Francis Duru is one actor who has achieved so much in the make-believe world of acting. Yet, he aspires to do even greater things. He is on the look out for more movies that will make him stay awake through the night, studying scripts.
“I want producers to get me challenging scripts, though money is still important because time is money,” he said.
But what has prepared him for this? “I am lucky to have had a strong professional training and background in theatre. From being an amateur, I did a professional course in Theatre Arts and later, a degree course.
“I have also tapped from many experienced persons in the industry. I have never looked down on anyone. If your acting skills were bad, I would look at how it could be better. Discipline, hard work, focus and the grace of God have also kept me relevant,” he said.
Duru said though acting came to him naturally, he admitted also that every role had been challenging. “Building a believable character is always stressful and requires lots of energy,” he noted.
Fatherhood, for Duru, has been a thing of joy. It is ‘the best thing’ that has happened to him. This explains why he goes about with commitment to his art, certain that he is working for his family.
He said, “God has blessed me with wonderful kids and wife. I have been married for 14 years. I have three kids, but I tell people I have four because my little niece is mine too. My last child, a boy, likes entertainment. He is six years old and he likes Patoranking.”
Comparing today’s Nollywood with the past, Duru maintained that it used to be fun.Then, according to him, acting was all about passion, togetherness, excellence and people understanding the process.
Today, however, he bemoaned the fact that “Nollywood is all about fame, popularity, red carpet and glossy adverts.”
“Everybody wants to become a star overnight. And these days you would hardly see two actors eating together because of attitude and ego problems,” he said.
For people who play nude roles in movies, Duru expressed the belief that it was a matter of choice. The whole idea of movies, he stressed, was making people to believe.
“If someone projects nudity, he or she is willing to do it because there are many ways to avoid it. I can simulate making love, but I will never go nude. Even my 17-year-old daughter can never and she would never act nude.”
