Film & TV agent, CAA
- Worked as an ABC news reporter from 2008-09
- Joined the CAA mailroom in 2014
- Founded CAA Africa Initiative in 2018
“I realised I had an expertise because of my interest in the continent,” says Nigerian-American Menakaya of CAA Africa, the division he started while working as an agent’s assistant to increase the agency’s connections with creatives from the continent. “I was able to use that interest and my passion for diversity.”
Los Angeles-based Menakaya has utilised his knowledge of Africa to great effect for major streamers, negotiating a deal for Ivorian filmmaker Philippe Lacote’s Killer Heat for Amazon Studios; selling eight-episode series Classified to Amazon from South African showrunner Kagiso Lediga; and brokering a deal for his client Peres Owino to write on Netflix’s African Queens: Njinga. In 2022, he also packaged and sold Sarah Taibah’s Jameel Jeddan, the first Saudi series created by and starring a woman.
“Managing expectations” is now his major challenge, to which “the solution is being upfront — making sure people understand what they’re getting into”.
“The overall industry is headed international — Africa is the last frontier,” says Menakaya. “It’s an exciting time. I’m here for the long haul.”
Contact: ozi.menakaya@caa.com
![[Clockwise]: 'Anora', 'The Substance', 'Kneecap', 'All We Imagine As Light'](https://d1nslcd7m2225b.cloudfront.net/Pictures/100x67/6/4/0/1439640_screenteamfilms_937759.jpg)
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