After making history at Cannes earlier this year, Akinola Davies Jr.’s debut feature My Father’s Shadow is still on a roll. The Nigerian-British filmmaker’s intimate, politically charged drama has earned 12 nominations at the 2025 British Independent Film Awards (BIFA), the most for any film this year.
The nominations include Best British Independent Film, Best Director, Best Screenplay, Best Debut Director, Best Debut Screenwriter, Best Cinematography, Best Costume Design, Best Editing, Best Make-Up & Hair Design, Best Original Music, Best Production Design, and Best Sound; a full sweep that reflects just how deeply the film has resonated with audiences and critics alike.
Set in Lagos in 1993, My Father’s Shadow unfolds over the course of a single day, as two brothers accompany their estranged father through the chaos of the city during the annulled presidential election that reshaped Nigeria’s political history. Davies Jr. builds a story about family, identity, and loss that feels both deeply personal and universally human.
Davies Jr. has described the film as deeply personal, drawing from his own childhood and memories of losing his father. That intimacy shows it’s not hard to see why the film is getting so much love.
Earlier this year, My Father’s Shadow premiered at the Cannes Film Festival in the Un Certain Regard section, becoming the first Nigerian film ever selected for the official Cannes lineup. It later earned a Special Mention for the Caméra d’Or, cementing Davies Jr.’s place as one of the most exciting new voices in world cinema.
Now, with these 12 BIFA nominations, Davies Jr. is cementing himself as one of the most exciting new voices in global cinema. And honestly, it’s about time; he’s been building to this moment since his Sundance-winning short film Lizard back in 2021.
The 2025 British Independent Film Awards will take place in December, and whether or not My Father’s Shadow sweeps the night, it’s already done something special; it put a Nigerian story, told with care and craft, right at the center of world cinema.
