Chinazaekpere Chukwu is a Nigerian filmmaker, screenwriter and director whose feature debut, Her Daughters’ Mother, earned recognition at the 2026 Africa Movie Academy Awards (AMAA). The film received a nomination for Best Debut Feature Film by a Director, introducing Chukwu to a wider audience as a filmmaker moving from short films and television into feature filmmaking.
Before making her first feature, Chukwu developed her career through screenwriting, story editing and directing. She trained at the EbonyLife Creative Academy, where she won the Best Director award for her short film A Psalm for Abigail. She later directed the television series The Yard and the short film Tì ẹ Ńbọ̀, which screened at the Africa International Film Festival in 2023.
Her work draws from everyday experiences, family relationships and the choices people make under social pressure. In Her Daughters’ Mother, she explores these concerns through the life of a woman whose future is shaped by marriage, motherhood and expectations surrounding the birth of a male child.
Chinazaekpere Chukwu’s Early Career and Filmmaking Training
Chukwu’s professional development combines writing and directing. She attended the EbonyLife Creative Academy, where she received practical filmmaking training and directed A Psalm for Abigail. Her work on the short film earned her the academy’s Best Director award.
After graduating in 2021, she continued developing her approach to filmmaking through mentorship. Director Damilola Orimogunje took her under his wing and introduced her to different ways of understanding the craft. Chukwu has described the experience as important to her development because it challenged what she thought she already knew about filmmaking.
The mentorship helped her think beyond technical knowledge and consider the perspective she wanted to bring to her stories. She has explained that she remains interested in discovering her identity as an artist and learning how to trust her creative instincts.
Alongside directing, Chukwu has worked as a screenwriter and story editor on television, short-film and feature-film projects. Her writing credits include Logline, an Africa Magic original production.
Chinazaekpere Chukwu’s Short Films
Short filmmaking provided Chukwu with an opportunity to develop her directing skills before moving into a feature-length production.
One of her early projects was A Psalm for Abigail, which she directed during her time at the EbonyLife Creative Academy. The film earned her the institution’s Best Director award and became an important part of her early filmmaking portfolio.
She later directed Tì ẹ Ńbọ̀, a short film that screened in the Shorts category at the 2023 Africa International Film Festival. The project gave her work exposure at a major Nigerian film festival and added to her experience in independent filmmaking.
These projects helped Chukwu explore character-driven storytelling and develop her approach to directing actors. They also formed part of the creative journey that eventually led to her first feature film.
The Yard: Chukwu’s Television Directing Work
Chukwu expanded her directing experience through television with The Yard, an 18-episode series released in 2025.
Directing a television series requires a different production rhythm from making a short film. An extended episode format demands consistency in storytelling, character development and visual presentation across multiple instalments.
Her work on The Yard gave her experience with a longer production format before she moved into feature filmmaking. It also demonstrated her involvement in more than one area of screen storytelling, from short films to television and cinema.
Her Daughters’ Mother: Chinazaekpere Chukwu’s Feature Debut
Her Daughters’ Mother, also known by its original title Oni ómó-Emeté, marks Chukwu’s first feature film as a director and screenwriter. The 109-minute Nigerian drama follows Ejiro, a woman whose life changes after she is married off at 16.
In her thirties, Ejiro returns home as a widow with two daughters and hopes to give them better opportunities. Her circumstances change again when she enters another marriage with Osato, who promises to provide a more secure future for her and the children.
However, the marriage becomes another source of hardship when Osato expects her to provide a male heir. His demands place Ejiro under pressure and make her question how much control she has over her own future.
The film examines motherhood, marriage, family expectations and women’s freedom to make decisions about their lives. It also considers the pressure placed on women in communities where the birth of a son can influence a wife’s position within a family.
Chukwu set the story in Nigeria’s South-South region, drawing on the cultural environment of the area. The film was shot in Benin and features dialogue in English, Pidgin, Urhobo and Bini. Its language choices reflect the backgrounds of the characters and the setting of the story.
The cast includes Ejovwoke Obad Olikuntuyi, Osas Okonyon, Philip Asaya, Najite Dede and Adeoluwa Akintoba. Joshua Tsotso, Mentong Minwo and Efosa Ogbomo produced the film.
For Chukwu, the project represents more than a move into feature filmmaking. It gave her an opportunity to tell a story rooted in the experiences and cultural realities of women in the South-South while raising questions that audiences beyond the region can recognise.
Her Daughters’ Mother at the 2026 AMAA
Chukwu’s feature debut received a nomination at the 22nd Africa Movie Academy Awards. The film earned a place in the Best Debut Feature Film by a Director category, recognising her work on her first feature-length production.
The nomination placed her among the Nigerian filmmakers recognised in the category alongside Nwamaka Chikezie for To Adaego With Love and Daniel Etim-Effiong for The Herd.
The recognition followed the film’s selection for Film Africa 2026 in London. It screened at EbonyLife Place London on October 28, giving international audiences an opportunity to see a Nigerian story rooted in the South-South region.
The film was also selected for the 15th Africa International Film Festival in Lagos, extending its festival journey within Nigeria.
Chinazaekpere Chukwu’s Approach to Storytelling
Chukwu is interested in ordinary experiences and the decisions that shape people’s lives. She has explained that she wants to tell stories that reflect familiar human situations, including people’s desires, sacrifices and the pressures they face.
That interest is evident in Her Daughters’ Mother. Instead of presenting Ejiro’s circumstances as a simple family conflict, the film examines the conditions surrounding her decisions. Her choices are influenced by her responsibility to her daughters, her need for security and the expectations imposed by her family and husband.
Chukwu has said she hopes audiences will question how much freedom women actually have when making decisions about their lives. She wants viewers to consider the circumstances behind those decisions rather than judge women without understanding the pressures they face.
Her interest in women-centred storytelling also reflects her stated commitment to creating films that examine women’s experiences and perspectives.
Conclusion
Chinazaekpere Chukwu has developed her filmmaking career through screenwriting, story editing, short films and television directing. Her training at the EbonyLife Creative Academy, mentorship from Damilola Orimogunje and experience directing projects such as A Psalm for Abigail, Tì ẹ Ńbọ̀ and The Yard helped prepare her for feature filmmaking.
Her debut, Her Daughters’ Mother, brought these experiences together in a story about motherhood, marriage, cultural expectations and women’s freedom. Its 2026 AMAA nomination and festival selections introduced her work to wider audiences and marked an important stage in her development as a Nigerian film director.
