Mami Wata

Dans le cadre de son partenariat avec le Ouaga Film Lab, le Groupe Ouest a accueilli au sein de son programme international LIM | Less is More le nigérian C.J. Obasi : c’est ainsi qu’en 2019, il est venu fouler les plages du pays Pagan.

Synopsis

L’harmonie d’un village est menacée par des éléments externes, deux sœurs doivent se battre pour sauver les leurs et rétablir la gloire de la déesse-sirène Mami Wata.

C.J. Obasi during LIM’s first workshop of the year 2019, held in Poland | © Robert Słuszniak

Intentions

Mami Wata is a popular West African folk tale. When the figure of Mami Wata struck me, I saw a sublime image of the goddess on the ocean shores, standing in all her glory and beauty as she calls for her long lost child. I saw this image in deeply contrasted monochrome, and knew exactly the story I wanted to tell!

I wanted to tell the story of a beautiful village.

I wanted to talk about a powerful Goddess, who gifted her daughter to the people.

I wanted to talk about destiny and human strength.

I want to make a kickass fantasy film about African spirituality grounded in universal themes, exploring genre through an ancient belief system, as well as subverting genre through that same belief system. African cinema has come a long way but we need to take it to the next level; in some ways, maybe create a new cinema. I believe we must do this through genre. And Mami Wata for me epitomizes this need to see a new kind of African cinema.