by Sherif Awad
-My name is Judith Iwu, a Nigerian Actress. And I hail from Imo state Nigeria. I studied Insurance at University of Lagos Nigeria. I’m the first child in a family of three, and I’m also a single Mom of three children.
-It all started when I was nine years-old. My late maternal grandma was a stage actress and had a drama group. She was always having rehearsals with her drama group at my maternal home and I would always travel to my maternal home during holidays just to watch them rehearse. That was when I picked interest. Although, I never saw acting as a profession back then. To me, it was more like a hobby. I wanted to become a broadcaster.
-My role models during my childhood and teenage years pertaining to cinema, theatre, dance and TV were my maternal grandma, Pauline Anyanwu….a broadcaster when I was in elementary school, Joke Silva… a veteran Nigerian Actress, Julia Roberts and Jennifer Lopez… Hollywood Actresses.
-Well, I believe I got the natural acting traits from my maternal grandma. Coupled with the training I got from stage acting for two years before I started screen acting (filming)
-As a matter of fact, it has always been my dream to break into International film industries. I’m grateful to God for bringing me this far in my acting career and I trust Him wholeheartedly to give me the opportunities to break into International scenes.
-Not in the slightest I faced gender issues in my profession. Everyone is treated equally, as long as you worth your salt in delivery and interpretation of film roles.
-The creativity industry is evolving rapidly in my country, despite the financial challenges. We have more quality films and people turn up in mass at the cinemas just to enjoy these films.
-Castings for me these days are based on recommendations from film producers and directors I’ve worked with once or multiple times. Unlike when I was still an upcoming actress in the film industry, attending auditions and waiting in a queue to be cast for a film role. These days, it’s either the producers and directors I’ve worked with call me for film jobs, I negotiate my payment with them, and they send me film scripts via my email, or they recommend me to other moviemakers for film jobs. Once I get a film script, I go through it thoroughly to know if I like the story or not. If I like the storyline, I negotiate with the producer and do the job. But if I don’t like the story, I tell the producer politely that I’m not interested in the job.
-Empathy. I now have the ability to understand and share the feelings of another. I can now easily identify other people’s emotions, see things from their point of view and imagine myself in their place.
-None presently I have musical projects. Though I love music, but I’m not making any plans about it at the moment. Time will tell.
-First of all, the newcomers must make sure they have a passion for acting before venturing into it. When they face challenges in the film Industry, it’s only their passion that will keep them going until they make it big. And they shouldn’t expect noodles success because Rome wasn’t built in a day. Smart work, hard work and prayers will pay off in future.
-My private life and my professional life are two different worlds and I don’t mix them up. When I’m shooting films, I put in my best and have fun to the fullest. And when I’m not shooting films, I spend quality time with my family, enjoy my me time and spoil myself a little. (14) I’m doing my last project for the year now. Will round off in a week’s time hopefully. The movie is about a banker whose husband is off the charts jealous and possessive. And I’m playing the banker. I have a huge project I’m planning on producing next year God willing. I’ve reached out to three people for sponsorship and I pray they make up their minds to sponsor the project.
Name- Judith Iwu
Born- 27th May 1982 in Sokoto State Nigeria.
Citizenship – Nigerian
Education – Bachelor’s degree in Insurance ( University of Lagos)
Occupation – Actress
Years active- 2008- present
Works- House of trouble, Priceless woman, Nicest gift to men, Evil household, Enemies of progress, Oga Madam, Throne of disaster, Olamma the crippled, Stone face, Pokamessiah, Clinic Matters, Comfort zone etc.
Spouse- Cally Iwu (1999 – 2006)
Children- Bayo Iwu, Kizito Iwu, Angelica Iwu
Parents- Obioma Ononuju, Cecilia Ononuju
Siblings – Ikechi Ononuju, Chidimma Iyeh
Short biography – Judith Chinenye Iwu is a Nigerian Actress who came to limelight after starring in the movie “House of Trouble. She started her acting career with stage drama in 2008 and later joined Nollywood film industry in 2010. She studied Insurance in University of Lagos Nigeria. Judith Iwu hails from Mbaitolu local government area in Imo state Nigeria. And was born in Sokoto state Nigeria.
