“My Father’s Shadow” Made Nigerian Cinema Proud At The Cannes Film Festival – Musawa

Minister of Art, Culture, and the Creative Economy, Hannatu Musawa, has come out to celebrate the historic achievement of “My Father’s Shadow,” the first Nigerian movie to be officially selected for screening at the Cannes Film Festival.

Directed by Akinola Davies Jr. and based on a screenplay by his brother, Wale Davies, the Nollywood movie was recently screened in the Un Certain Regard section of the festival.

According to her, she is proud to have witnessed the groundbreaking moment for Nigerian cinema, and she actually attended the screening not just as a Minister, but as a big fan of beautiful Nigerian stories.

Musawa added that “My Father’s Shadow” deserves to be celebrated for proving that the voices of Nigerian storytellers also matter in the global stage.

Her words, “One of the most special moments was celebrating My Father’s Shadow, the first Nigerian film to be officially selected at the Cannes Film Festival. I joined the amazing team at their screening, standing with them not just as a Minister, but as someone who deeply believes in the power of our stories.

This wasn’t just about one film. It was a moment for Nigerian cinema and for the entire creative industry back home. It showed the world that our voices matter and that they’re being heard.

The Pavilion exists to open doors. To put a spotlight on our talent. And to remind the world that Nigeria isn’t just participating, we’re creating, leading, and redefining the narrative.”

WOW.

Nollywood is a sobriquet that originally referred to the Nigerian film industry. The origin of the term dates back to the early 2000s, traced to an article in The New York Times. Due to the history of evolving meanings and contexts, there is no clear or agreed-upon definition for the term, which has made it a subject to several controversies.

The origin of the term “Nollywood” remains unclear; Jonathan Haynes traced the earliest usage of the word to a 2002 article by Matt Steinglass in the New York Times, where it was used to describe Nigerian cinema.

Charles Igwe noted that Norimitsu Onishi also used the name in a September 2002 article he wrote for the New York Times. The term continues to be used in the media to refer to the Nigerian film industry, with its definition later assumed to be a portmanteau of the words “Nigeria” and “Hollywood”, the American major film hub.

Film-making in Nigeria is divided largely along regional, and marginally ethnic and religious lines. Thus, there are distinct film industries – each seeking to portray the concern of the particular section and ethnicity it represents. However, there is the English-language film industry which is a melting pot for filmmaking and filmmakers from most of the regional industries.