Flix Oven has launched an African and Korean filmmaker residency program and named “Mami Wata” director CJ Obasi as its inaugural fellow, the company announced at the Cannes Film Market.
The Seoul-based company has partnered with Continental Entertainment, an African-focused expression and production company founded by Oji Menakaya, to bring African filmmakers to South Korea for extended training in script development.
Obasi will be in Seoul for a month to work on his new work, which is said to be a story that connects African and Korean cultures, and is scheduled to be released in theaters. Morgan Freeman and Lori McCreary will serve as executive producers through their Revelations Entertainment banner.
Obasi’s Mami Wata premiered at Sundance in 2023, was nominated for an Independent Spirit Award, and was chosen to represent Nigeria at the 96th Academy Awards. Variety’s review of the film from Sundance said, “Shot in dense, high-contrast black and white, writer-director CJ ‘Fiery’ Obasi’s ‘Mami Wata’ unfolds like a mystical dream. Enigmatic and hypnotic, narratively opaque yet unforgettable, the story delivers an unforgettable image. Billed as ‘West African folklore,’ this story might be taken as a direct allegory of tradition versus Africa.” But as the plot unravels, layers of complexity emerge beneath that simple explanation. ”
Led by South African producer Thomas Maitland and South Korean producer Lee Hyo-jin, Flix Oven is expanding its international reach in many ways. The company recently signed a memorandum of understanding with Media One’s label ‘Ego Productions’ for cooperation across the European market and announced its next Indian co-production ‘Amor’ in New Delhi during South Korean President Lee Jae-Myung’s state visit. The South Korean-Indian co-production film “Made in Korea” continues to be streamed on Netflix.
Mr. Obasi is repped by Justin Littman of Sycamore Media and Continental Entertainment.
