Nollywood: Etim-Effiong seeks back-end deals to boost actors’ earnings
by Moronfolu Adeyemi · The Eagle OnlineNollywood actors can earn additional income from successful film productions through profit-sharing agreements negotiated by professional talent managers, media entrepreneur Toyosi Etim-Effiong has said.
Etim-Effiong explained that such arrangements would enable actors to receive additional payments when movies record strong commercial performances, beyond the initial fees negotiated for their roles.
She spoke in an interview with PUNCH Online after participating in a session on the Creative Economy Stage at Moonshot 2026 by TechCabal in Lagos on Thursday.
The session was titled ‘Africa’s creative economy: The numbers and the next bet’.
The founder and Chief Executive Officer of That Good Media said some industry professionals were already negotiating such agreements, but the practice needed to become more widespread.
“It is a proper and a solid manager that will negotiate back-end deals for films, such that, okay, if a film makes over a billion naira in the market, I get X amount extra on top of what I’ve been paid.
“We don’t quite have all those things. We don’t have those things rampant now. A few people are doing it, but it’s something that we now want to make regular and commonplace for the film industry,” she said.
Comparing the situation with the Nigerian music industry, Etim-Effiong noted that royalty arrangements had created additional revenue opportunities for musicians whose works generated earnings under agreed terms.
She said the music industry had not always operated with the structures that allow artistes to earn royalties, attributing the progress to individuals who worked towards establishing standardised systems.
“The music industry wasn’t always like this.
“It was people who took it upon themselves to make a proper global standardised industry from this music industry that now got singers to start getting royalties,” she said.
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Etim-Effiong maintained that Nollywood needed similar structures to help actors benefit financially from the commercial success of their productions.
She also stressed the importance of professional talent management, arguing that while the industry had invested in developing creative talents, insufficient attention had been given to training professionals who could turn their skills into sustainable businesses.
“We have so many talents, we’ve paid so much attention in training the actors and the singers and the videographers and cinematographers, but nobody is training the professionals who will convert what they are doing to actual money,” she said.
According to her, talent managers play an important role in developing creative careers, negotiating opportunities and helping entertainers build sustainable businesses.
Etim-Effiong, who is also the founder and director of TGM Academy, an institution that trains talent managers, said the industry needed more professionals to represent actors, musicians and other creatives.
“We want actors, singers, creators, creatives all across Nigeria to have people who represent them and people who are able to create sustainable careers from their creativity,” she said.
She explained that a talent manager could represent both an actor and a musician but advised managers against taking on too many clients, recommending a maximum of three talents depending on their workload and the demands of each career.
“When you take up a talent as a manager, it’s like you are working with a start-up. It’s like a business,” she said.
Moonshot 2026, organised by TechCabal, brought together stakeholders across Africa’s technology and creative industries to discuss innovation, investment and business opportunities.
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