Following the selection of To My Father With Love for the Women of the Lens Film Festival in the UK and her Best Actor nomination for the film, Nigerian actress and filmmaker Uzoamaka Onuoha is learning to pause and appreciate the milestone.
Speaking exclusively with The Nollywood Reporter, the writer, director and lead performer said she had to remind herself to acknowledge the achievement rather than quickly move on to the next thing.
Onuoha described the process of making the film, particularly post-production and festival submissions, as frightening. Her initial goal had been to translate an idea she felt deeply into a film, learn through the process and create something that reflected her vision.
“And then someone outside of me, a festival jury, watched it and decided that it was good enough for their festival. That alone is something I shouldn’t take lightly. But they didn’t only see the film; they saw my performance and felt something strongly enough to nominate me for Best Actor,” she said.
Although Onuoha has received acting recognition in Africa, this marks the first time a film she directed has crossed borders for festival selection. That distinction, she said, makes the achievement particularly meaningful.
“It feels like a different kind of milestone.”
Known for her performance in Clarence Peters’ Inside Life, Onuoha said the recognition reminds her that her creative work does not exist in isolation and that the stories she wants to tell can reach people beyond her immediate environment.
“That means a lot to me. And honestly, I think God has helped me get here. So I am trying to let myself actually receive this one. I don’t want to rush past it.”
The Title and Its Personal Connection
The title To My Father With Love might suggest a story about fatherhood, but Onuoha said the film deliberately departs from that expectation.
There is no father figure in the story. Instead, the film centres on the relationship between a mother and her son, exploring a complicated part of parenthood through the absence the title appears to invoke.
“There is an intentional dissonance to the title. I actually like the idea that an audience might finish the film, sit with that dissonance for a moment and ask themselves why I chose to call it To My Father With Love,” she said.
The title also has a personal connection to the filmmaker. Rather than spelling out the story for viewers, it reflects the emotional space she occupied when she wrote it.
The Journey to Making the Film
Onuoha said the film emerged from a writing process that began two years before its completion in 2024, including post-production. Reflecting on the time it took to make the project and how that affected the final result, she said there was no straightforward answer.
The film became possible, she explained, when she accepted the possibility of failure.
“I walked into the journey of making this film as prepared as I could be, but I was soon to discover that you can only be as prepared as you can be.”
She described the experience as a masterclass in filmmaking, requiring her to learn and apply lessons in real time that might otherwise have taken years to acquire through formal training.
“It was an education I was bluntly supposed to learn.”
Questions Without Easy Answers
For Onuoha, To My Father With Love brings together fragments of her personal experiences, childhood visual influences and the kinds of films she continues to appreciate as an audience member.
She said she did not set out to imitate existing work or make something pretentious. Instead, she followed her creative instincts while working with the people, resources and circumstances available to her.
“At the heart of the film is a complicated relationship between a mother and her son, and the ways love, resentment and pain can become entangled in a relationship. I was interested in that space where a person’s unresolved feelings about their own life can shape how they relate to someone they love,” she said.
Rather than provide definitive answers, Onuoha hopes the film leaves audiences with questions about the characters and their motivations.
Did the mother love her son? Did she hate him? Could she separate the child from everything his existence represented to her?
She deliberately leaves these questions unresolved because, in her view, life rarely provides neat answers to painful experiences or complicated relationships.
“So if someone leaves the hall still thinking about the film, filling in some of those blanks for themselves, then I think the film has done something I wanted it to do.”
The People Behind the Film
Onuoha said collaboration was central to completing the project. Although she took on several responsibilities, she relied on creatives who contributed their skills, time and support throughout the process.
She credited Alexander Mezue of A Brewstarz Film Production, producer Wapah Ezeigwe and editor Oluwashina, whom she said remained committed to the film during post-production.
“I literally started writing this script in his living room,” she said of Ezeigwe. She also praised her editor for helping her keep the project alive, regardless of the demands on his time.
Onuoha also acknowledged Jessy of Polytimos Management, Gbaye, Femi and Poposky, among others who contributed to the production.
Ultimately, she said the willingness of the cast and crew to work together, despite limited resources, made the film possible.
“Everyone brought their craft, commitment and generosity to the process, and I’m deeply grateful for how we were able to pull together, within the resources available to us, to make this film.”
