Visually Living It: Kemi Adetiba

The very first time I consciously watched one of Kemi Adetiba’s works – King Women teaser – I wondered how she mastered the art of creating compelling stories from her subject, evoking raw emotions and making us ponder on the essence of life. Little did I know that I had come across her work a couple of times in videos like Ty Bello’s Ekundayo (which won an award for Best Female Video at the Soundcity TV Music Video Awards), My Darlin by Tiwa Savage, and Sitting on the Throne by Olamide, but to mention a few. From that moment on I have been deeply impressed by the lady behind the camera.

Kemi doesn’t spend all her time behind the camera, she has a vlog called ‘Adventures with Kemi Adetiba’ which shows the versatility of the producer, director and cinematographer. We also witness her presentation skills in her vlogs and this can be credited to her early career as a media child who headlined two national television commercials for detergent brand OMO. She was also a presenter with Rhythm 93.7 FM where she became the voice behind the hit shows Soul’d Out and Sunday at the Seaside. She transitioned from the voice behind the mic, to standing in front of the camera by presenting shows on M-Net, such as Studio 53 and Temptation Nigeria, which she presented alongside Ikponmwosa Osakioduwa. Kemi was also a presenter on Soundcity TV and hosted Maltina Dance All for three consecutive seasons.

In a world where people are all about telling different narratives, Kemi has taken the bull by the horn in carving a niche for herself through her massive fan base on social media, where she creates interesting and quality visual content, giving a different insight into topics with humour, and basically being a creative who has stayed true to her element.

Most recent among her works is ‘The Wedding Party’, a movie that weaves a tale around a very important day that would change the lives of the couple and other characters involved. The star studded movie has been making the rounds online and will premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) on its prestigious opening night as a selection of the Spotlight City to City programme. The movie is also set to premiere in cinemas nationwide in December 2016.

Little wonder that this woman who is living her life and achieving great feats is our star spotlight for the week.

I would love to have Kemi on the cover of Guardian Life someday to hear from the horse’s mouth about her achievements, inspiration, and motivation, and how she has stayed true to her values as a creative, as well as her hopes for the future.