The filmmaker joins Sopé Dìrísù and Wunmi Mosaku among nominees as Nigerian talents continue to gain global recognition.
Akinola Davies Jr Earns Gotham Breakthrough Director Nomination for “My Father’s Shadow”
Akinola Davies Jr, the Nigerian-British filmmaker behind My Father’s Shadow, has been nominated for Breakthrough Director at the 2025 Gotham Awards, further cementing the film’s international success.
The film, which recently represented the United Kingdom as its official entry for the 98th Academy Awards, also earned Sopé Dìrísù a nomination in the Outstanding Lead Performance category.
Joining the list of honorees is Wunmi Mosaku, who received a solo nomination for Outstanding Supporting Performance in Ryan Coogler’s Sinners.
The Gotham Awards, one of the key indicators of the U.S. independent film season will be held on December 1 at Cipriani Wall Street in New York City.
Other notable contenders this year include Thomas Anderson’s One Battle After Another and Mary Bronstein’s If I Had Legs I’d Kick You, while Jafar Panahi’s It Was Just an Accident and Park Chan-wook’s No Other Choice lead in the international feature categories.
Distributed by Mubi, My Father’s Shadow continues to receive critical acclaim worldwide, recently winning the Grand Jury Prize at Kenya’s NBO Film Festival.