Nigeria’s Top Star Model In America & ARISE TV Executive Ojy Okpe Speaks Passionately About Her Struggles And Triumph In ‘God’s Own Country’
Global brand report by Mike Cerutti
Nigerian International model and
woman of several parts Ojy Okpe who recently won an award that stands her
out- Emmy Award for Best Documentary has confessed the secret pain she
faced as a successful brand in America
In a recent audience with Czar of
letters Cerutti Osagie, Ojy mused: ‘
People see the glory and joy but fail to see the pain, I go through pain
most time but am determined lady, and one of such pain is that fact
that Juggling two children and my job is
really tough, but we coping
‘Secondly another Major
Challenge of being a person of color in New York limits a lot of your
potential so in order to get ahead you have to create a job or an avenue that
no one else have done To stand out, and to glory of God that is what I did that
has now make me stand out from the crowd. It is rare to find a model turned
filmmaker and that is what I used to my advantage’’
Apart from her modeling job,
motherhood, film maker, Ojy is also an executive with Arise TV and actually
began working at Arise News in September 2013, working as a Field
Producer for the Networks entertainment channel Arise 360, she produced
Mini Bio documentaries on Artists including Grammy Award winner CIARA and
Janelle Monae.
While profiling celebrity
interviews with Actress Susan Sarandon, Sarah Jessica Parker,
Supermodel Iman and Naomi Campbell, Singer Idina Mendel, to name
a few, she quickly became the Assistant Director of Features and Special
Programming with the launch of the Networks Documentary Unit “Arise Special”.
The documentary unit within
nine months produced ground breaking documentaries including“Game
Changers”: How the Harlem Globetrotters Battled Racism” –
which just won an Emmy at The National Academy of Television Arts and
Sciences 58th Annual New York Emmy Awards.
The documentary takes
a historical look at the early days of professional basketball and how the
Harlem Globetrotters not only dealt with racism, but also helped
change the world of sports.
Does this super icon Ojy ever
unwind? Hear her: ‘’I never really get much time to unwind. Juggling two
children and my job is really tough more like climbing mount Everest, but I
unwind a lot when I get to Africa, many want to help you with your kids and you
are free to fly’’ was her stand ‘’I do miss home, I will be visiting pretty
soon to unwind
ENTER THE A.B.C ABOUT OJY
Nigerian model Ojy was discovered at
the age of 17 by talent scout Jan Malan who entered her into the face of Africa
competition.
This international beauty was born
in the East coast of Nigeria to diplomatic parents who travelled all across the
country with her and her five siblings.
Ojy emerged in the world of
modelling to get rave notices and acclaim after the face of Africa competition
in which she was a finalist. With a contract from Storm Model Management, Ojy
moved to South Africa to pursue work and could not escape the attention of the
fashion industry. Within weeks of modelling this stunner graced the pages
of Elle, Cosmopolitan, Drum, True Love and strutted the runway for SA fashion
week.
With a royal flush of opportunities
beckoning, she relocated to New York and soon became the muse for legendary
swimwear brand, Gottex. She showcases their swimwear line every season at the
New York Mercedes Benz fashion week. She has worked for virtually every designer,
doing trunk shows for Oscar de la Renta, Jean Paul Gaultier, Versace, Moschino,
Ralph Lauren and Dolce & Gabbana.
While modelling and living in New
York, she completed her university degree as a scholarship student at St. Johns
University with a BSc. in Communications and a minor in Film Production.
After completing her college degree
in 2006, Ojy went on to create her foundation, working with the Salvation Army
and the Red Cross, she has built up skills that would help her maximise her
passion for under-privileged children.
In 2007, Ojy landed the campaign for
L’Oreal’s Mizani, she not only was the face of the brand, but she also
developed distribution channels for the products in her country.
Most recently, honed by her passion
for film ever since her first day on a Hollywood production working on
multi-million dollar films such as The Devil Wears Prada, Spiderman 3, and
Confessions of a Shopaholic, Ojy created Third Mainland Productions.
Using her global awareness to
advance her career, this film production company hopes to expand and relaunch
her as a filmmaker.
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