Emmy-winning filmmaker and director Joel Kachi on Saturday premiered his documentary Mothers of Chibok at IMax cinema in Lekki, Lagos.
Among those present at the event were Stella Damasus, Tosin Adeyemi, Shawn Faqua, Cobhams and Ade Bantu.
Speaking to QED.ng at the premiere, Joel said the film was created to present a fuller picture of the women whose daughters were abducted in 2014.
“For me, the story of Chibok is a story of resilience, it’s a story of strength and defiance in the face of great terror. And I think that it was important to show that side of the mothers. We think we know them because you know, we know their pain and we know their tragedy. But you know, I’ve always said that there’s more to them than that. And they cannot be reduced to that headline. They cannot be reduced to that singular frame, you know.
“And so yeah, after spending so much time with them and really seeing the 360 degree of their lives. I decided it was time to make a story that presents them the complete picture of them.”
Reflecting on the production process, he described the emotional weight of working closely with the women.
“I mean, making a film like this is tough because you’re constantly confronted with the grief. You’re confronted with— there are certain aspects of their lives that, you know, just really breaks you. But you power through it, you push through it because you can see that the women are also pushing through it. You know, they find moments of laughter, they find moments of joy and they enjoy it. They love their kids and they enjoy family, you know, and all of that. So it inspires you to be like, you know what, like, I mean, I can’t, I can’t be crying more than the bereaved. So I’ll do my part in ensuring that this story is told honestly and with dignity.”
When asked if he believes the missing girls can still be found, he said hope remains strong among the mothers.
“The one thing that I see in these women, these mothers, is an undying, unquenching hope and faith. And when I see that, I’m inspired to continue to have hope and faith.”
Joel also shared how his relationship with the Chibok community began in 2018.
“The first time I went to Chibok was 2018, when I mae my first film there called Daughters of Chibok, which was a virtual reality experience that explored the grief of a mother. I presented it as an immersive experience. But what happened was that after making that film, I started to spend more time with them. And the more I spend time with the community and the women, the more I realized that, okay, there are other aspects of their lives, of their story, that hasn’t been told. And I made a commitment that I was gonna find the time and find the right opportunity to go back. I couldn’t go back until 2021. And then, yeah, so I think May 2021 was when I started filming. And I filmed for about two and a half years making this film. For me, I thought it was really, really important because, like I said, there are very many aspects of their lives that I could see that really, really inspired me. These women have not stopped sending their kids to school in spite of the constant threat to education. They continue to find moments that they can, you know, be joyful and happy and positive. And, you know, I think that that’s an important part of their story that needs to be shared as well. But also, you know, through this film, we’ve been able to collaborate with them and take the film beyond the screen into, like, impact, you know, on the ground impact. So on their farms, we’ve been collaborating with them and supporting them in finding ways that they can increase their harvest, but beyond that, how they can extract even more value from their harvest. So today, you know, we’re also unveiling, like, a Mothers of Chibok brand where, you know, we’re using their groundnuts that they farmed in Chibok to make things like peanut butter, you know, chocolate, and whatnot. And for me, it’s really, it boils back to their desire for education. In Chibok, farming funds education. And if we can continue to support them and figure out ways for them to continue to do the work on their farms, you know, they will continue to have the means to educate their children. And that’s how they fight back.”
On whether he feels he has told the women’s stories fully, he said:
“I think I’ve done my bit. Somebody advised me a long time ago that there is no definitive film. I didn’t try to make one. I just tried to tell my own version. There are many other stories to be told. There are stories of the kids who have come back. There are other stories to be told, but I chose to dwell on this one. Maybe the next filmmaker will find another angle.”
Mothers of Chibok follows four Nigerian mothers as they continue efforts to educate their children years after the abduction of 276 schoolgirls by Boko Haram from Government Girls Secondary School, Chibok, Borno State, in April 2014. The incident sparked global outrage and the Bring Back Our Girls campaign.
The documentary is executive produced by veteran actress Joke Silva. The film forms part of activities marking ten years since the abduction. While some of the girls have been rescued or released over the years, others remain missing.
