Ebube Nwani and Stephanie Ugbeye, lead actors in Prosper Light’s short film ZOE, have reflected on the emotional demands of interpreting characters shaped by grief, love, and the realities of sickle cell disease.
Speaking with The Nollywood Reporter (TNR) during the film’s recent premiere, Nwani explained that despite disliking vulnerability, he connected deeply with the tenderness required to portray Mr Benjamin, Zoe’s father.
“I have been with lots of babies. I had been in a relationship with a lady who had sickle cell. I have been in the hospital with her so I understood those moments and I carried the emotions,” he says.
Nwani, who also works as a Master of Ceremony, adds that he approached the role with the understanding that men are often expected to carry the emotional weight of the family while remaining strong for their partners.
For Ugbeye, the connection to the story was immediate because of her personal experiences with sickle cell warriors.
“When I read the script, I had an instant connection to it. What was going on in my mind when I read the script is that it is so much more than acting,” she notes.
The actress says interpreting her role went beyond performance and became an exercise in collaborative storytelling aimed at connecting emotionally with audiences.
While speaking about the film, Ugbeye recalled losing a cousin she considered a sister to sickle cell disease in 2017. “She was just 27 years old,” she says.
She also reflected on her earliest encounter with the condition at about eight years old through her childhood best friend, OT.
“His name is OT. He was the only child of his parents, who were both doctors. So imagine the pain they went through knowing they couldn’t save their child. OT was my best friend but I was too young to understand the grief,” Ugbeye narrates.
According to her, those experiences later pushed her to learn more about sickle cell disease and the realities faced by warriors and their families.
Nwani believes the film also highlights how love is often tested most during painful moments.
“It’s not really what you see in fancy dinners. Love is what you see when you go to a hospital and you know who really is there for you,” he says.
Both actors also reflected on some of the production challenges they faced during filming, including environmental distractions, noise interruptions, repeated takes, and schedule changes. Despite this, they credited the crew’s professionalism and collaborative spirit for helping the production move forward.
“Due to filmmaking challenges we had to film into the early hours of the morning which made it longer than the average duration we were supposed to shoot,” Ugbeye notes.
In ZOE, Nwani and Ugbeye play a couple warned by a doctor about the possibility of having a child with sickle cell disease. Despite the warnings, they choose to keep the pregnancy.
Responding to whether the couple’s decision could be viewed as selfish, Nwani says the interpretation depends on perspective.
“There’s this attachment that comes when you have a child. As soon as that attachment comes in, there’s just a different mentality. At that point, they were already attached to the child and they were afraid,” he shares.
He adds that the couple ultimately chose hope despite the uncertainty.
“That’s what I believe a lot of parents of sickle cell warriors think. They know but just want to take their chances.”
