Cannes Film Festival Selects Nigeria’s ‘My Father’s Shadow’

The film, which premieres in the Cannes Film Festival’s Un Certain Regard section, is produced by Rachel Dargavel of Element Pictures and Fumnbi Ogunbanwo for Lagos-based Fatherland Prods.

It was directed by Akinola Davies Jr, who also co-wrote with his brother, Wale ‘Tec’ Davies of the Show Dem Camp rap duo. The brothers also served as executive producers.

Held every May in the city of Cannes, France, the Cannes Film Festival is the world’s most prestigious film event, bringing together top filmmakers, actors, and industry professionals to celebrate cinematic excellence. Since its inception in 1946, the festival has become a global stage for premiering groundbreaking films.

My Father’s Shadow is a semi-autobiographical film featuring Gangs of London star Ṣọpẹ́ Dìrísù and is set in Lagos during the June 1993 election annulment.

The film follows a father and his two estranged sons as they travel across the chaotic metropolis while political unrest threatens their homeward journey.

Dìrísù plays Folarin, a hard-luck breadwinner trying to provide for his family, and breakout talents Chibuike Marvellous Egbo and Godwin Egbo as his two young boys – Remi and Akin.

The film begins on a pivotal June day in 1993, as Nigeria is eagerly awaiting the results of its first democratic election since the military coup that brought General Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida to power. The unofficial results suggest a victory for the opposition, leading millions of Nigerians to hope, which is slogan of Moshood Abiola, who is widely believed to have won the election.

On that fateful day, Folarin embarks on a journey to collect several months’ of owed salary from his employer in Lagos. With his wife out of town, he begrudgingly allows his sons to tag along, not knowing that the country is on the brink of an electoral crisis.

The story is based on the Davies family and is composed in the form of a letter to their late father (who Folarin is based on) with Wale Davies writing the script more than ten years ago, with touches and input from his director brother in critical stages over the years.

Wale Davies says My Father’s Shadow is also a tribute to Lagos, a city whose daily life, often resembles a movie set.

Everything looks like a film,” he says, “I could look on my street — there’s just always something exciting happening.”

The brothers had collaborated on the short film Lizard, which won the Grand Jury Prize at Sundance and was nominated for a BAFTA.

Mubi, which acquired the film ahead of its Cannes debut, is planning a theatrical release in North America and the United Kingdom. The Match Factory is handling international sales, with a possible Nigerian cinema release anticipated.