Mami Wata premiere screening + Director Q&A

Black to the Future's premiere screening on Sunday 19 November will be introduced by director C J “Fiery” Obasi, with a Q&A facilitated by BttF founder Irenosen Okojie.

This genre-bending tale brings to life a futuristic fable that fuses spiritual beliefs with inter-generational tensions. Set in the matriarchal ocean village of Iyi, where West African water deity, Mami Wata, reigns via village leader Mama Efe it uniquely brings to the screen a story of mythology, fantasy, and folklore. When the harmony of the village is threatened, two sisters must fight to restore order, as traditions of the past crash with calls from the future.

This is the third feature from director C.J. ‘Fiery’ Obasi, who represents a new wave of Nigerian filmmakers. The film is vividly shot in black-and-white and accompanied by an incredible oceanic soundscape and hypnotic score to frame its fantasy-fable. It won the Sundance Film Festival: World Cinema Cinematography Award (Dramatic) and the African Critics Award, Cinematography Award, and Set Design Award at FESPACO in 2023.

In partnership with the Royal Society of Literature

Produced alongside the film is a limited-edition zine, featuring an extract from a short story by Irenosen Okojie, and new commissions in response to Mami Wata by RSL Fellows Fred D’Aguiar, Leone Ross and Kiran Millwood Hargrave.