Akinola Davies Jr.’s award-winning and critically acclaimed debut feature MY FATHER’S SHADOW opened theatrically throughout the UK, Ireland, and Italy on Friday, February 6th.
To celebrate the occasion, a special screening took place on Friday night at the Everyman Cinema’s London landmark venue, Everyman at The Whiteley, with special guests in attendance that included: actor Tosin Cole and Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story’s India Amarteifio; designers Mowalola, Bianca Saunders, and Torishéju Dumi; musicians Pa Salieu and Obongjayar; presenters Zeze Millz and Julie Adenuga, music executive Muyiwa Awoniyi, On Becoming A Guinea Fowl’s Susan Chardy, cinematographer Bradford Young, and photographer Misan Harrima,n amongst other cherished guests.
Following the screening, a smaller group was whisked away to London’s Somerset House for an exclusive private family dinner and celebration at The Future Plate, which currently has a residency at the popular multidisciplinary cultural venue.
The Future Plate: House of African & Caribbean Cuisine & Culture is a collection of the leading Black chefs of our time, culture carriers, and makers of change. United by their mission to make African and Caribbean Cuisine known for its quality, skill, passion, and execution, The Future Plate has taken ownership of a 1059 sq ft kitchen that serves as their hub, a space for creative exploration, collaboration, a test kitchen, and their academy.
The intimate dinner, co-hosted by Africa No Filter, Ebele Okobi (Revolutionary Projects), and Kojo Boakye, welcomed Akinola Davies Jr., Wale Davies, Funmbi Ogunbanwo and guests such as photographer Lakin Ogunbanwo, writer, broadcaster, and curator Ekow Eshun, film producer and BFI executive Ama Ampadu, MY FATHER’S SHADOW costume designer P.C. Williams, architect and artist Farouk Agoro, The British Blacklist’s Akua Gyamfi and We Are Parable’s Anthony and Teanne Andrews, amongst others, who dined on a specially curated menu for the evening.
Finally, on Saturday night, the Tate Modern’s South Tank was the setting for a stunning shared experience between the audience, the performers, and the screen, as MY FATHER’S SHADOW was presented with live score accompaniment performed by the creators CJ Mirra and Duval Timothy, joined by special guests. The evening started with an introduction by Akinola Davies Jr., with Wale Davies, producers Funmbi Ogunbanwo and Rachel Dargavel, and editor Omar Guzmán Castro in attendance representing the film. The event, celebrating the UK theatrical release of MY FATHER’S SHADOW, was also associated with the Tate’s Nigerian Modernism exhibition, exploring the artists who revolutionised modern art in Nigeria in the mid-20th century, and which remains on through May 10, 2026.
