CJ Obasi is back in his creative space with a follow-up to the award-winning Mami Wata.
In an exclusive with the Los Angeles Times, the Nigerian filmmaker reveals details on what he has been up to since the debut of Mami Wata. Known for his diversity in the film industry, from being a screenwriter to directing and then editing, the world has been curious to know what's next with Obasi.
Obasi divulged being back to writing two scripts at once, describing it as something very strange from his previous method. " I’m working on two feature film scripts simultaneously. Which is completely new to me. I’ve always worked on one script after another", he said.
The two projects are titled La Pyramide and Mortuary Man. Explaining what the various stories entail, he said, "One is titled La Pyramide: A Celebration of Dark Bodies, and the other is titled Mortuary Man, a romance drama with a touch of the supernatural".
He further explained that "La Pyramide is an extension of what I did with "Mami Wata" but on a much larger canvas, and with colour" while Mortuary Man is an answer to his wife's request for him to write a romantic story.
Confirming the news in a post on Twitter, the director revealed the reactions he had received upon announcing the commencement of a romantic story. The post read, "Homies really tryna ‘horrify’ my romance project “Mortuary Man” y’all really don’t have faith in me? And here I was thinking y’all believed in me…Damn".
Obasi also attributed his constant travels for the international premieres of Mami Wata to having influenced the setting for one of his current titles. According to him, "I just came back from Brazil for the Latin American premiere of “Mami Wata,” but I stayed longer so I can get a feel of Salvador, where a third of “La Pyramide” is set".
Mami Wata, tells the story of a village that runs into chaos due to disagreements between its villagers and the water goddess.
The black and white African folklore has broken numerous records, gripping a lot of attention as it has attained great heights, which include receiving three awards at the 19th edition of the African Movie Awards (AMAA), being Nigeria's official submission for Oscars 2024, Award for Set Design at Pan-African Film & TV Festival of Ouagadougou (FESPACO) in 2023, amongst other things.