These screenings (labelled collectively by Norman as “Screening Season”) took place across three weeks throughout October and November 2023. Before the Screening Season, the Documentary had already received notable support and promotion from leading media hubs in Africa, most notably Channels TV (Africa’s most awarded television station), Pulse (Nigeria), Starr103.5 FM (Ghana), GhOne TV (Ghana) and Metro TV (Ghana).
Norman Busigu is a British-Ugandan, award-winning (independent) Filmmaker, Media Broadcaster and published fashion Model. Norman is increasingly being recognised as “Africa’s Modern Storyteller” for his pioneering work in film/media across Africa.
This ground-breaking documentary chronicles Norman’s epic journey from London (UK) to Lagos (Nigeria) in July 2023 and critically examines the role of the youth of Nigeria – and more widely, in the diaspora – in shaping Nigeria’s future.
Despite the wide array of issues Nigeria faces at present (which are explored at length), Norman truly believes that Nigeria possesses the elements required to become a global superpower, with the youth being the key to unlocking Nigeria’s full potential. Norman thoroughly examines these topics through a series of interviews, thematic analysis and visiting key hotspots in Lagos to unpick what direction Nigerians feel and believe their country is going in, and the role of its youth.
Below are details of Norman’s incredible run of screening events:
1) The School of Oriental and African Studies University (17 October 2023)
This being one of the world’s leading institutions for the study of Africa, Norman wanted to make a strong statement by commencing his series of screenings here. The event was held in collaboration with their Student Union/Afro-Caribbean Society.
2) Queen Mary University London (21 October 2023)
Norman is a proud Alumni of this university; he wanted to return to share his messages from Africa, as his way of giving back to a community that gave so much to him.
3) The World Premiere Screening Event at the Lexi Cinema (28 October 2023)
This was the landmark screening event, taking place in North-West London, where Norman is from. Aside from the screening, the event included keynote speeches, a Q&A session with Norman Busigu, a vibrant visual art exhibition by British-Nigerian Photographer, Keleenna Onyeaka, and a stunning performance by British-Nigerian Musician/Artist, Kvngs. The event was hosted by veteran Presenter Anna-Marie ‘AMD’ Descartes.
4) Soho House, Paris (France) (4 November 2023)
This event marked Norman’s first international film screening – a significant milestone in his journey as a filmmaker. Norman was very well received by the large Parisian audience who attended, with a Q&A session that went on for over two hours after the documentary ended!
5) Soho House, White City (London, UK) (11 November 2023)
This final event brought things full circle for Norman, as this is the venue where he held his first-ever film screening event in June 2022 for his first Docu-Film on Ghana.
Norman intentionally started Screening Season in October, as this is Black History Month in the UK: a celebration of black excellence and black history. This perfectly aligns with the core of Norman’s work, which is an exploration of the past, present and future of Nigeria (and more widely, Africa), and its beaming potential.
Moving forward, Norman now truly hopes to take his film to bigger audiences globally through wider press coverage and exciting screening events around the world at cinemas, creative hubs and academic institutions.
In the long term, Norman has ambitions of travelling across Africa, and creating a series of high-value documentaries which highlight and showcase the beauty, stories, and truths within the continent. Norman has long felt that Western media tends not to portray Africa most favourably.
To combat this, Norman is creating entertaining, educational, and inspiring documentaries from a fresh, youthful and authentic perspective to help debunk and challenge existing negative stereotypes and preconceptions of Africa. Norman hopes that his Docu-Films will enable everyone to truly see the magic that exists in the Motherland, create a community of enthusiasts on these topics, and ultimately, encourage them to visit Africa.
The documentary was produced by Nigeria-based production company, The Milade Films, with Post-Production headed by DJ Reckyy/Lamarr Campbell (founder of Playback). The documentary also has an official partnership with Jendaya (a luxury E-commerce Platform for the global consumer) and boasts an original soundtrack supplied by British-Nigerian Artist, Kvngs.
This sophomore Docu-Film created by Norman significantly builds on the successes of his first one, “Ghana: Africa’s Exciting Entry Point?”, which critically examines the phenomenal rise of tourism in Ghana, and the contributing factors causing this prominent trend. Neither documentary has been publicly released as yet.
