By Luminous Jannamike & Folarin Kehinde

ABUJA — Documentary filmmaker Samuel Oluwaferanmi Ojo has questioned the impact of government-backed programmes aimed at young creatives, arguing that certifications alone cannot address the challenges confronting Nigeria’s growing creative economy and calling for evidence that public interventions in the sector are delivering measurable results.

He argued that while many young creators already possess the skills needed to succeed, the real barriers to growth remain limited funding, mentorship, market access and opportunities to scale their work into sustainable careers.

Ojo spoke at a one-day workshop organised by Creativeverse in partnership with Holland Academy and Aputure in Abuja, where he challenged the effectiveness of several initiatives introduced under the government’s creative economy agenda.

“There was one programme I registered for recently by the Federal Government and the Ministry of Arts and Culture. It was teaching creators how to be professionals and giving certifications. What we need right now is not certification,” he said.

The filmmaker also called on government agencies to provide measurable evidence that creative economy interventions have translated into youth empowerment, business growth and economic returns.

“Since the inception of this creative economy initiative, how much has Nigeria actually recorded from the youths that have been empowered? How much revenue has been generated? Does the government have records of the impact these programmes have created?” he queried.

According to him, many young creatives already possess significant knowledge and technical skills but remain locked out of the opportunities needed to expand their businesses and compete globally.

“In fact, when you look closely, a lot of those facilitators do not even know as much as many of the content creators they are training. What I see in some cases is another way of spending money without creating real impact,” he stated.

Ojo further argued that many interventions aimed at the sector appear disconnected from the realities of a rapidly evolving global marketplace.

“We are still talking about teaching basic skills and issuing certificates in 2026, while the world has moved on to more advanced innovations and opportunities. Creatives need access to things that can genuinely transform their careers,” he said.

While directing much of his criticism at public programmes, Ojo said some of the industry’s challenges also stem from within.

He identified gatekeeping among established practitioners as a major obstacle to growth, accusing some professionals of deliberately withholding knowledge from younger creators out of fear of being surpassed.

“There is serious gatekeeping in the industry because some professionals are afraid that younger filmmakers, content creators and videographers will overtake them. I think creators need to stop that selfish act,” he said.

He also linked the sector’s image problem to poor professional standards and knowledge gaps among some practitioners.

“The reason many people look down on creators is because of bad creators, unprofessional creators and the gap in knowledge. If every creator can know as much as I do, or even know better than I do, people will respect this profession more,” he added.

Addressing younger creators, Ojo urged them to focus on professionalism and long-term growth rather than the pursuit of quick financial rewards or social media popularity.

He stressed the importance of mastering foundational skills such as storytelling, lighting, camera operation and understanding the exposure triangle, including ISO, aperture and shutter speed.

“Storytelling is the art of every craft. Even if your video quality is excellent, without storytelling it loses value. Once you stop optimising for views and start optimising for impact, your content becomes more meaningful,” he said.

Ojo further described content creation as a legitimate profession capable of generating substantial income and employment opportunities, noting that the creator economy has become a multi-billion-dollar global industry.

“Content creation is a job just like law, medicine or engineering. The creator economy is a multi-billion-dollar industry and people are making millions from it. The problem is not the profession; the problem is professionalism,” he said.

Calling for a new approach to developing the sector, Ojo urged creatives to work together, build independent initiatives and create platforms capable of attracting both government and private-sector investment.

“We should not sit back waiting for government to solve every problem. Creatives need to come together, start initiatives, build platforms and then invite government to invest in them. That is how we can create real value and strengthen the creative economy,” he said.