Kunle Afolayan

Kunle Afolayan OON is a Nigerian actor, producer, and director. He is credited for elevating the quality of Nollywood movies through larger budgets, shooting on 35mm, releasing in cinemas, and working outside of cliché Nollywood storylines. After starting his film career as an actor in the 1999 political drama Saworoide, Afolayan made his directorial debut in 2006 with Irapada, a Nigerian supernatural thriller, which won the Africa Movie Academy Award for Best Film in an African Language. His subsequent directing credits include The Figurine, Phone Swap, October 1, The CEO, Citation, Swallow, Ijogbon, Anikulapo, Anikulapo: The Rise of the Spectre October 1 was the winner of 16 major African movie awards in 2015 and was the second highest grossing Nigerian film at the time of its release, a feat Afolayan was to repeat two years later with The CEO. In 2021, Afolayan signed a three-film slate deal with Netflix: Swallow, Aníkúlápó, and Ijogbon. Aníkúlápó became the #1 most-watched non-English film on Netflix globally within 11 days of its release. Afolayan is also a major licensor with Netflix for African content. One of Afolayan’s most notable contributions to Nollywood has been through his production company, KAP Motion Pictures and Golden Effects Pictures. With subsidiaries like KAP Academy and KAP Cinema, KAP Motion Pictures has become a powerhouse in the Nigerian film industry. The KAP Hub in Lagos serves as a one-stop creative center for filmmakers, providing production services, training, and exhibition facilities. His commitment to quality extends beyond films, with his KAP Film Village and Resort—a state- of-the-art production hub projected to be the largest in the Sahara and West Africa. It provides a world-class environment for filmmakers and is where Aníkúlápó and Ijogbon were shot.