Bolanle Austen-Peters, the filmmaker, has revealed why she produced a biopic on Funmilayo Ransom Kuti.
Ransome-Kuti is the late foremost human rights activist and mother to Fela Kuti, the late Afrobeat icon.
At the movie screening on Thursday in Lagos, the 55-year-old film director said she created the film to douse the notion that Africans prefer comedy and thriller and are not interested in educative movies.
She also said she produced the film to enlighten the younger generation about history — specifically that of Ransome-Kuti.
“I feel like storytelling in Nigeria has been reduced to just comedy and thriller. There has also been suggestions that Africans do not really want to be educated and prefer certain types of movies only but I beg to differ,” she said.
“I think the beauty of the movie is that we have been able to debunk that notion for streamers and cinema houses because it is at the edge of being the biggest biopic that as opened in Nigeria’s history. It came out at the season where there is no holidays, a downtime and it is doing exceptionally well.
“We are beginning to bring in a different set of people into the cinemas; corporate people and people who will ordinary not visit the cinema because their needs are not addressed.
“We understand that we need to teach history because if people do not know where they are coming from, how will they know where they are going. It been a problem in Nigeria that we do not have role models and our children do not know the history.
“Also to let all of us know we are all agent of change. Wherever you fine yourself, whatever it’s you are doing, you can contribute to change in Nigeria.”
The biopic tells the story of Funmilayo; from her pioneering days as the first female student at Abeokuta Grammar School to her marriage to Israel Ransome-Kuti.
The family challenged oppression and created the Abeokuta Women’s Union, igniting a fierce battle against colonial and traditional rulers.
The biopic has won the ‘Best Overall Feature Film’ and the ‘Best Screenplay’ categories at the 2023 Africa International Film Festival (AFRIFF) Globe Awards.
It also snagged the ‘Best Writing’ at the 2024 AMVCA.
