By Taiye Olayemi
Nigerian-British fantasy-horror film, “A Song From The Dark “, is set to premiere on Amazon Prime, July 12.
The Film Director, Ogo Okpue, during a virtual media briefing and preview of the movie said it was positioned to ingrain heroes and heroines of African traditional mysticism with similar audacity as western films.
Okpue, a United Kingdom-based award winning multidisciplinary designer and creative director who doubles as the scriptwriter, said the movie draws a lot of inspiration from the stories he heard as a child whenever he visited the village with his parents.
According to him, his late grandmother who was a traditionalist will always entertain him with series of stories each time he visited the village.
He said: “The inspiration of the story dates back to a certain period of my childhood when my family will visit my grandmother in our village.
“She happened to be a well-respected traditionalist. Tales of her would intrigue us and as I grew older, I regretted not knowing her more.
“She was an enigma and I wondered what it would have been like if some of her tales were captured in books. The world of African mysticism has not been explored enough in the world of cinema andmost times it is vilified.
“America has Superman and Ironman, the United Kingdom has James Bond and Harry Potter. Japan and China have Flying Swordsmen and mystical Ninjas, India has Tonnes. What do we have?
“I think in Africa, our superheroes have slept long enough, African stories are as diverse and as entertaining as the continent itself, so, I thought, ‘why not add more African heroes to the fictional world of cinema.”
Speaking on the choice of the cast and crew, Okpue described the team as brave, extremely intelligent and talented individuals for being able to interprete their roles well.
According to him, the film embraces suspense and drama like the great horror classics as non-horror fans will also have fun watching it.
“At the heart of it, it is a family drama and a cautionary tale with poignant social commentary.
“Its confident blend of drama and multilayered subtexts will leave viewers reaching for repeat viewing and days long post credit conversations.”
The cast is led by Vanessa Vanderpuye, Nse Ikpe-Etim, Wale Ojo, Vanessa, Sharon Oji, Alex Scrivens, Gracia Brown, Lola Wayne, Peace Oseyenum and Paul Coster, Dimeji Ewuoso and Yinka Awoni.
The synopsis reads: “After the mysterious death of her husband, a woman hires a reluctant spirit hunter to expel an evil spirit tormenting her family. Unknown to the spirit hunter, the family has a dark secret they have sworn to keep hidden at all costs.”(NAN) (nannews.ng)
