Adeyemi Josiah Afolayan (1940–1996) was a Nigerian

actor An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek term is (), li ...

filmmaker Filmmaking (film production) is the process by which a motion picture is produced. Filmmaking involves a number of complex and discrete stages, starting with an initial story, idea, or commission. It then continues through screenwriting, castin ...

, dramatist, and producer.

Early life

Afolayan was born in 1940 in

Kwara state Kwara State ( yo, Ìpínlẹ̀ Kwárà), is a state in Western Nigeria, bordered to the east by Kogi State, to the north by Niger state, and to the south by Ekiti, Osun, and Oyo states, while its western border makes up part of the internation ...

Nigeria, he was a

film actor An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek term is (), lite ...

, director, and producer. He is the brother of actress

Toyin Afolayan Toyin Afolayan (born 24 September 1959) popularly known as Lola Idije is a Nigerian film actress. She gained recognition after starring as Madam Adisa in a 1995 film titled ''Deadly Affair''. Toyin Afolayan is known as the initiator of popular i ...

as well as father to film actors,

Kunle Afolayan Kunle Afolayan (born 30 September 1975) is a Nigerian actor, producer and director. He is widely credited for elevating the quality of Nollywood movies though larger budgets, shooting on 35mm, releasing in cinemas, and improving cliché Nollyw ...

, Tayo Afolayan,

Gabriel Afolayan Gabriel Afolayan, (born 1 March 1985) also known by his musical stage name G-Fresh, is a Nigerian actor and singer. Education He studied theatre arts at the University of Ibadan. Career He is part of the renowned Afolayan entertainment fa ...

Moji Afolayan Moji Afolayan (born 5 February 1968) is a Nigerian actress, filmmaker, producer, and director. Early life Afolayan hails from Agbamu, a town in Irepodun Local Government area of Kwara State southwestern Nigeria but grew up in Lagos State. She ...

, and Aremu Afolayan.

Career

In 1966, Afolayan joined

Moses Olaiya Moses Olaiya (18 May 1936 – 7 October 2018), better known by his stage name "Baba Sala", was a Nigerian comedian, dramatist, and actor. A Yoruba from Ijesha, Baba Sala, regarded as the father of modern Nigerian comedy, alongside other dram ...

's drama troupe, in 1971, he left to establish his own drama group which went on to stage comedic plays. In 1976, he appeared in

Ola Balogun Ola Balogun (born 1 August 1945) is a Nigerian filmmaker and scriptwriter. He also ventured into the Nigerian music industry in 2001. Balogun, who has been making films for more than three decades, is part of the first generation of Nigerian film ...

's ''Ajani Ogun'' and later produced and starred ''Ija Ominira'' (1979), also directed by Balogun. ''Kadara'', also called ''Destiny'' in English was the first movie he wrote, produced and also starred as leading actor. The movie was shown at the ninth Tashkent film festival for African and Asian cinema. Afolayan went on to produce and star in other productions such as ''Ija Orogun'', ''Taxi Driver'' and ''Iya ni Wura''.

Selected filmography

*''Taxi Driver'' (1983) *''Ajani Ogun'' (1976)

References

Nigerian male film actors Yoruba male actors Male actors from Kwara State 1940 births 1996 deaths 20th-century Nigerian male actors Adeyami Male actors in Yoruba cinema Nigerian dramatists and playwrights Nigerian film producers {{Nigeria-film-bio-stub

Early life

Career

Selected filmography

See also

References