Interview: Why Yvonne Okoro doesn’t play sex scenes in movies

Still promoting her first self-produced movie-Contract, which has received 6 nominations for the 2013 African Movie Academy Awards (AMAA), Yvonne Okoro recently had a chit chat with Dupe Ayinla-Olasukanmi, talking about her movie and other things.

Yvonne talked about why she never does sex scenes, her humanitarian work and other interesting issues…

Check out excerpts from the chit chat below

On the idea behind Contract?

We had different scripts, but ended up choosing this one. The idea is to shed more light on surrogate parenthood. This is an issue that has not been tapped into right now in Africa. A lot of people are using surrogate these days, but have nothing to do with the woman. They pay the woman to have a baby for them and that is all. It is one of those issues that are not talked about, and we felt it will be a good thing to talk about but in a funny way.

On her experience as a first timer…

I think I was lucky to have Sparrow Production on board because they were able to organise most of the logistics. All I did was to pay the money and get involved. From the location to props, they were more involved. Mostly what they do is like get three locations and call me to come and check them out. So I go with the Director, Shirley and they ask which I prefer. We all bring our heads together and choose the one that is the best. It was a lot of work and I respect producers a lot now. It made me realize that I am a terrible producer. I am just hoping that with my next one, I will be more involved.

On how she came by the name Chinyere and Okoro…

My dad is a Nigerian, an Igbo man from Abia, married to a Ghanaian woman. My full names are Yvonne Chinyere Okoro Okereke. I am supposed to speak Igbo, I speak some like come and go and get me something. (Laughs)

On her humanitarian work…

I have a playground I am building for the less privilege, I mean the mentally handicapped. That is what I have been putting my time into. And I will also be on set of Adam’s Apple season II. Is building this playground a means to get money from the Government? I am sure there are times that people here and there do that but I am sure that there are others who have a good mindset too for what they are doing. For me, I didn’t get any sponsor. It is my own personal money, I took it out, and I said I wanted to do something without having to go from one door to the other. I didn’t want people to come and say that I am using the money I collected from them inappropriately so I said I would use my money to build the playground.

Recently, what I did was to organise a party and it was my money too. I never wanted to have an NGO, because I wanted to be able to do what I want to do. I didn’t want it to be on a particular thing, I want to be able to help in different situation. I want to do it in such a way that, every year on my birthday I choose a particular thing I want to do for the society. Maybe there will be time, when I will need help, but now for me it is more like a thank you thing to my fans. I do have an NGO which I started two weeks ago. It is a home for the old. I opened it in my late grandma’s name Elizabethan Senior Home. This one too I didn’t get funds from anywhere. I wake up and if I say I want to do something, I do it. Because I always put a portion of whatever I make aside for projects that I want to do.

On why she is still living with her parents…

They refuse to let me move out. I think they still want to keep me grounded. They say it is not the African tradition. They said I have to get married before I move out. So I am still there. I remember recently I said to them I have seen a house, and they were like where, when you get a husband and your husband takes your hand, you can move out. My father is very traditional. I think all these are just t keep you grounded. But I don’t mind, I don’t pay bills. So I just said to myself why am I even fighting? So I am taking full advantage, I am using them very well and they are allowing me. So I am very happy.

About her relationship status…

(Laughs) I am very single right now. They will have to wait for a while when God gives me the right man. I think I want to continue living with them. I am single and I think I haven’t had the time too. I am always on my guard because you want to know the kind of people who come to you. I don’t want to talk about my private life. When it happens, it happens.

On doing sex scenes…

Someone like Shirley does sex scenes, but they have a way of doing it and it does not look tacky. I don’t do it because when I go back home I will be spanked. I remember for Adam Apple, there was a sex scene and I said to her, I can’t do it. You have to let me know how you are going to do it. So she said we are not going to do it in a tacky way. You sit down you kiss the guy and we take it from different angle. So there were times that we were not even kissing at all. We were just moving our heads and then they will say cut. And then we lay down and they will drop the hand of your bra and top and take the upper part from different angle and that is it. In the end, it looks like you are naked. That day we were doing it, she had to sack everybody. So it was remaining Shirley, I, the Director and the Cameraman.