5th August, 2022
By Aderonke Ojediran
The organisers of the annual travelling film industry awards, Best of Nollywood (BON), on Friday announced the appointment of Francis Onwochei as the new head of jury.
Founder of BON awards, Seun Oloketuyi, disclosed this in a statement made available to newsmen in Lagos.
He said the choice of Onwochei was as a need to further uplift the industry.
Oloketuyi said that prior to his appointment, Onwochei provided specialised advisory services as consultant on motion picture works for television and film production companies in Nigeria.
“In the last 13 years that Niran Adedokun had been head of jury, BON Awards has remained a credible reward system for Nollywood.
“We do know that with Onwonchei as the new head, the next decade will be another record and testament to that credibility.
“We usually don’t announce the rest of the jury, that’s how we have always operated,” he said.
Onwochei started his career in the creative industry as an actor in 1984 at the National Arts Theatre, Lagos.
The creative artist grew in skill and experience in performing several plays through this period.
Onwochei also studied Surveying in Nigeria with Post Graduate certifications in Film Aesthetics at London International Film School, DW Television Training College, Berlin and New York Film School.
He is an alumnus of Harvard Law School where he focused on International Copyright Administration.
He produced ‘Gliteratti’ (2017), ‘Drop Zone’ (2018), ‘Isoroti’ and ‘Madanwo’ (2021).
Onwochei is a recipient of Nollywood Distinguished Veterans Award and was also awarded Fellow of The Arts in 2018.
Speaking on the appointment, Onwochei expressed his delight at the trust placed on him to pilot the affairs of the jury.