Omowunmi Dada’s run in Nigerian entertainment has seen her move from standout performances to a more global platform, like her selection as a Global Artist in Residence at the University of Michigan, where she engaged students on African storytelling and filmmaking.

This time, she is stepping further into producing as one of the executive producers on Uyoyou Adia’s ‘Evi’.

The film marks a continuation of a collaboration she first explored on ‘The Sessions’, where she starred and served as a co-executive producer alongside Judith Audu and Uyoyou Adia, who reunite here as producer and director, respectively.

In this conversation, Dada breaks down her return behind the camera in a larger producing effort, what creative control looks like in practice, and how she’s thinking about the next phase of her career through her company, Signet Ring Studios.

What changed for you that made this the right time to take on an executive producer role on Evi?

I think it was less about timing and more about readiness and, honestly, willingness. I’ve been acting for over a decade now, and there comes a point where you’ve observed so much and absorbed so much that staying only on the performance side starts to feel redundant, incomplete, and like you’re leaving something on the table. This has forced me to think beyond acting and to harness my network and agency to curate the kind of stories I want to tell, and, by extension, the industry should.

Thus, when Evi came into the picture, everything about it resonated with where I am in my career and who I’m becoming. It felt like the moment. Not because everything was perfectly aligned, but because I was ready to be uncomfortable in a new, purposeful way.

Also, stepping into the shoes of a film executive wasn’t a single-moment decision. It was more of a gradual awakening. But I think working with masters of the craft like Tunde Kelani on Ayinla and being invited as the 2023 Global Artist in Residence at the University of Michigan’s African Studies Centre were pivotal. That residency, where I interacted with students and faculty members; created materials for teaching African languages; and presented on Nollywood and African filmmaking, showed me what was possible when we centre local but scalable stories for an international audience.

After that experience, I wanted to understand not just how to give a great performance but also how great films come to exist. Watching the filmmakers I admire made me want to be part of that creative architecture, not just the finished product.

Why did Evi feel like the right project for your first executive producer credit?

In 2020, I worked with Uyoyou Adia and Judith Audu on The Sessions as an actor and executive producer. That project sowed the seed of this new creative collaboration in Evi.

Evi is a deeply human story about a woman who has talent in abundance but has to reckon with her pride and her failures and ultimately find her way back to herself. That arc spoke to me. But beyond the story, it was the people behind it. Working with Judith Audu, Uyoyou Adia, and other filmmakers on the project, I knew this was a project being made with real intentionality and professionalism.

I wanted my first producing credit to be attached to something I genuinely believed in, not just commercially but in terms of what it says and who it centres on. And Evi checked every box.

What does being an executive producer allow you to do that you couldn’t do as an actor?

As an actor, your entry point into a project is usually after the most critical decisions have already been made. The script has been written, the director has decided on a vision, and the cast is largely determined. As a hired actor, you’re invited to come in and serve the story that’s already been shaped.

But as an executive producer, you get to be in the room where those early conversations happen. You get to ask questions like, “Why are we telling this story this way? Who does this speak to? Is this the most truthful version of this?” That access to the creative process at its foundation is the real difference.

Also, as I have grown in my career, there has come a level of intentionality and diligence that should be evident in the stories I am in. And it’s this level of responsibility I’ve been quietly preparing for.

What decisions did you directly influence on Evi – creatively or otherwise?

I was involved in conversations about the film’s overall vision — the tone we wanted to strike, the audience we were speaking to, and the messaging we wanted audiences to walk away with.

Being a woman who has navigated this industry for a long time, I also brought my own lived perspective to how certain things were framed, particularly around how the female characters were positioned and the nuances in their experiences. It’s not always about grand, sweeping decisions; sometimes it’s the small, specific things you push for that end up defining the soul of a film.

Are you moving into producing to create more control over your career or to shape the kinds of stories being made?

Honestly? Both. And I don’t think they’re separate. The kinds of stories being made directly affect the career paths available to actors like me.

For a long time, the roles available to women in Nollywood were quite narrow. If you want that to change, you have to be willing to go upstream. You have to be in the conversations that determine what gets greenlit.

So yes, this is about career, but it’s also about something larger than my career. It’s about what Nigerian cinema can be and who gets to see themselves reflected in it.

Have there been roles you wanted but couldn’t access, and does producing change that for you?

It’s a global feeling amongst actors. You read a script that feels right for you and it just doesn’t come your way for reasons that have nothing to do with your ability. That’s the nature of the film industry globally.

But producing shifts the equation. When you’re on the other side of the table, you’re not waiting for permission anymore. You can identify a story, champion it, and build the space for the right talent to inhabit it including yourself, when the role calls for it. That agency is invaluable.

What part of producing Evi surprised you the most once you were in it?

The emotional investment. I knew producing would be demanding, but I didn’t quite anticipate how personally you would carry the project.

As an actor, when you wrap, there’s a sort of emotional handoff — you’ve done your part, and now it belongs to the editors, the director, and, ultimately, the audience. As a producer, it never fully leaves you. You’re thinking about it at every stage, feeling responsible for it in a very different way.

I was nervous going into the premiere in a way that was completely different from any performance nerves I’ve ever felt. It was a good kind of nervous, but it still caught me off guard.

How did your dynamic with the director and producer shift because you were also an executive producer?

I think what shifted most was the level of candour. When you have skin in the game at that level, there’s an implicit understanding that your voice carries weight in a different way.

With Judith and Uyoyou, the collaboration was healthy, as there was genuine mutual respect. But I was also free to be direct, to push back where needed, and to be pushed back on. The relationship becomes more of a partnership of peers than a hierarchical on-set dynamic. I appreciated that. It’s how the best work gets made.

What kind of projects do you want your name attached to as a producer going forward?

I want to tell deeply Nigerian but universally resonant stories. Stories about Nigerian women navigating the complexities of modern life: ambition, agency, identity, love, and legacy.

The stories will be told with honesty and without apology. I’m also drawn to stories that sit at the intersection of culture and contemporary life — projects that make audiences feel seen and that make the world see Nigeria differently.

I want to be associated with work that matters beyond the box office, even while doing well at the box office.

Are you building this through a production company or planning to?

I have a production company, Signet Ring Studios, where most of my productions will be developed.

As I fully stepped into my dual role as an actor and film executive, it was important to formalise it through a production structure.

Are you actively developing more projects as a producer, and can you tell us about them?

Yes, there are conversations happening. I’m at a stage where I’m being quite deliberate about what I say yes to. The story has to matter, the team has to be aligned, and the execution has to be something I can stand behind.

I’m not ready to announce specifics yet, but what I can say is that everything I’m considering is very much in the spirit of what Evi represents — meaningful stories told by people who care deeply about the work.

Do you think more actors need to move into producing to sustain their careers?

I am not the blueprint. But I think more actors need to move into producing to sustain the industry.

The more actors who understand the business of filmmaking, who are invested in what gets made and how, the better Nollywood becomes. We’re seeing this shift happen in real time as more actors step into creative ownership, and I think it’s one of the most exciting things about where Nigerian cinema is right now.

It’s not just about survival; it’s a natural evolution.

Omowunmi Dada is represented by Guguru Talent Management.

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