CANNES, France (AP) 鈥� Akinola Davies Jr. and his brother Wale were both toddlers when their father died. Many years later, they began thinking about an idea for movie: What if they had gotten to spend a day with him?
In 鈥淢y Father鈥檚 Shadow,鈥� which is playing in the Un Certain Regard section, the Davies brothers pay tribute to the father they hardly knew in a shattering father-son tale and one of the clear standouts of the festival.
The film, which premiered Sunday, was the culmination of more than a decade鈥檚 worth of wondering. Wale first sent Akinola a script 鈥� the first Wale had written and the first Akinola had read 鈥� in 2012.
鈥淲ith zero context, he sent it to me and I just had this real emotional reaction,鈥� Akinola Davies said in an interview. 鈥淚 actually cried when I read it because I had never conceived of the idea of spending a day with my father and what we would say to him and what he would be like.鈥�
鈥淢y Father鈥檚 Shadow,鈥� set over a single day in Lagos in 1993, is making history in Cannes. It鈥檚 the first Nigerian film in Cannes鈥� official selection, a milestone that Nigeria is celebrating. The country has But thanks to 鈥淢y Father鈥檚 Shadow,鈥� Nigeria set up its own national pavilion in Cannes鈥� international village this year.
鈥淚t means a lot to people back in Nigeria. It means we can exist on these platforms and our stories can exist in these spaces,鈥� said Davies. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a testament to talent that鈥檚 around in Nigeria. It鈥檚 a testament to the stories that are there. It鈥檚 a testament to the industry that鈥檚 flourishing.鈥�
鈥淢y Father鈥檚 Shadow,鈥� which Mubi acquired for North American distribution ahead of the festival, has connections to the United Kingdom, too, which is where Davies is based after growing up in Nigeria.
鈥淭he Nigerian press asks me a lot if the film is Nollywood or not Nollywood. I would say it is because all the technicians work in Nollywood,鈥� said Davies. 鈥淵ou can鈥檛 borrow people from that whole industry and say it鈥檚 not part of it.鈥�
鈥淢y Father鈥檚 Shadow,鈥� shot in Lagos, also gets a tremendous amount of its texture and atmosphere from Nigeria. 鈥淧oint a camera at anything in Lagos, and it鈥檚 so cinematic,鈥� Davies says.
鈥淚 have this real sense of romance for Nigeria,鈥� he adds. 鈥淓veryone鈥檚 like, 鈥業t鈥檚 super chaotic,鈥� but for me it鈥檚 actually very still. Just driving around in the car feels really cinematic to me. I just take pictures of people all the time.鈥�
鈥淕angs of London鈥� actor plays the father, Folarin. At the family鈥檚 home outside Lagos, the boys (Chibuike Marvellous Egbo and Godwin Egbo) return home to unexpectedly find him there. They hardly ever see him 鈥� he works in Lagos 鈥� but Folarin takes them along on a trip in the city that will be revelatory for the boys.
To make the fictional version of their father, the Davies brothers had to try to remember what they could (Akinola was 20 months when his father died; Wale was 4 years old), listen to stories and weed out their imagined memories. Their father rapidly developed epilepsy and died during a seizure, lying in bed next to their mother. Akinola is named after him.
鈥淚t鈥檚 kind of the confluence of memory, dream and hearsay,鈥� Davies says. 鈥淗ow do you work through all of that to create a portrait?鈥�
鈥淢y Father鈥檚 Shadow鈥� is set on a pivotal day for Nigeria, when Gen. Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida, who took power in a coup, refuses to accept the results of a democratic election. On this day, not just the conjured memory of the Davies鈥� father but the dreams of a nation are put on hold.
鈥淢y Father鈥檚 Shadow,鈥� though, represents His first feature, following the brothers鈥� BAFTA-nominated short 鈥淟izard,鈥� confirms Davies as a major up-and-coming director. More than that, though, 鈥淢y Father鈥檚 Shadow鈥� is deeply cathartic for him.
鈥淏eing the age I am, I鈥檝e done my grieving,鈥� Davies says. 鈥淏ut just before we shot, I realized I was still grieving. Our prep started about a week after the anniversary of my dad鈥檚 passing. Every year, my mum calls me or texts me. I took my brother to his grave, put flowers down and made kind of a ceremony out of it.鈥�
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Jake Coyle has covered the Cannes Film Festival since 2012. He鈥檚 seeing approximately 40 films at this year鈥檚 festival and
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For more on the 2025 Cannes Film Festival, visit .
Jake Coyle, The Associated Press
