INTERVIEW: Erica Anyadike, creator and producer of How to Find a Husband

In 2015, the TV show How to Find a Husband graced our screens, a breath of fresh air with excellent writing, a stellar cast (Lizz Njagah, Sarah Hassan and Mumbi Maina) and a storyline that hit a bit close to home. Some called it a sitcom (it isn’t), others labeled it a dramedy, but Erica Anyadike, the woman who created it, just wants to tell stories that can move people, no matter what the genre. She tells us about her passion for good storytelling that birthed the hit show How to Find a Husband.

1. Let’s talk TV and film in Kenya. Any challenges you faced trying to break into the industry?

This is a wonderful industry but I would have to say a lot of participants don’t fully understand what it requires on the creative front and the business end.

2. What more can we do as a country to compete better on the global stage?

Just be more professional and more informed. When people understand how production works overall, from concept to execution, then we’ll be able to compete. Right now, people see a budget and think producers are millionaires, but they don’t understand every little line item that has to be paid for.

3. Talking about the global stage, two of your shows How to Find a Husband and Wrath are currently available on Showmax. What are your thoughts on internet streaming services and the future of content in Kenya and Africa at large?

Streaming is the future. It’s excellent to be exposed to a wider audience and to expose our work as well. The internet is the final frontier.

4. What was going through your mind when you created How to Find a Husband?

I just wanted to address the current phenomenon of women hitting their late 20s or 30s and feeling this intense societal pressure to be married. How to Find a Husband is really about finding yourself first.

5. The show was nominated in the 2016 AMVCAs Best TV Series category. What do you think was the key ingredient for the show?

It was engaging and emotional. We had an amazing team of writers, a great crew and wonderful performances.

6. Some have called it a dramedy, others have labeled it a comedy. As producer/creator of the show, how important is it that people get it right?

People have genres they tend to gravitate to but globally we’re seeing a lot of work that’s quite complex in terms of its emotional range. I love a show called Insecure. It’s both funny and sad. Above all, it’s realistic and it moves me. I hope that aspects of my work move people in a similar fashion.

[Ed’s note: Insecure, Seasons 1-2, are on Showmax!]

7. So many African shows with modern themes have been labeled the African Sex and the City, How to Find a Husband included. What can you say about that?

I say, great! I think it’s indicative of a pushback from African women. African women want the full range of the expression of themselves. I’ve never believed in simplistic, one-sided representations of African women. I believe in diversity when it comes to representation.

[Ed’s note: Catch the boxset of Sex and the City, available for streaming on Showmax.]

8. Tell us more about your other show on Showmax – Wrath.

It’s about a universal idea. It’s about how far a mother will go for her child. Never underestimate a mother’s love. The premise of Wrath is: a mother tries to avenge her daughter’s murder when the justice system fails her. However, the boy who killed her has a mother too, and she is determined NOT to let him go to jail.

9. You also previously worked at Spielworks Media, right?

Yes, I was involved in the creation of Jane and Abel and Sumu La Penzi. I was involved in the writing of both shows and I directed the first 20 episodes of Jane and Abel.

10. Have you ever watched any of your shows? What goes through your mind when you do?

Honestly, I watch them so many times during the editing process that I try not to. But I must admit, I do watch them on air and we’ve tweeted while our shows have been on air before. I do think about ways I can do it better but I’m usually satisfied that I gave it my best shot.

11. From your point of view as a content creator and producer, what is the African story?

To paraphrase Chimamanda Adichie – there is no single story and we should be deathly afraid of anyone who insists that there is one.

12. Let’s talk critics, what do you think about them?

I have no problem with them. I’m just humbled that I can do work that a lot of people get to see. I try not to take praise or criticism too seriously. Both those things can affect you if you place too much stock in others’ opinions. Audience ratings are more important to me.

13. Other than being in the TV industry, you are also a short stories writer. Tell us more about that.

I write for several mediums because it’s deeply satisfying and it’s about creative expression. I’ve been published in Kwani and longlisted for Writivism.

14. Which famous TV show would you like to be part of and why?

I’d love to be on the sets of Insecure and Atlanta. I’d love to be in the writers’ room of The Fixer and Power. I would travel back in time to work with Vince Gilligan on Breaking Bad, which is still the greatest show of all time.

15. Are you currently watching anything on Showmax?

Yes – How to Find a Husband and reruns of Game of Thrones. Everything about Game of Thrones is excellent. Scripts, performances, production – everything. I have to watch parts of the show standing up because I’m so into it, I can’t sit down. They have an incredible budget and an amazing team and it shows. Winter is here!