In 1993 a pivital election took place in Nigeria, with a promise of a new- found democracy that might end the years long military take- over of government and the leadership of General Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida. My Father’s Shadow follows Folarin, played by Ṣọpẹ́ Dìrísù (Gangs of London), through a chaotic day in Lagos as the election announcement approaches, and his hopes for change collide with more personal matters; late payments, old friends, romantic entanglements. He’s decided to bring his two sons along with him, unbeknownst to their mother, and with this being set in pre-mobile phone days, he needs to get them back home before night falls. The young boys are played movingly by brothers Godwin Egbo and Chibuike Marvellous Egbo, who are sure to become breakouts stars.
The longing that the boys have to know their father, and the weight of his presence and absence in their lives, in equal parts fascinating and terrifying and exciting and adoring, is wonderfully captured by a cinematography that often plays with a child’s viewpoint, and lets the the visuals linger and fully settle. The action deftly toys with notions of memory, and a strong sense of the formative images that are burnt into the brains of childhood.
As the streets become ‘hot’ as the election result is annulled, we watch powerful political and personal memories in the making.
Screening at Sydney Film Festival 2025
Premiered at Cannes Film Festival 2025
Directed by Akinola Davies Jr.
Screenplay by Wale Davies and
Akinola Davies Jr.
Produced by Rachel Dargavel and Funmbi Ogunbanwo
Director of Photography Jermaine Edwards
Editor Omar Guzmán Castro
Score by Duval Timothy and CJ Mirra
Starring Ṣọpẹ́ Dìrísù, Godwin Egbo and
Chibuike Marvellous Egbo
My Father’s Shadow just premiered at Cannes Film Festival, creating quite a stir as it is not only the first Nigerian film to be officially selected for Cannes, but as it also received a special mention – a Caméra d’Or Special Distinction.
After the screening at Sydney Film Festival, Akinola Davies Jr. told the audience that the two young boys had never acted before, “They had the weirdest self tapes I’ve ever seen, ” he said. “I knew these two weirdos needed to come back. I didn’t even realise they were brothers at first.”
He went on to say that the lead actor had taken the children under his wing during the shoot. “Ṣọpẹ́ was their father on screen and he really took on the role of being like their father off screen. Within three or four days the older boy Chibuike was like a technical actor – hitting all his marks perfectly.”
Davies Jr. said he went out of his way to make the set fun for not only the children, but also for the whole team. “I really want my collaborators to feel like they have a voice and a sense of ownership,” he said. “The best idea always wins.”
“I was a production assistant, a runner, a camera operator. I worked for my costume assistant on this film back in the day. I was a terrible assistant, but I tried my best,” he said. “I’ve worked in every role, so I’m quite protective of the crew. I like to spend time with them, I like to joke around, I like to tease. Because I think if people are enjoying what they do, it shows up in the work.”
