My Father's Shadow

In this semi-autobiographical tale set over the course of a single day during the 1993 Nigerian election crisis, two young brothers follow their estranged father through the massive city of Lagos, witnessing both the city's magnitude and their father's daily struggles as political unrest threatens their journey home. A beguiling, superbly shot coming-of-age tale centered on father-son bond, both subtle and emotionally powerful.

Brothers Akinola and Wale Davies have been, according to Akinola, creating with each other all of their lives in some capacity.Wale had the idea that would eventually become My Father’s Shadow, which was initially conceived as a short film and further developed into a feature length film. Trips to the Volta Region in Ghana saw them write together, by the river, a fictionalised story of their lives.

My Father’s Shadow contains all of that incomparable, organic bond between two brothers, especially as they go through a trying experience together. And when a filmmaker adopts so wholly, and with such love, the point of view of children, the resulting images cannot but take you in their arms. For the eyes of a child see everything and record everything as huge and important, potentially life changing. A truly beautiful film.

Introduced by producer Ed Guiney (Element Pictures).

This film is eligible for the Best New Irish Feature Award, proudly sponsored by the Irish Examiner.