Biography

Lolia Etomi is an award-winning, multi-hyphenate creative artist. More specifically, a Nigerian, American, British Actor, Director, Producer, Writer... and Lawyer (with expertise in Data Protection, Privacy & AI Governance). She went to school in the UK (as well as Nigeria and Kenya) before moving to Los Angeles to pursue a career in acting and filmmaking.

She is dedicated to entertaining, meaningful & impactful storytelling that is truly representative of people from different walks of life, especially marginalised groups. Lolia works as filmmaker in local & global film markets and her most recent projects have been Academy Award shortlisted and won multiple accolades and awards at over 60 reputable film festivals globally, including the BAFTA & Academy Award-qualifying Los Angeles & New York International Short Film Festivals, Diversity in Cannes and Toronto International Women's Film Festival. Awards and nominations include Best Dramatic Actor, Best Female Producers and Best Film. Most of her projects involve partnering with community-centered non-profits to further champion causes including- immigration, women's rights, anti-racism, and LGBTQIA+ rights. She has also appeared in a number of network TV series, including Apple TV's Bad Monkey and BET's Real Husbands of Hollywood.

Through her creative collaborations with other artists on Joseph Gordon Levitt's HitRECord platform, Lolia has two shared Emmy Awards for Outstanding Original Interactive Program & Outstanding Innovation in Interactive Media. She was a juror and executive producer for the Five-For-Five female filmmakers fund, which finds the best female filmmakers in Uganda and provides them with the resources to create short films that reach a global audience & compete at a global level, many of the films are official selections in film festivals globally.

She also serves on the board of the M&G Etomi Foundation, a nonprofit dedicated to breaking the cycle of poverty through skills development, mentorship, and sustainable opportunity creation, helping shape arts, sports, and careers initiatives that have contributed to training more than 4,200 young people across Nigeria since 2007.

Lolia has Bachelor's & Master's Degrees in Theology & Religious Studies from Cambridge University and is a Lawyer in both England & Nigeria. She also has a Masters in Acting and trained in England at the Guildford School of Acting (GSA) and the London Academy of Music & Dramatic Arts (LAMDA). She was scouted to perform professionally off-West End after performing in For Colored Girls: the first all-black, all-female play in Cambridge's over 800-year history. She also produced the university's most successful, highest-earning dance show, Enigma.

Lolia has worked in Film & TV Development for Will Smith's Westbrook Entertainment, written articles for Jada Pinkett-Smith's Red Table Talk website & various legal & tech publications, as well as worked as a senior executive in the Fashion & Tech (AI) sectors. She founded the Cambridge University Black Alumni Network in June 2020.
- IMDb mini biography by: Lolia Etomi