Thoughts on My Father's Shadow

My Father's Shadow made history at the Cannes Film Festival last year when it became the first Nigerian film to be selected for the festival's Official Selection, in addition to being picked for Caméra d'Or Special Mention. The critically acclaimed film has since gone on to pick up several more awards and most recently has been nominated for a BAFTA in the Outstanding Debut category. Yesterday, we got the opportunity to attend a We Are Parable preview screening of the film before it arrives in cinemas next week.

Directed by South London’s own Akinola Davies Jr, his debut feature film follows two young boys spending the day with their father in Lagos. The semi-autobiographical My Father’s Shadow is set against the backdrop of national collapse. Our main trio, played by Sopé Dirísù and brothers Godwin and Marvellous Egbo, are the centre of this crushing story.

June 12th, now remembered in Nigeria as Democracy Day, refers to the 1993 presidential election, which was meant to close a long chapter of military rule and usher in the promise of democracy. MKO Abiola emerged as the clear winner, but this promise was abruptly withdrawn when the military government annulled the results. No valid justification was offered to the Nigerian public to placate the scale of the betrayal.

What followed was not just a political crisis but severe disruption to daily life. The streets filled with soldiers, and many protestors suffered brutality from the military. The state’s decision to silence the collective choice meant ordinary people became collateral. By grounding this familial tale in a single day, shaped by hope and the loss of hope, the emotional atmosphere was heightened.

Beyond its political and emotional weight, My Father’s Shadow was simply a beautiful film to watch. Its art-house style is unforced, and upon attending the Q&A with the film's producer and director, we gained a deeper understanding of their motivations in making it. My Father’s Shadow understands that everything costs something. Our favourite quote from the father, Folarin: “Everything is sacrifice; we just pray we don’t sacrifice the wrong things.”

“Everything is sacrifice; we just pray we don’t sacrifice the wrong things.”

Set within what Wale Davies called a “gift of a day”, the story unfolds with the tension of someone still here but already moved onto another plane. Themes of memories and dreams mean the film had a gentle supernatural feel. Wale Davies reflected, during the panel, on the idea that our definitions of concepts such as spirituality, masculinity and fatherhood have been narrowed by colonisation. A limiter placed within African cinema. We were pleased to hear a comparison from Akinola Davies Jr to Sembène’s thoughts on Atlantique, another of our favourite experimental films. Atlantique similarly plays with half-remembered stories and shadow drifts. We finish both films with unresolved questions; both quietly devastating.

Shot on 16mm, the film favours faces over spectacle, with intentional composition out of the sheer fact that the team had so few takes available. So precise and tactile, every frame feels considered and alive to touch. We see the beautiful city of Lagos through a child’s curious eyes. The insects, heat and proximity, over the tired post-colonial shots of hustle or urban chaos. With the directorial direction rooted in patience, the shots get the chance to breathe. Faces of Lagosians are held on the screen long enough that we see them soften. This meant for us that as uncertainty presses in and tensions rise, the film remains oddly comforting. For us, a reminder that tenderness itself can be a political statement.

We would say this is a ghost story without ghosts, where the absence of a father weighs just as heavily as his presence.

My Father’s Shadow is in cinemas from February 6th.

Written by: Bridget Eke