Nigerian filmmaker Joy Gharoro-Akpojotor’s directorial debut, Dreamers, has been chosen by the BFI London Film Festival Works-in-Progress Showcase. It is one of nine feature films and documentaries selected for the event’s fifth edition. All nine projects will be presented on October 12.
The story follows an undocumented woman working in the UK, who gets detained at the Hatchworth Removal Centre and stars Ronkę Adékoluęjo, Ann Akinjirin, Diana Yekinni, and Aiysha Hart. Quiddity Films is credited as producer.
“The BFI London Film Festival Works-in-Progress showcase offers an energising forum for creative discovery and connecting filmmakers with sales agents, distributors and festival programmers,” BFI London Film Festival Director, Kristy Matheson said. “We are delighted to welcome each of the filmmaking teams to the festival and thank them for generously sharing
these exciting projects with UK and international colleagues.”
Other selected films are Be Of Good Behaviour by Giulio Gobbetti and Jan Stöckel, Chicken Town by Richard Bracewell, Don’t Say Gay by Sarah Elizabeth Drummond, Everybody To Kenmure Street by Felipe Bustos Sierra, Night Gardener by Daniel Gough, On A Winter Night by Liam Calvert, Spilt Milk directed by Brian Durnin, and Two Neighbours by Ondine Vinao.
Dreamers is not the first project by a filmmaker of Nigerian descent to be featured in the showcase. Adura Onashile’s Girl was in the 2022 line-up. It premiered at the Sundance Film Festival last year.
Gharoro-Akpojotor’s previous work includes producing Blue Story and Boxing Day. Her short film For Love premiered at the BFI London Film Festival and earned a Best Short Film nomination.
The film garnered further recognition with nominations at SXSW (2022) and won an Honorable Mention in the Best Short Film category at the BlackStar Film Festival. In 2020, she was named a Screen International Star of Tomorrow and a BAFTA Breakthrough talent.
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