Movies
Omotola Jalade‑Ekeinde Makes Her Directorial Debut in “Mother’s Love”
After more than 30 years as one of Nollywood’s busiest and most influential performers, Omotola Jalade‑Ekeinde is moving into a new phase of her career, behind the camera. Her first feature as a director, Mother’s Love, premiered at the 50th Toronto International Film Festival in September 2025, marking a rare moment where a Nigerian film from an established star has taken its first steps on a major international stage.
The decision to direct was not accidental. For years Omotola has been vocal about the kinds of stories she feels Nollywood underexplores. In interviews ahead of the film’s release, she pointed to a lack of authentic portrayals of mother‑daughter relationships in Nigerian cinema, a gap she was determined to fill. Her comments underline how personal the project is: she talked about her own experiences with parenting and discipline, and how that shaped her understanding of love and expectation.

Photo Credit – Google
Mother’s Love is anchored in the relationship between a young woman and her mother, set against the backdrop of class divides and social pressures. The story follows Adebisi, a sheltered daughter from an affluent background who enters the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC), a rite of passage for many Nigerian graduates. Removed from her familiar environment, she begins to see the world, and herself, differently. What starts as a coming‑of‑age arc becomes more complex as the narrative shifts to the mother’s own hidden wounds, grief, and the emotional cost of protection.
The cast blends familiar and rising Nigerian talent. Omotola herself appears in the film alongside actors such as Ifeanyi Kalu, Noray Nehita, Lilian Afegbai, Nosa Rex, and Olumide Oworu.

Photo Credit – Google
Critics and industry professionals at TIFF praised the film’s maturity and emotional reach. Filmmaker Obi Emelonye described it as a debut “that deserves to be studied at Harvard,” reflecting the respect the project garnered from peers as well as audiences at the festival’s Lightbox screening.
Mother’s Love was shot in English and Pidgin English, a choice Omotola said was deliberate, a reflection of lived speech patterns and cultural nuance. The production took place largely in Nigeria, and the story’s texture highlights everyday realities rather than glossing them over.

Photo Credit – Google
Omotola’s path into directing was influenced by her recent foray into digital production. A short YouTube project encouraged by fellow filmmaker Ruth Kadiri opened a new creative door, giving her the confidence to try a bigger narrative project. She has described how that initial experience helped crystallise the idea for Mother’s Love, a film she initially feared might not be taken seriously.
Strategically, Mother’s Love is positioned to extend its impact beyond its festival debut. After TIFF, the film continued to other events such as the Silicon Valley African Film Festival, building buzz ahead of its planned nationwide release in Nigeria on March 6, 2026.

Photo Credit – Google
Omotola’s transition into directing is not just a career pivot, it is part of a broader conversation about Nigerian storytelling, representation, and the kinds of narratives that resonate both locally and globally. By choosing a story rooted in familial complexity and emotional honesty, avoiding stereotypes and simplistic sentiment, she is staking a claim that Nollywood can evolve into more nuanced, textured filmmaking without losing its cultural specificity.
Mother’s Love arrives at a moment when Nigerian cinema is at an inflection point, increasingly present at international festivals and engaging with diverse audiences. For Omotola, it’s both an artistic milestone and a statement: the industry’s most familiar faces can also be its most thoughtful storytellers.
Lifestyle
The Nigerian It Girls of YouTube.
There’s a new wave quietly dominating Nigerian YouTube mostly in lifestyle content. The Nigerian IT Girls of YouTube are known for their realistic style, personality, consistency and how they present their everyday lives in a way that feels natural and relatable.
Some of these IT Girls include;
Diana Eneje

Photo: Instagram
Diana is often one of the leading examples when people talk about Nigerian IT Girls. She has mastered the art of making everything look effortless and real, and built a movie-like world that feels aspirational and endlessly watched. She began her career as a teen model in 2016. She is a prominent figure in Nigerian influencer culture.
Frances Theodore

Photo: Instagram
Frances Theodore a Nigerian digital creator and influencer is also part of this new wave of creators. She began to gain public attention as a content creator around the late 2010s, where she started consistently posting lifestyle and fashion content. She stands out as a modern influencer, her blend of ambition and authenticity makes her the kind of creator people aspire.
Amy Okoli

Photo: Instagram
Amy Okoli is a Nigerian lifestyle content creator, model and a social media influencer known for her exceptional vlogs and lifestyle beauty contents. Her journey began in 2018, when she officially launched her YouTube channel and started posting lifestyle vlogs consistently. She has grown to be one of the established Gen Z influencers.
Danielle Diana Dubem

Photo: Instagram
Danielle Diana Dubem popularly known as D3 is a Lagos-based lifestyle content creator. Her content usually includes lifestyle vlogs, fashion and beauty, storytelling and more. She began her journey in 2020, when she started posting consistently and building her personal brand. She is also heavily involved in editing and direction of her own content, which makes her content feel effortless.
Lucy Benson

Photo: Instagram
Lucy Benson a Nigerian fashion and lifestyle content creator built the space around her self-growth in a way that feels structured, honest, and deeply personal. She began to gain attention during the early 2020s when social media platforms like tiktok and instagram reels started becoming the main discovery platforms for new Nigerian influencers. She is now known for her visually driven fashion content.
Kamsi Nnamani

Photo: Instagram
Kamsi Nnamani is a Nigerian YouTube, fashion, and lifestyle content creator, known for her peaceful, aesthetic, and intentional living. She began her YouTube journey in the mid 2010s when she started with beauty and makeup related content before evolving into full lifestyle vlogging. Her content blends soft living with structure making her one of the creators people learn from.
One unique thing about this wave is how close creators feel to their audience, comment sections now often feel like conversations.
The Nigerian IT Girls are not trying to fit into an international standard from outside the country rather, they are focused on building their own version which reflects their environment, personality and everyday reality making it relatable to audiences.
Fashion
Nike and Slawn Unveils Nigeria’s 2026 World Cup Collection.
Nike and Slawn a Nigerian-born, London-based artist have officially unveiled their collaborative Nigeria-inspired collection linked to Nike’s 2026 football campaign on 26 of May, 2026.
The partnership, which merges sport, fashion, and street culture, has already sparked online for its unique design and strong representation of the Nigerian identity.

Photo: Instagram
Slawn, known for his creative style, graffiti-inspired graphics to the collection, moving beyond the traditional jersey concept making Nigeria’s cultural identity blend with streetwear aesthetics. The piece featured hand-drawn artistic combination of green, black and white colourways with spray paint, and large ‘NAIJA’ branding.
The collection includes various fashion piece such as jerseys, hoodies, T-shirts and jackets all carrying unique artistic designs that differentiate them from traditional football merchandise. One unique feature is the bold NAIJA branding.

Photo: Instagram
What makes the unveiling even more significant is the lineup of famous Nigerian personalities featured in the campaign, including Jay-Jay Okocha, Patience Ozokwo, Samuel Chukwueze and Tolu Arokodare.
Beyond football, the collaboration highlights how sportswear continues to intersect with art and entertainment. Rather than presenting football only as a sport, Nike and Slawn’s collaboration is aligned with celebrating the country’s creativity, street energy and global cultural relevance.

Photo: Instagram
Many fans have linked the collection to the 2026 FIFA World Cup. However, it is important to note that the collaboration is a special lifestyle collection and not Nigeria’s official World Cup kit.
Movies
5 Nollywood and African Films to Watch Before May Ends
If your watchlist has been dry lately, this is a good time to pay attention to what Nollywood and African cinema have been putting out. Beyond the loud blockbusters and trending titles online, there are films carrying strong performances, emotional storytelling, and characters that actually stay with you after the screen goes off.
Here are five Nollywood and African films worth watching before May ends.
1. Call Of My Life
Produced by Adesanya Damilola, this romantic drama stars Beverly Osu, Zubby Michael, Patience Ozokwor, Nkem Owoh, and Uzoamaka Power. The film follows Soluchi, a young woman trying to heal from heartbreak after being abandoned by someone she deeply loved. Things begin to shift after an unexpected phone call connects her to a new person who slowly changes her perspective on love and second chances.
What makes the film stand out is how grounded it feels. It does not try too hard to be dramatic. The emotions are simple, relatable, and believable.
2. The Boy Who Gave
Directed and produced by Allison Precious Emmanuel, this film stars Allison Precious Emmanuel himself alongside Blossom Chukwujekwu and Tina Mba. The story centers on Idah, a young man forced to raise his siblings after losing both parents.
This is one of those films that quietly hits hard. It focuses on sacrifice, survival, and family responsibility without turning the story into emotional manipulation. The performances carry the weight of the film, especially in scenes showing the pressure of growing up too quickly.
3. The Fisherman
Directed by Zoey Martinson and produced by Luu Vision Media, the film stars Ricky Adelayitar, Endurance Dedzo, and William Lamptey. The story follows a retired Ghanaian fisherman whose life changes after he finds himself on an unusual journey involving a talking fish and a dream of owning a boat.
As strange as that sounds, the film works because it fully embraces its style. It blends humor, fantasy, and real-life struggles in a way that feels fresh for African cinema. The cultural setting also gives the film a strong identity instead of making it feel generic.
4. The return of Arinzo
Produced by Iyabo Ojo with a powerful line of casts: Funke Akidele, Scarlet Gomez, and Mercy Aigbe. The film is a thriller, and crime. A tale of vengeance. It follows the story of a rising actor who returned home with his fiancée to support his father’s presidential campaign. Their return sparks a brutal, 17-year-old scandal tied to a political figure, forcing buried secrets, betrayal, and the truth behind Arinzo’s death into the open.
5. This Is Not A Nollywood Movie
Directed by Wale Ojo and starring Chidi Mokeme and Bimbo Akintola, this film takes a different route by poking at the industry itself while still telling an entertaining story.
Okechukwu Nwadibe, a washed-up director from Nnewi, dreams he’s won an Oscar and decides it’s a sign. With his ever-loyal friend Pius Godloves You, he heads to Lagos for a chaotic comeback. One bad decision leads to another until a shady loan from a gangster changes everything.
It is self-aware, funny in parts, and surprisingly reflective about fame, filmmaking, and the pressure behind the scenes.
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