OSMOND AKEBE

Stories. People. Possibilities. 🇨🇲

[OSMOND AKEBE @osmondakebe]

Performed this years ago.

This was the moment everything shifted; how I saw acting, and how I saw myself.

Nothing was the same after this.

#300movie #geraldbutler

[OSMOND AKEBE @osmondakebe]

A farmer can have the best crops and still lose them if the market is too far away. Talent can be the same.

So should every creative build an individual “vehicle” to reach distant markets, or should we build more markets closer to where talent is created?

#BuildTheEcosystem

[OSMOND AKEBE @osmondakebe]

Some nations have oil. Some have gold, timber or fertile lands. But every nation shares one resource: talent. Crops succeed because systems connect farms to markets. Talent needs the same. What bridges are we building between creators, stories, and audiences?

#BuildTheEcosystem

[OSMOND AKEBE @osmondakebe]

When an industry struggles to grow, what questions are we not asking? Are our stories and talents truly the problem, or are they surrounded by barriers and systems they cannot overcome alone? Before we create more, what are we failing to build?

#BuildTheEcosystem

[OSMOND AKEBE @osmondakebe]

“What if it never come to pass?” Well…we will find out.

[OSMOND AKEBE @osmondakebe]

Every industry we admire began because someone invested before there was profit, believed before there was proof and built before there was demand. Now, if everyone waits for certainty, where would the success stories come from?

#BuildTheEcosystem

[OSMOND AKEBE @osmondakebe]

"Talent isn't enough. Get connected."

Great. But we focus so much on access and so little on value. If an artist who doesn’t understand contracts, rights, branding, and positioning enters a room filled with opportunity, is it truly the right room?

#BuildTheEcosystem

[OSMOND AKEBE @osmondakebe]

"Talent isn't enough. Get connected."
Great. But we focus so much on access and so little on value. If an artist who doesn't understand contracts, rights, branding, positioning…enters a room filled with established people, is it truly the right room?

#BuildTheEcosystem

[OSMOND AKEBE @osmondakebe]

As kids they told us, "Dream big." But when we did, they said, "Be realistic." Now, at what point do we stop encouraging dreams and start negotiating with fear? And what do we build so the next generation doesn’t have to choose between their dreams & survival?

#BuildTheEcosystem

[OSMOND AKEBE @osmondakebe]

Most children dream when they see others make it. Only a few dream of becoming what they've never seen before. So what happens when a sector struggles to consistently produce cultural figures? Who gives the next generation proof that their dreams are possible?

#BuildTheEcosystem

[OSMOND AKEBE @osmondakebe]

Many say, "You’re a great actor, but get a job so you don't get frustrated by the industry."
Thoughtful. But does having a job make the industry better? No! It makes me safer. The problem remains. What do we build so talent doesn’t only survive outside but thrives within?

[OSMOND AKEBE @osmondakebe]

Parents don’t choose careers for their kids. They choose futures they can see.

Now, when thousands of parents see no future for their kids in the arts, what happens to our stories? What happens to the arts, as one of society’s defining pillars?

#BuildTheEcosystem

[OSMOND AKEBE @osmondakebe]

Tomorrow, we begin.

Thirty days. Sixty plus conversations. One thought at a time.

[OSMOND AKEBE @osmondakebe]

EVERY SOCIETY IS HELD UP BY CERTAIN PILLARS.

Politics shapes power.
Business shapes wealth.
Education shapes minds.
Sport shapes national pride.
The arts shape identity, imagination, and how a people are remembered.
…

But what happens when one of those pillars is left behind?

[OSMOND AKEBE @osmondakebe]

But because I believe better questions lead to better conversations.

Better conversations shape better thinking.

Better thinking builds better people, and better people build better industries and nations.

This isn't about agreeing or disagreeing. It’s about building.