BRAIN DRAIN IN THE MOVIE INDUSTRY?

Kenyan actors and actresses seem to be going out of the countries in droves for greater prospects abroad and particularly South Africa.

Let’s face it, the southern tip of the continent has an extremely developed and diverse film industry, and the expertise required to put together great scripts and blockbuster sets is there. It wouldn’t then be surprising that having the continent’s largest economy would also boost the purchasing power of its citizens as well as salaries given to…say actors.

A well known fact is that acting in Kenya doesn’t pay very well, unless you get into some mainstream production that is backed by either an NGO, a government/international agency or an established film company in the country.

And with an increasing number of professional or experienced actors being churned into the entertainment industry each year, what does the future hold for Kenya. Will the film industry boom or bust? Let’s have a look at some of our acting exports abroad

Sharon Olago

A young social entrepreneur dedicated to nurturing young leaders through providing them with business and marketing skills. She has a Bachelor of Arts degree in law, politics and history, and a post graduate Diploma in management marketing from the University of Cape Town. In 2010, following Sharon’s role in the first Shuga, Sharon was crowned the first women’s HIV prevention champion during the 1st Kenya Women’s HIV Prevention Symposium.

Sharon Olago (PHOTO: MTV Shuga)

Since 1998 she has been involved in empowerment programs after she represented Kenya in 1st African Girl Child Forum after winning a national contest for public speaking. She works with upcoming entrepreneurs and artists, and is providing technical support for their businesses in a bid to developing self sufficiency. She has also facilitated forums on leadership in churches and youth centres and has been a teen counsellor and educator in Cape Town, South Africa.

Lupita Nyongo

She was born in Mexico, raised in Kenya and educated partly in the United States of America. She is currently an MFA candidate of Yale University’s School of Drama’s Acting program, in New Haven, CT, USA. Her stage credits at the School include Uncle Vanya, The Taming of the Shrew, friendship of her thighs and elijah.
Lupita’s film and TV credits include playing the lead in the first series of Shuga as Ayira. This year Lupita returns as both actor and co-director alongside acclaimed South African director, Teboho Mahlatsi. She has also worked on the production teams of critically acclaimed films including The Constant Gardener (2005) directed by Fernando Mereilles and The Namesake (2006) directed by Mira Nair.

Lupita Nyong’o (PHOTO: HotSecrets)

After graduating from Film & African Studies at Hampshire College,Massachusetts – Lupita made her debut feature-length film in 2007 creating, producing, directing and editing In My Genes a documentary that addresses the personal and societal challenges that people with albinism face as members of one of the most hyper-visible and misunderstood minority groups of Kenya’s predominantly black society through the experiences of eight individuals from different cultural and socio-economic backgrounds.

Edi Gathegi

Kenyan-born actor Edi Gathegi grew up in California, close to the bright lights of Hollywood, but his own interest in the spotlight would take years to germinate. When Gathegi enrolled in classes at UC Santa Barbara, he was primarily interested in basketball, but when a knee injury put a hold on his athletic interests, he signed up for an acting class on a whim. He was amazed to discover an instant love for the craft and soon decided to pursue acting full force, enrolling at the Tisch School of the Arts at New York University to learn all he could. He soon began a professional acting career in theater, appearing in several classics like +Cyrano de Bergerac and +A Midsummer Night’s Dream.

Edi gathegi

He eventually made his screen debut with the role of the Hatian cab driver in the 2006 film Crank, a role that led to a second career on the screen for Gathegi, appearing in movies like 2007’s Gone_Baby_Gone and on the medical drama House, where he played Dr. Jeffrey Cole. In 2008, the actor took on the small but memorable part of Laurent in the highly anticipated film adaptation of the young-adult novel Twilight. He went on to feature in the 2011 blockbuster ‘X-Men: First Class’ and has recently been cast to feature in an American series called ‘White Van Man’.

Oliver Litondo

Oliver Litondo was born in Kakamega, Kenya. He went to university in the United States. His career which started in broadcast journalism included as correspondent with BBC and Deutche Welle.

Oliver Litondo

He was also anchorman for Voice of Kenya (currently Kenya Broadcasting Corporation–KBC) and anchorman for Kenya Television Network (KTN).

David Omwange

David Omwange was born in Kenya and raised in the United States, where he developed a passion for drama and spoken word poetry. However, due to the nature of his mother’s work, he migrated to Pakistan, along with his family, where his zeal for performing was temporarily replaced by his pursuit of a bachelor’s degree in business administration. He is currently based in South Africa.

David Omwange (PHOTO: MTV Shuga)

Nick Ndeda

Nick is a 26 year old actor, radio presenter and writer. He began acting in high school where he participated in drama festivals and won the Best Actor award twice. After high school, he got into local theatre groups and landed numerous lead roles in over 25 plays with theatre company Phoenix Players between 2005 & 2009. Nick received the Best Theatre Actor in Kenya award in 2008. In the United States International University – Africa’s Michezo Afrika, he wrote and directed plays. In 2010, Nick branched out into screen acting after landing a lead role in local TV series Higher Learning.

Nick Ndeda

Last year he landed a role in South African TV series ‘Jacob’s Cross’ and has been flying constantly between Nairobi and Johannesburg.