Tade Ogidan is a Nigerian film and television screenwriter, producer and director. He started movie production at age 16 before enrolling in the University. After his University education, he began his professional journey at the National Television Authority (NTA), Lagos in 1983. 

After working with the local television station for over 7 years, Tade moved on in 1990 to establish himself. Today, he is the MD/CEO of OGD Pictures and OGD Music Ltd., a production company through which he has produced several blockbuster movies. 

Generally, Tade is a creative producer. He is one of the movie producers who has made impact in the Nigerian movie industry. 

Tade Ogidan Background

He was born Akintade Ogidan in July 23 1960 in Surulere, Lagos to the family of Akinola and Racheal Ogidan. He started his education at Government Demonstration School and then proceeded to Surulere Baptist School, Surulere, Lagos. 

In 1972, he moved on to Ekiti Parapo College, Ido-Ekiti. Then, in 1974, he attended Maryland Comprehensive Secondary School, Ikeja, Lagos and finally graduated in 1978. 

Subsequently, he attended Eastern New Mexico University, Portales, NM, USA. At the university, he studied Film, Radio and Television Production. Also, he earned a certificate from the State University of New York, USA. 

Tade Ogidan Early Career

Tade was able to get some production skills from David Orere, who was a producer in NTA (then Nigeria Television Service) in the 1970s. At the time, David would take Tade to the studio to act when the need arise, but Tade had no interest in standing before the camera. Rather, he developed interest in handling the camera and telling cast what to do. At the same time, he was writing movie scripts and learning production.

Then, in 1983, after completing his National Youth Service Corp Scheme, he started as an in-house writer, producer and director at NTA Channel 10. He also worked as a Continuity Manager at NTA 2 Channel 5 for a while. 

Altogether, he spent almost 10 years at the Nigerian Television Authority, Lagos. While he was there, he produced and directed different drama series and drama specials on the channel and NTA National Networks respectively. After a while, he started gaining prominence with his production and directorial works. For instance, some of his works like: Blinking Hope, The Reign of Abiku won awards in television festivals in the 80s.

Also, he began to work on different magazine shows, projects and drama series. So, in 1990, Tade left NTA to established himself.

OGD Pictures Limited

Tade is the MD/CEO of OGD Pictures and OGD Music Ltd, a media production company. The first production under the company was titled Hostages, one of the movies that rocked in the 90s. Subsequently, he produced the popular Owo Blow, 1995; the movie that shot Femi Adebayo to limelight. Since then, Tade has continued to write, produce and direct blockbuster films. 

Under the OGD Music, he released The OGD All Starz Jamz. The jamz showcased several Nigerian movie stars performing in songs. He also did TV commercials and projects for companies and major live events for the Lagos State Government. 

Recently, Tade in conjunction with High Impact Amusement Centre released a comedy adventure drama titled Gold Statue, 2019 after 8 years of silence. The movie starred A-list thespians like Sola Sobowale, RMD, Segun Arinze, Gabriel Afolayan, Ali Baba, Yvonne Jegede, e.t.c 

Also, Tade has produced some Nigerian greatest movies of all times. And, he has worked with actors like Jide Kosoko, Kate Henshaw, Funke Akindele, e.t.c 

Some of his Films include; 

• Owo Blow, 1995
• Out of Bounds, 1997
• 7 to 12, 1997
• Hostages, 1998
• Diamond Ring, 1998
• Saving Alero, 2002
• Ayomida, 2003
• Playing Games, 2012
• Dangerous Twins, 2004
• Aya mi Owon: Madam Dearest, 2005
• Family on Fire, 2011
• Gold Statue, 2019

Awards And Recognition

Tade started winning awards right from the 90s. Some of his recent recognition include; 

• Movie of the Year ‘Gold Statue’ Best of Nollywood, 2019
• Director of the Year ‘Gold Statue’, Best of Nollywood, 2019
• Best Feature Film Award ‘Gold Statue’, Lekki International Film Festival, 2019

Tade Ogidan Quotes

“When a director clearly understands how things work, he can then choose to perform idan (magic), breaking creative rules to achieve something new.”

“I don’t want to do 100 projects in my lifetime. Whatever I do must be memorable, and that opens the door to bigger things.”

“If you are not looking for something demanding then you should go and sit on a cruise ship and enjoy yourself.”

“We all won’t be bankers, we all won’t be oil barons, but we will all work together in the beauty of the world.”

“You could have the greatest wings to fly, but you need to have the budget to fly with it.”