Mami Wata (2023)
Director: C.J. 'Fiery' Obasi Run Time: 107 min. Rating: NR Release Year: 2023
Starring: Emeka Amakeze, Evelyne Ily Juhen, Kelechi Udegbe, Rita Edochie, Uzoamaka Aniunoh
Country: Nigeria, France, United Kingdom
Language: West African Pidgin with English subtitles
On Wednesday, October 25, join The Ohio State University’s Office of International Affairs and the Global Engagement team for a screening of Mami Wata (2023). Present your BuckID at the Ticket Center beginning at 6:30pm for complimentary admission. Learn more.
About the film:
Mami Wata (2023) had its World Premiere at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival where Lílis Soares won a Jury Prize for Cinematography. The film was selected as the official Tunisian entry for Best International Feature at the 96th Academy Awards and received a nomination for Best International Feature at the 2024 Independent Spirit Awards.
Mama Efe acts as the mediary between the people of Iyi and the powerful water deity, Mami Wata. When a young boy is lost to a virus, Efe’s daughter, Zinwe, and reluctant protege, Prisca, warn Efe about unrest among the villagers. The arrival of a mysterious rebel deserter threatens a clash of ideologies — opportunistic militants promise technological progress that threatens the matriarchal spiritual order of Iyi.
“From its opening title design to the last notes of Tunde Jegede’s score, Mami Wata is a work of art.”
—Katie Rife, IndieWire
About the filmmaker:
C.J. “Fiery” Obasi is a Nigerian film director, screenwriter, and editor. His previous films include Ojuju (2014), a zero-budget zombie thriller that won Best Nigerian Film at the 2014 Africa International Film Festival, and Hello, Rain (2018), an adaptation of Nnedi Okarafor’s short story, “Hello, Moto,” that premiered at Oberhausen, won a Jury Prize at the Fantasia Film Festival, and was nominated for a BFI Short Film Award. With the other members of the Nigerian new wave cinema collective Surreal16, Obasi wrote and directed the anthology film Juju Stories (2021), which won the Boccalino D’oro Award for Best Film at Locarno. His film Mami Wata (2023) premiered at Sundance Film Festival, where it won the Special Jury Prize in the World Dramatic Competition for cinematography.
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