It was an outburst of emotions last weekend in Lagos when Nollywood’s top stars went down the memory lane to eulogize the virtues of departed actor, Sam Loco Efe who died last month in Owerri, Imo State capital. The movie stars shared their personal moments with the late actor, while speaking at a Gala /Award night organised to mark the end of the four-week film training exercise by Del-York International in collaboration with the New York Film Academy. In an emotion-laden tribute, ace actress, Genevieve Nnaji described Sam Loco as “a versatile actor who could play any role.” Genevieve who broke down in tears said, “Loco’s death was a great loss not only to the entertainment industry but also, to the entire nation.” She spoke in such a manner that also evoked tears from the audience. For actress Monalisa Chinda, Sam Loco was the veteran actor they all looked up to in the industry. She described him as a father-figure, adding that he would be greatly missed in Nollywood. Other Nollywood practitioners who graced the occasion also described the late actor as “a selfless movie practitioner and icon who gave his all to the growth of movie industry.” The gala/award night was organised by Del-York International to mark the successful completion of the second annual edition of the Del-York International/New York Film Academy (NYFA) Training Program, in Lagos, Nigeria. Speaking at the event, Chief Executive Officer of Del-York, Mr. Linus Idahosa said the training was to technically equip and empower young Nigerians. “We are in the middle of a great transformation within the creative industry and we need to understand that the challenge with our future filmmakers is not that there is no talent, but rather, it is the lack of understanding of the proper filmmaking equipment required to tell our stories beautifully. “Del-York’s vision is to provide these promising filmmakers with the right tools to harvest their ideas and bring them to life,” he stated. In attendance at the night of awards held at the MUSON Centre were Nollywood stars, politicians, diplomats and government officials.