Jaden Thompson Nigerian producer Mo Abudu, CEO of EbonyLife Media, has been helping to share the stories of African people through film and television for years — but never one written by her own hand.
Until now, that is. Abudu made her screenwriting and directorial debut with the release of two short films honing in on mental health issues in Nigeria: “Her Perfect Life” and “Iyawo Mi” (“My Wife”).
Her films have recently toured the festival circuit with stops at the Martha’s Vineyard African American Film Festival, the HollyShorts Film Festival, the Rhode Island Film Festival and the Short Film Corner at the Cannes Film Festival. “These two stories are dealing with very, very sensitive issues in Nigerian society when it comes to mental health challenges,” Abudu tells Variety. “And this is a topic that we continue to underplay.
And there’s so much stigmatization attached to it within our society — not just Nigeria alone, but even around the world.” While “Her Perfect Life” tells the story of an affluent wife and mother suffering in silence underneath a flawless façade, “My Wife” follows a husband from an impoverished neighborhood desperately seeking help for his wife as she experiences unexpected hallucinations.
Read more on variety.com