| Imoh Umoren | |
| Birth Date: | 13 August 1982 |
| Birth Place: | Nigeria |
| Nationality: | Nigerian |
| Years Active: | 2007–present |
| Occupation: | Director, producer, writer |
Imoh Umoren (born 13 August 1982), is a Nigerian filmmaker who primarily makes indie films.[1] He is most notable as the director of the 2017 film Children of Mud. Umoren is considered the first filmmaker to make a silent black and white film in the Nollywood film industry.[2]
He was born on 13 August 1982 in Nigeria. His father was a politician and mother was a college professor.[3] Umoren credits his mother's influence for his career in filmmaking. Both of his parents died when he was a teenager, and he was raised by relatives until he struck out on his own at 16.[4]
At the age of 9, Umoren started to write a comic series called The Wickeds with his closest friend Richie. He joined as a junior producer for 'Common Ground Production' and worked on an international series called The Station. Later, he involved with franchise TV productions such as Project Fame, MTV Advance Warning, Don’t Forget The Lyrics and Malta Guinness Street Dance.[5]
At the age of 26, he made his first feature film Lemon Green. The film gained critical acclaim. Then in 2010, he directed the short film All Sorts Of Trouble. In 2013, his TV movie Have A Nice Day was nominated for Best Cinematography. In 2015 he directed the black and white silent movie Hard Times, which won him his first AMVCA.[6] For his tragedy film The Happyness Limited, the lead actor Tope Tedela was voted as the Best Actor in Africa at the Africa Magic Viewers' Choice Awards (AMVCA).
Umoren later wrote and directed the critically acclaimed film Children of Mud which is loosely based on a real story. The film received 7 nominations at different international film festivals including: Nigeria Entertainment Awards (NEA) and the AMVCA.[7] His next tragedy film Dear Bayo was screened in 11 film festivals and won 6 awards at the UK Nollywood Festival other international film festivals. Umoren also directed the film Lagos: Sex, Lies & Traffic which he co-wrote with Gbemisola Afolabi.
He then completed the production of the period drama The Herbert Macaulay Affair, a biopic about Herbert Macaulay, in 2018.[8] [9] In 2020, he made the drama series Channel 77.[10]
| Year | Film | Role | Genre | Ref. | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | Hard Times | Director, writer | Film | ||
| 2007 | The Station | Junior producer | TV series | ||
| 2007 | Break the Bank | Producer | TV series | ||
| 2007 | Don’t Forget The Lyrics | Junior producer | TV series | ||
| 2008 | Project Fame | Junior producer | TV program | ||
| 2008 | MTN Xtra Connect Game Show | Junior producer | TV series | ||
| 2008 | MTV Advance Warning | Junior producer | TV series | ||
| 2009 | Lemon Green | Director, writer | Film | [11] | |
| 2009 | Malta Guinness Street Dance | Junior producer | TV program | ||
| 2010 | All Sorts Of Trouble | Director, writer | Film | ||
| 2013 | Have A Nice Day | Director, writer | Film | ||
| 2015 | Lagos: Sex, Lies & Traffic | Director, writer | Film | [12] | |
| 2016 | The Happyness Limited | Director, writer | Film | ||
| 2017 | Children of Mud | Director, producer, writer | Film | ||
| 2018 | Club | ||||
| 2019 | The Herbert Macaulay Affair | Director, producer | Film | [13] | |
| 2020 | Dear Bayo | Director, writer | Film |