST WANTED MAN (2013). Egan is currently producing A LITTLE CHAOS (2014), directed by Alan Rickman and starring Kate Winslet and Matthias Schoenaerts. SANDRA MBANEFO OBIAGO -­‐ Associate Producer An award winning Nigerian documentary filmmaker and Founder/ Director of Communicating for Change (“CFC”), a development media company focusing on television, radio, theatre, music and art productions, and whose films have been broadcast in 41 countries. Sandra is also a sought-­‐
after art collector and curator, speaker, writer, and convener of artistic events, and drew on her extensive network of contacts to ensure HALF OF A YELLOW SUN received public and private sector support and sponsorship. JOHN DE BORMAN -­‐ Cinematographer A veteran of film, television and commercials, John de Borman first found recognition in Gillies Mackinnon’s critically acclaimed 1996 film SMALL FACES, which picked up the Michael Powell Best British Film award at the Edinburgh International Film festival that year. Worldwide success followed a year later in the form of comedy classic THE FULL MONTY, which picked up the 1998 BAFTA award for Best Film and secured an Academy Award nomination for Best Picture. Gillies Mackinnon’s HIDEOUS KINKY followed in 1998 which won de Borman the London Evening Standard award for Best Technical Achievement, and films following that included SAVING GRACE (2000), HAMLET (2000), SERENDIPITY (2001) and SHALL WE DANCE (2004). De Borman returned into television in 2006 with HBO miniseries Tsunami: The Aftermath, which secured him a BAFTA TV nomination for Best Photography & Lighting. Following this de Borman worked on the MISS PETTIGREW LIVES FOR A DAY (2008) starring Amy Adams before the critically acclaimed Lone Scherfig film AN EDUCATION (2009) won him Best World Drama Cinematography award at the Sundance Film Festival. De Borman’s most recent films include MADE IN DAGENHAM (2010) and QUARTET (2012) and he monterey media inc. Half of a Yellow Sun 25 is the current serving President of The British Society of Cinematographers. ANDREW MCALPINE -­‐ Production Designer Andrew McAlpine has designed more than 35 feature films in the past 25 years, including such iconic titles as Jane Campion’s THE PIANO, which earned him BAFTA and AFI awards for Best Production Design; Alex Cox’s SID AND NANCY; Spike Lee’s CLOCKERS; and THE BEACH, directed by Danny Boyle. His recent credits include Dustin Hoffman’s directing debut QUARTET, MADE IN DAGENHAM, directed by Nigel Cole, and Lone Scherfig’s, AN EDUCATION. With an MFA in fine arts from Nottingham University, McAlpine has extensive opera and theatre design credits as well as collaborations with artists such as Juan Munoz at the Tate Modern, Antony Gormley at The Hayward and architects Branson and Coates in creating Journey Through the Body, for the Millennium Dome. Andrew also regularly designs award winning commercials and music videos. CHRIS GILL – Editor Chris Gill's film career began with the genre defining 28 DAYS LATER, followed by the successful 28 WEEKS LATER and Danny Boyle’s SUNSHINE. Recently Chris has cut the award winning THE GUARD for director John McDonagh and has finished John's latest film CALVARY with Brendan Gleeson in the main role. Chris also edited the well loved THE BEST EXOTIC MARIGOLD HOTEL directed by John Madden. Presently Chris is cutting BLOOD SISTERS directed by Mark Waters for a Valentine’s Day release 2014. BEN ONONO – Composer Grammy and Ivor Novello award nominee Ben Onono was born in Cardiff but raised in Nigeria. A piano scholar at the Royal Academy of Music in London, he established himself as a songwriter with the hugely successful dance track It Just Won’t Do with DJ Tim Deluxe in 2002. The record was nominated for a coveted Ivor Novello. Since then, Ben has written, played and sung for artists as diverse as David Guetta, Fatboy Slim and Natalie Imbruglia. His entire debut album was used for the BBC series The Long Way Down starring Ewan McGregor; his single Rainbow of Love for Bob Sinclar was chosen for a Europe-­‐wide Alfa Romeo campaign; subsequently he was nominated for a Grammy award for his work on Sinclar's Made In Jamaica album. Most recently, Ben scored the upcoming film adaptation of the Laurence Olivier-­‐ award-­‐winning play Gone Too Far. PAUL THOMSON – Composer Paul's past work includes scoring the BAFTA Best Drama winning The Fades (BBC), for which he also won the RTS Award for Best Original Theme, Sony's blockbuster hit game series Little Big Planet for which he has composed a huge amount of music spanning the last three major releases (LBP2, LBP Vita, LBP Karting), and his music can be heard in TV shows as diverse as Keeping up with the Kardashians (MTV) and The Genius of Charles Darwin (RDF/C4). In his 'other life' he produces music software for composers and is currently working with the legendary film composer Hans Zimmer on a new library of sounds. JO KATSARAS – Costume Designer Jo Katsaras is an internationally renowned costume designer, known for her use of colour and texture in the costumes she designs. Her credits include The No.1 Ladies Detective Agency (pilot monterey media inc. Half of a Yellow Sun 26 and series), for director Anthony Minghella, which earned her nominations for both an Emmy Award and a Costume Designers Guild Award for Best Costume Design. Other recent credits include Philip Noyce’s Mary and Martha for HBO; THE BORROWERS, directed by Tom Harper, John Boorman’s IN MY COUNTRY, and the animated film RACING STRIPES. Jo was born in Cyprus, but moved to South Africa as a young child. She graduated from Johannesburg’s National School of the Arts, and began her career working as Senior Designer for a large clothing manufacturer, but found her passion in creating individual wardrobes for characters to help tell a story. In addition to her film and television work, Jo has designed costumes for more than a hundred international commercials for everything from Barclays Bank to KFC. In April 2010, Jo was honoured with the Madame Figaro “Woman of the Year” award in Cyprus. monterey media inc. Half of a Yellow Sun 27 P RODUCTION S TILLS
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CHIWETEL EJIOFOR – Odenigbo, JOHN BOYEGA -­‐ Ugwu , THANDIE NEWTON -­‐ Olanna monterey media inc. Half of a Yellow Sun 28 THANDIE NEWTON -­‐ Olanna TITLE Actor’s name CHIWETEL EJIOFOR – Odenigbo, THANDIE NEWTON -­‐ Olanna monterey media inc. Half of a Yellow Sun 29 THANDIE NEWTON – Olanna, a soldier, JOSEPH MAWLE -­‐ Richard CHIWETEL EJIOFOR – Odenigbo, JOSEPH MAWLE -­‐ Richard monterey media inc. Half of a Yellow Sun 30 CHIWETEL EJIOFOR – Odenigbo CHIWETEL EJIOFOR – Odenigbo CHIWETEL EJIOFOR – Odenigbo monterey media inc. Half of a Yellow Sun 31 CAST Olanna Odenigbo Kaniene Richard Ugwu Mama Okeoma Amala Harrison Miss Adebayo Aunty Ifeka Mrs Ozobia Chief Okonji Professor Ezeka Arize Chief Ozobia Plump Charles Uncle Mbaezi Susan Professor Lehman Redhead Charles Aniekwena Dr. Patel Mama Oji Captain Dutse Baby Baby (1 year) Baby (3 years) Baby (5 years) Three Piece Man Bar Proprietress Bartender Elderly Man Young Customs Officer Tipsy Guest Biafran Soldier One Biafran Soldier Two Butler Member -­‐ Cardinal Rex Lawson & His Rivers Men Member – Premier’s Lodge Cocktail Band THANDIE NEWTON CHIWETEL EJIOFOR ANIKA NONI ROSE JOSEPH MAWLE JOHN BOYEGA ONYEKA ONWENU BABOU CEESAY SUSAN WOKOMA JUDE ORHORHA GENEVIEVE NNAJI GLORIA YOUNG TINA MBA WALE OJO AYO LIJADU NAYA AMOBI ZACK ORJI KASPER MICHAELS REGINALD OFODILE GRAINNE KEENAN PAUL HAMPSHIRE ROB DAVID OC UKEJE PARESH BEHERA JENNIFER OSAMMOR HAKEEM KAE-­‐KAZIM DAMIAN EMMANUEL EFA DIVINE EMMANUEL JOY EMMANUEL FAVOUR ASIKPA OLAWALE OBADEYI EME AWATT JEROME INIOBONG TONY EFFAH KANAYO OKANI NICHOLAS BURNS ERIC ANDERSON ALVIN ILENRE LOUIS SAINT JUSTE EFFIOM BASSEY CHRISTOPHER UDOM UBONG BASSEY INYANG ITA ASUQUO BANABAS MONDAY GIMMY KINGSLEY BASSEY VICTOR UMANA CHARLES USUN monterey media inc. Half of a Yellow Sun 32 Director Producer Screenplay Based on the novel by Executive Producers CREW BIYI BANDELE ANDREA CALDERWOOD BIYI BANDELE YEWANDE SADIKU MUHTAR BAKARE GAIL EGAN NORMAN MERRY PETER HAMPDEN SANDRA MBANEFO OBIAGO ALAN J WANDS JOHN DE BORMAN BSC ANDREW MCALPINE CHRIS GILL BEN ONONO PAUL THOMSON JO KATSARAS SHARON MARTIN JINA JAY Associate Producer Executive in Charge of Production Director of Photography Production Designer Editor Music by Costume Designer Make-­‐Up & Hair Designer Casting Director 1st Assistant Director 2nd Assistant Director 3rd Assistant Director Additional 3rd Assistant Director Crowd Co-­‐ordinator Assistant Crowd Co-­‐ordinator Floor Runners SAMPSON CHARLES PROMISE BASSEY NDIFREKE ESANG UDEME UDOFIA CHIMAMANDA NGOZI ADICHIE LANCE ROEHRIG ALEXANDER HOLT DOMINIC CHANNING WILLIAMS MARK COCKREN ERIC ANDERSON WILLIAM WILLIAM EFFIOM BASSEY EFFIOM AKAMBA ISONI monterey media inc. Half of a Yellow Sun 33 Production Consultant Line Producer Unit Production Manager Production Manager Production Co-­‐ordinator Production Co-­‐ordinator, Nigeria Assistant Production Co-­‐ordinator Production Secretary Production Secretary, Nigeria Production Fixer, Nigeria Production Runner, Nigeria Producer’s Assistant, Nigeria Rushes Runner Studio Manager Studio Runner Stunt Co-­‐ordinator Assistant Stunt Co-­‐ordinator Stunt Performers Financial Controller Supervising Production Accountant Production Accountant Assistant Accountant, Nigeria Accounts Assistant, Nigeria Script Supervisor Script Consultant 2nd Unit Director of Photography Focus Puller ‘B’ Camera Focus Puller Clapper Loader Steadicam Assistant Camera Camera Assistants Camera Trainees Key Grip FRANCIS ASHIBI OKECHUKWU NWANKWO STEVE CLARK-­‐HALL YVONNE IBAZEBO GERRY TOOMEY HOLLY PULLINGER YUEN-­‐WAI LIU BOSE OSHIN HUSSAIN AHMED BEN ROSA TOYIN ONOMOR ESTHER BASSEY EYO ESSIEN FUNA MADUKA ANIETTE IBIT JOE ESSE MIKE ANDEM DANIEL HIRST PAUL HAMPSHIRE AARON MUCHANYU CHRISTOPHER SEPTEMBER MARK BIRMINGHAM PENELOPE ROBINSON PARESH BEHERA BIOLA SOKENU AKAN JOSEPH EKETEH ROWENA LADBURY DAN KLEINMAN MALCOLM McLEAN SAM BARNES JUSTIN BROKENSHA GERHARD GELDENHUYS DANIEL BISHOP JULIOUS MUDEH ANI ANTIA JOSEPH NNANA MICHAEL OYONG KOREDE BANDELE-­‐THOMAS ARIE ESIRI CLAIRE FRASER GREG CAMERON monterey media inc. Half of a Yellow Sun 34 Best Boy Grip Rigging Grip Assistant Grip Grip Assistants Gaffer Best Boy Gaffer Rigging Gaffers Rigging Best Boy Electricians Spark Assistants Genny Operators Facilities Co-­‐ordinator Practical Electrician Auto Electrician (Daily) Props Mechanic (Daily) Mechanic (Daily) Production Sound Mixer Sound Maintenance 2nd Sound Maintenance Supervising Art Director Locations Art Director Assistant Art Director Standby Art Director Art Director, Nigeria Storyboard Artist Graphic Designer Art Department Co-­‐ordinator, Nigeria Art Department Assistant Art Department Trainee, Nigeria Props Master Dressing Props Standby Props (In loving memory 1970 – 2012 With love and thanks, Greg -­‐ we could not have done it without you) MOTSIRI JACOB MAFALO KEITH SMITH MAKORORO MAFOLO DIVINE JOSEPH ELIJAH EKANEM ALAN BARNES EMMANUEL CHONCO JP HANKINS GILLES BOISACQ YUMA KONING BEVAN SIMPSON SESAN OLUNUGA ADELEKE EZEKIEL HARMONY DONATUS EFFIONG AUGUSTINE OFFOR SAMUEL EFYO O FATAI ADENIYI SHITTU TOSIN MAURICE GREEN FRANKIE EMMANUEL UCHE PAUL KELECHI SOLOMAN PATRICK GIANCARLO DELLAPINA SAINT CLAIR DAVIS CECILLIA LANZI STEVE SUMMERSGILL CHRISOPHE DALBERG LUKE HULL LAURA CONWAY-­‐GORDON PAT NEBO TEMPLE CLARK CAMISE OLDFIELD ANDY PETERS AYANA SAUNDERS AMINA JODA UMUKORO DERYCK BLAKE SANDOR FENYI CAMPBELL MITCHELL monterey media inc. Half of a Yellow Sun 35 Costume Supervisor Assistant Costume Supervisor Ageing Supervisor STUART HEADLEY-­‐READ ZURETA SCHULZ KRISTINE BERG MIRIAM MHLANGA (In loving memory 1968 – 2012) INGE HOUGH IZOLINA DE VASCONCELOS OYINKANSOLA MOMOH DYERI NKARI INAKA TITO ETOTY TOTMAN KIKI BRIGHT SUE WYBURGH CSILLA BLAKE-­‐HORVATH PRINCE INIBEHE MARY OKON EMEM JOHN VICTORIA SILAS CHARLOTTE HAYWARD AMY BYRNE ROBIN PIM CAESAR ORUADE PAUL HARDING EMMANUEL UBONG INAM EMMANUEL WILLIAMSON FRANCIS AKPEKE STEVEN ATEP OLILSE BASSEY UTIBE BASSEY OUT STARRO ENO FRED SUNDAY ISRAEL THOMPSON COLLINS UDOM KNIGHT EKANEM DAVID A ONUMAH SEKE SOMOLU OMONOR SOMOLU JESSIE FROST VIYON AWHANSE ESTHER ODU ANNE WALSH Key Standby Wardrobe Assistant Costume Assistant Costume PAs Make-­‐Up Artists Make-­‐Up Assistant Make-­‐Up Trainee Hair Dresser Hair Assistant Hair & Make-­‐Up (Daily) Location Manager Assistant Location Manager Unit Manager Location Assistants Additional Production Runners Stand Ins Casting Directors, Nigeria Casting Assistant Cast PAs Dialogue Coach monterey media inc. Half of a Yellow Sun 36 Construction Manager HoD Carpenter Carpenters Scenic Artist Painter Construction (Daily) Set Decorator Graphic Artist Stills Photographer Stills Assistant Unit Paramedic Caterer Crowd Caterer Welfare Co-­‐ordinator Transport Co-­‐ordinator Assistant Transport Co-­‐ordinator Meet and Greet Assistant Director Car Art Department Drivers Camera Drivers Cast Drivers Construction Drivers Costume Drivers Gennie Drivers Grip Drivers JONO MOLES JOHN MOOLENSCHOT JOHN MANN BRENDAN GIBB DOUGLAS SMORENBURG JONNY HEXT MIKE HYMAN ANTHONY SOLOMON BASSEY EDEM GODWIN USEF EFFIONG ANIETIE EKANEM FRIDAY EDEM EFFIONG OTOP CHRIS ELLIOT CAMISE OLDFIELD KERRY BROWN KEN UKANA JOE BIGGS EMEKA ONUOHA ASANDIA EYO LOVEY SMART MIKE EGBE VINCENT OWEH MICAH IGOGO CHARLES MESAJUWS SAMMY SUNDAY CHARLES EDUORK EMMANUEL OMANG JOEL OKON MOSES EDET PIUS ITHOHOW LEE OKON KELVIN SUNDAY JOHN SAMSON IKOT EMMANUEL WILLIAMS VICTOR AGUSTINE ASHFORD MAURICE PIUS MICHAEL ODEY EMMANUEL OLATUNJI SOLOMON FRIDAY SLY BOGBO monterey media inc. Half of a Yellow Sun 37 CHIDI ANIKWE UBONG EKPE UCHE NWOKE Lighting Drivers RICHARD AKPAN SHADRACK UFUMAKA CHARLES BASSEY YUSEF OSENI UNKO TIM AKPAN GORDIAN BASSEY SANDY IFIOK CHRISTIAN EKAH Location Drivers EFFIONG UDOH FRIDAY UMOH Production Drivers GBENGA CHRISTOPHER GEORGE TAKIM KUFRE ONOYOM EMMANUEL OLATUNJI DAVID ABU CHIDI ANYANWU Props Truck Driver EMMANUEL FRIDAY Set Decorator Transit Driver FELIX DOMINIC SFX Truck Driver INNOCENT OTINJA Sound Driver JIMMY OBI DOP Driver MICHAEL AWAZIE Minibus Drivers DANIEL EMMANUEL ETAP JACOB Boat Co-­‐ordinator OMINI OFEM OTU Boat Drivers ANDEM EYO ADAM OROK TARIBO AMADI Cross River State Government Liaison Officer CHARLES ETIM BASSEY Filming / Crew Accreditation VICTOR OKHAI UK SHOOT Production Manager KATE GLOVER Production Co-­‐ordinator LISA IONA Production Runner LLOYD STONARD 3rd Assistant Director GEORGE BATCHELOR Floor Runner JAMES EVERED Art Director UK BEN SMITH Standby Carpenter PAUL HOUSE monterey media inc. Half of a Yellow Sun 38 Production Buyer Props Master UK Dressing Props Prop Storeman Art Department Runner 2nd Assistant ‘A’ Camera Director of Photography ‘B’ Camera 1st Assistant ‘B’ Camera 2nd Assistant ‘B’ Camera Video Operator Camera Intern Key Grip Grip ‘B’ Camera Grip (Daily) Grip Assistant Gaffer Rigging Gaffer Electricians Rigger Wardrobe Supervisor Boom Op Thandie Newton Driver Cast Drivers Runner SFX Catering Health and Safety Officer Casting – Extras KATHRYN PYLE PAUL PURDY STEVE PAYNE HUGH FOTTRELL NICHOLAS MILNER KIRA KEMBLE TOBIAS MARSHALL MALCOLM MCLEAN MERRITT GOLD DASH LILLEY LAURA DINNETT KENIM OBAIGBENA JOHNNY DONNE ANDY EDRIDGE KEVIN FOY JAMES POWELL CHUCK FINCH TOMMY FINCH RICHARD NERRELL STEVE WOOD DAVE BRENNAN KENNY RICHARDS TAWA K. DUROWUJU LEE ROBINSON GEORGIA DUFTON DAISY ROOKE ADAM WAKEHAM DEAN CLEMENTS ACE FILM CATERING MICK HURRELL – JHA SAFETY LESLEY GOGARTY SIAN EVANS POST PRODUCTION Additional Editing JON GREGORY monterey media inc. Half of a Yellow Sun 39 Post Production Supervisor 1st Assistant Editors Post Production Accountants EMMA ZEE IAN CUNNINGHAM GILES BURGESS JON MILLER ZOIE MILLER JAMES CLARKE LEE CLAPPISON DIANA VASQUEZ SCOTT GOULDING DANIEL TOMLINSON ABIGAIL MCKENZIE THOMAS WADDINGTON ALBERTO BURON RICK WHITE RITCHIE FERGUSON DAVE CURTIS LOUISE PURVIS LINDEN BROWNBILL Supervising Sound & Dialogue Editor Sound Effects Editor Foley Mixer Foley Artist Foley Supervisor Foley Recorded at ADR Mixers PAUL COTTERELL YANTI WINDRUSH TUSHAR MANEK SIMON PRICE RODNEY BERLING SIMON TRUNDLE PAUL HANKS PHILL BARRETT UNIVERSAL SOUND ADR Recordist Voice Casting VISUAL EFFECTS BY LIPSYNC POST Visual Effects Supervisor Visual Effects Producer MARK LAFFBERRY ROB HUGHES MICHAEL MILLER KYLE KRAJEWSKI VANESSA BAKER POST PRODUCTION BY LIPSYNC POST Senior Post Producer Post Producer DIGITAL GRADING BY LIPSYNC POST Head of DI Colourist Assistant Colourist Online Editors Digital Lab Manager D-­‐Lab Operators Digital Restoration Technician Head of VT Technical Support Post Production Engineer SOUND BY LIPSYNC POST Re-­‐recording Mixer Sound Assistants LISA JORDAN LEE HODGKINSON SEAN H FARROW LUCY TANNER monterey media inc. Half of a Yellow Sun 40 Head of Visual Effects Senior Digital Compositors Digital Compositors Compositing Supervisor Digital Matte Painter On-­‐Set VFX Supervisor CG Artists Systems Administrators Main Title Sequence Designed by Laboratory Services Laboratory Contact Post Production Script Services STEFAN DRURY ADRIAN BANTON LUKE BUTLER JAMES ELSTER JANE PATON ANTONIO RODRIGUEZ-­‐DIAZ SHEILA WICKENS HARRY WORMALD BEN SHEPHERD EMMA BRANEY ALEX BETANCOURT DANIEL SPAIN ALEXANDER PHOENIX RICHARD MORRISON DEAN WARES TECHNICOLOR JOHN ENSBY FATTS MUSIC Orchestration English Session Orchestra contracted by Conductor Recorded and Mixed by Copyist Music Supervisor BEN FOSKETT DOM KELLY MATT DUNKLEY GEOFF FOSTER COLIN RAE YEMI ALADE-­‐LAWAL Naughty Little Flea Written by Norman Thomas Performed by Miriam Makeba Admin by We Three Music Inc Licensed Courtesy of Sony music & Siyandisa Music Bere Bote Written & Performed by Cardinal Rex Lawson Licensed courtesy of Premier Music Publishing Co Ltd monterey media inc. Half of a Yellow Sun 41 By Arrangement with 51 Lex Records Ltd A Night In Tunisia Written by Gillespie / Paparelli Performed by The Tony Kofi Quintet Tony Kofi -­‐ Saxophones, Trevor Watkis -­‐ Piano, Larry Bartley -­‐ Double Bass, Winston Clifford -­‐ Drums, Byron Wallen -­‐ Trumpet Licensed Courtesy of Universal Music Corcovado Written by Antonio Carlos Jobim Performed by The Tony Kofi Quintet Tony Kofi -­‐ Saxophones, Trevor Watkis -­‐ Piano, Larry Bartley -­‐ Double Bass, Moses Boyd -­‐ Drums, Lilia Iontcheva -­‐ Percussion Licensed Courtesy of Universal Music My Little Suede Shoes Written by Charlie Parker Performed by The Tony Kofi Quintet Tony Kofi -­‐ Saxophones, Trevor Watkis -­‐ Piano, Larry Bartley -­‐ Double Bass, Moses Boyd -­‐ Drums, Lilia Iontcheva -­‐ Percussion Licensed by Marada Music Limited Un Poquito De Tu Amore Written by Julio Butierrez Performed by The Tony Kofi Quintet Tony Kofi -­‐ Saxophones, Trevor Watkis -­‐ Piano, Larry Bartley -­‐ Double Bass, Moses Boyd -­‐ Drums, Lilia Iontcheva -­‐ Percussion Copyright Licensed by Peer International Corp (C) 1948 Funeral Ceremony Written by Franco Tamponi Copyright Licensed courtesy of PRS/MCPS Go Lil Liza Written by Coleman Hawkins Performed by The Tony Kofi Quintet Tony Kofi -­‐ Saxophones, Trevor Watkis -­‐ Piano, Larry Bartley -­‐ Double Bass, Moses Boyd -­‐ Drums, Lilia Iontcheva -­‐ Percussion Licensed Courtesy of EMI Music Dramatic Event Written by Franco Tamponi Copyright Licensed courtesy of PRS/MCPS Arrival of the Queen Of Sheba Written by George Frideric Handel Performed by Sinfonia Varsovia/ Varsovia/ Albrecht Mayer/ Monika Razynska/ Arkadiusz Kropa monterey media inc. Half of a Yellow Sun 42 Copyright Licensed by Universal Music Santa Baby Written by Joan Javits, Philip Springer, Tony Springer Performed by Eartha Kitt Used By Kind Permission of Carlin Music Corp & Tamir Music Licensed courtesy of Sony Music Hail Biafra Written & Performed by Cardinal Rex Lawson Licensed Courtesy of Nigerphone Co Ltd By Arrangement with 51 Lex Records Ltd Simini Yaya Written by Collins Oke Performed by Collins Oke Elaiho & His Odologie Nobles Dance Band Licensed Courtesy of Soundway Records Ltd Finlandia Written by Jean Sebelius Arranged by Paul Thomson & Ben Onono Used By Permission of Breitkopf & Haertel, Wiesbaden Germany Archive Producer STALKR Archive Footage Supplied By AP ARCHIVE / BRITISH MOVIETONE BBC MOTION GALLERY BRITISH PATHÉ ITN SOURCE ITN SOURCE REUTERS INSTITUT NATIONAL DE L'AUDIOVISUEL CAF94011726: JT 20h: Panique au Biafra, 30/08/1968 CAF88050435: Cinq Colonnes à la Une, 03/05/1968, Jou: Michel Honorin FOR SHAREMAN MEDIA Legal Services BANWO & IGHODALO AYOTUNDE OWOIGBE ISA ALADE NICKI PARFITT Trustee Services STANBIC IBTC TRUSTEES LIMITED BINTA MAX-­‐GBINIJE ESE NKADIBOI INVESTMENT AND TRUST monterey media inc. Half of a Yellow Sun 43 COMPANY LIMITED SOLOMON ODOMOKWU FOR METRO INTERNATIONAL ENTERTAINMENT Head of Sales WILL MACHIN Executive Vice President of Sales NATALIE BRENNER Sales and Acquisitions Manager SAM PARKER Festival and Marketing Director JEMMA SANDS International Servicing Consultant LINDA DEACY Sales Co-­‐ordinator FIONA SPIERS Head of Business and Legal Affairs ANDERS ERDEN Business and Legal Affairs Executive TRACEY McCARRICK FOR LIPSYNC PRODUCTIONS Producers PETER RAVEN DANIEL PAGAN Legal Services CHRISTOS MICHAELS FOR BFI FILM FUND Director of Film Fund BEN ROBERTS Senior Production & Development Executive CHRISTOPHER COLLINS Head of Production FIONA MORHAM Senior Business Affairs Executive SARAH CAUGHEY Head of Production Finance IAN KIRK With Very Special Thanks To FOLA ADEOLA TUNDE FOLAWIYO With Very Special Thanks To BANK OF INDUSTRY (W/ LOGO) STERLING BANK With Very Special Thanks To THE CROSS RIVER STATE GOVERNMENT With Very Special Thanks To ASSET & RESOURCE MANAGEMENT COMPANY SEPLAT FOUNDATION SOLA ADEEYO ADENIYI ADELEYE YEMI ADEOLA MICHAEL ADIUKWU FOLASOPE AIYESIMOJU ABIODUN AJAYI KONYIN AJAYI monterey media inc. Half of a Yellow Sun 44 NIMI AKINKUGBE JOANNA AND IAN CARTON MARLON CHIGWENDE AKINSOWON DAWODU TEMILOLA AND OLUSEUN DELANO ADWOA AND OLAWALE EDUN HELMUT ENGELBRECHT ROLAND EWUBARE IFEYINWA AND ASUE IGHODALO KOLA KARIM ACHA LEKE FERGUS MACKINTOSH BINTA MAX-­‐GBINIJE NDUKA OBAIGBENA HELEN AND LABI OGUNBIYI AFOLABI OLADELE FUNMI AND DOLU OLUGBENJO GBENGA OYEBODE DAMI AND OLUMIDE OYETAN FUNMI AND FEMI OYETUNJI KAYODE SOLOLA With Special Thanks To MO ABUDU AFOLABI ADESANYA DEJI ALLI EMMANUEL AWANI HABIBA AND GBOLLY BALOGUN LANRE BAMGBOSE DR. PAUL BOLAJI REV. TAKIS CAIAFAS SARAH CHALFANT JIDE COKER ONARI AND DONALD DUKE FREDERICK FORSYTH SIMON GRINDROD SAM HEATHER OBIOMA AND SENATOR LYLE IMOKE YINKA ODUNIYI MOSUN OGUNBANJO BASSEY EYO NDEM UCHE NDEM CHRIS NDULUE NZAN OGBE EVELYN OPUTU ALHAJI MAMHOUD SANI GEORGE URISE MICHAEL WILLIAMS ARIK AIR LIMITED AUDIO VISUAL FIRST LTD CITY CLINIC INTERNATIONAL COMMITTEE OF THE RED CROSS MEDIA & ENTERTAINMENT CITY AFRICA NIGERIAN FILM CORPORATION NIGERIAN MINISTRY OF INFORMATION SCALLYWAG TRAVEL TINAPA STUDIOS UNICEM HOSPITAL THE WHEATBAKER HOTEL PRO-­‐LEISURE PLUS LTD Insurance Services Provided By MEDIA INSURANCE Legal Services Provided By LEE & THOMPSON RENO ANTONIADES NATALIE USHER Camera and Grip Equipment Supplied by MOVIETECH Lighting Supplied by PANALUX Film Stock Supplied by KODAK monterey media inc. Half of a Yellow Sun 45 FILMED AT TINAPA STUDIOS, AND ON LOCATION IN CALABAR, NIGERIA AND AT SHEPPERTON STUDIOS IN LONDON Developed with the assistance of the British Broadcasting Corporation Developed by Shareman Media, the UK Film Council and Kachifo Limited With the support of the MEDIA Programme of the European Union Worldwide Sales by Metro International Entertainment Limited Made with the support of the BFI’s Film Fund © Shareman Media Limited / The British Film Institute / Yellow Sun Limited 2012 END monterey media inc. Half of a Yellow Sun 46 A BOUT T HE C OMPANY
monterey media inc., a uniquely independent studio
monterey media inc., incorporated in 1979, is a privately owned entertainment company. monterey media is
actively engaged in all areas of domestic media, including theatrical distribution, film festivals, and other distinctive
venues, television, digital delivery and entertainment markets.
The Company is known for creating unique and distinctive release strategies tailored to each project. By way of
example, in 2005, the Company established a joint venture for the creation of a special theatrical event in
conjunction with AMC Theatres to launch the motion picture Indigo: A one day, 603 North America venue showing
grossed over $1,190,000 box office. Recently, monterey media films have been nominated for the Golden Globe
Award, Independent Spirit Award (two nominations in the last three years – one win this year), and NAACP Image
Award. Many of our award-winning films have premiered at Sundance, TIFF, Tribeca, and SXSW Film Festivals, as
well as on Roger Ebert’s 10 Best Independent Films list. 2014 finds monterey media films on nationwide screens including the acclaimed TIFF Premiere “Half of a Yellow
Sun” starring Chiwetel Ejiofor and Thandie Newton based upon the award-winning best-selling novel, which
enjoyed its U.S. premiere as the Red Carpet opening night film at the African Film Festival at Lincoln Center where
the film sold out within four hours; “Redwood Highway” starring the two-time Academy Award nominated Shirley
Knight and Tom Skerritt; and Academy nominated David Strathairn in “ No God, No Master” which portrays the
Anarchist terrorism of the 1920’s as a reminder to us today; along with new films starring Academy Award and
Golden Globe nominated actors Gerard Depardieu, Harvey Keitel, Chloe Sevigny, Eric Stoltz, Jennifer Beals,
Camryn Manheim, Seymour Cassel and Jena Malone.
The philosophy of doing good while doing well is practically a mantra at monterey media, and in addition to its
ritual support of charitable organizations the company has developed a program entitled A Weekend of Unity &
Peace. mmi was awarded a 2013 California Excellence Award Recipient from the United States Trade and
Commerce Institute.
monterey is known for its creatively coordinated marketing strategies incorporating promotional alliances with such
strategic partners as Wal-Mart, Fisher Price, Pepsi Cola, American Express, Amnesty International USA, Make-AWish Foundation of America, Children’s Cancer Research Fund, Patagonia, Body Glove, KIDS FIRST!, Days Inns,
Habitat for Humanity, Greenpeace, the International Motorcycle Shows and Healthy World Healthy Child and Air
Pacific.
MONTEREY VIDEO & EMERGING TECHNOLOGIES The monterey home entertainment division is the 2nd oldest independent video manufacturer and distributor in the
United States and incorporates distribution to all digital markets. monterey is well known for its broad marketing and
its direct relationships with key retail, mail-order and internet sites, schools and libraries, and specialty markets. The
versatile monterey video library encompasses unique feature films and documentaries with the Company having
been awarded numerous Multi-Platinum RIAA and ITA sales Awards; prestigious Independent films starring such
distinguished actors as Susan Sarandon, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Shirley Knight, Tom Skerritt, Thandie Newton, John
Ritter, Tommy Lee Jones, William Hurt, Forest Whitaker, David Strathairn, Brian Dennehy, Robin Williams, Danny
Glover, among many others; celebrated sports programming including Bruce Brown Films’ On Any Sunday and The
Endless Summer; the most prestigious educational yet entertaining library of films adapted from literature’s
renowned authors combined with acclaimed performances from many of Hollywood’s greatest actors; and noteworthy children’s programming. In addition, monterey has the honor of being the first video market licensee of the
American Film Institute.
monterey media, inc. 566 Saint Charles Dr. Thousand oaks, CA 91360-3953
phone: 805-494-7199 fax: 805-496-6061
webmasters: Gordon Scott Garcia & Carly Schmidt All images are copyright © monterey media inc. monterey media inc. Half of a Yellow Sun 47