Meta’s WhatsApp Funds Its First Original Content: A Film From NBA Champion Giannis Antetokounmpo
variety.comTodd Spangler NY Digital Editor WhatApp, the popular messaging app owned by tech giant Meta, is bowing its first original entertainment project later this month — a short film featuring NBA star Giannis Antetokounmpo.
Antetokounmpo, born in Greece to Nigerian parents, was named the 2021 NBA All-Star MVP and led the Milwaukee Bucks to the NBA Finals title that year.
In the 12-minute film, titled “Naija Odyssey,” the pro basketballer “tells his origin story of many origins as he reconciles his roots, birthplace and sense of belonging between cross-cultural worlds,” according to WhatsApp’s description.
The athlete inked an endorsement deal with WhatsApp in February of this year. Narrated by Antetokounmpo and his mother, Veronica, “Naija Odyssey” is loosely based on the classic Greek epic poem “The Odyssey,” depicting different moments in his life. “In Greece, my teachers told stories of travelers battling the sea, fighting to find their way home — to find themselves,” Antetokounmpo says in the voiceover for the film’s trailer (watch below). “I was on that same journey.” “Naija Odyssey” is directed by filmmakers Nono Ayuso and Rodrigo Inada and edited by Mikkel E.G.
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