In 2023, Mo Abudu made her directorial debut with two short films, Iyawo Mi and Her Perfect Life, under her new production banner, Mo Abudu Films. With Mo Abudu Films, she hopes to tell stories around more serious subject matters.
The two films premiered at the Oscar-qualifying Martha’s Vineyard African-American Film Festival and the out-of-competition Cannes Short Films Corner. Following these screenings, they had a brief theatrical release at EbonyLife Cinemas Lagos in October 2023 (though I missed seeing them due to their unexpected removal that day).
In November 2024, the films became available for purchase on Apple TV and were released on EbonyLife’s YouTube channel for a limited single-weekend period.
This is a recap of Nollywood Film Club’s 2nd discussion in November, where members discussed Iyawo Mi and Her Perfect Life. The conversation also touched on Nollywood fatigue—is it a genuine issue, and if so, how are we all dealing with it?
- Vanessa described the films as “shallow, empty, nothing burgers,” presented in a detached manner that left her questioning the point of it all. However, she praised Mo for casting Uzor Asimpka in a blink-and-you-miss-it role.
- Mrs C found both films unremarkable, noting they felt shallow and offered no message beyond “the rich also have depression.”
- Mr C theorised that Her Perfect Life was Mo’s main passion project, with Iyawo Mi added to appear more grounded. He criticised Her Perfect Life for its surface-level exploration of mental health and lack of characterisation but acknowledged the wasted potential of its strong production values.
- Halimah felt no reason to care for the characters in Her Perfect Life, again a lack of depth in characterisation
- Ekwere Reviews described the films as boring and felt they seemed like fragments of a feature film.
- Oyinkan expressed confusion and lingering questions after watching.
The session also touched on a broader question about Nollywood fatigue—whether it’s a real issue, the causes and possible solutions.
In a tongue-in-cheek moment, Oyinkan spares everyone and urges us all to get a life.
The discussion identified Nollywood fatigue as stemming from a lack of vision, ineffective monetisation structures, and films that often lack emotional depth or “soul.” This is worsened by binge fatigue from the overwhelming “content” available in today’s streaming era. We all open Netflix and endlessly scroll before closing the app or settling for another episode of Brooklyn 99 or The Office, right?
While some questioned if money is truly the issue, Oyinkan argued passionately for more investment. She stressed that proper funding could build structures to support smaller, unique films and help them reach their audiences.
My (not-so) key lesson: I am looking forward to the next project(s) under Mo Abudu Films. I want to confirm something.
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