The film, set to debut soon, is the only African film awarded in the fund’s 2023 edition in the fiction feature category.
By Hope Ibiale
Love & Seclusion, a film by Nigerian director, Orire Nwani, has been announced as one of the recipients of the New York City Women’s Fund for media, music, and theatre projects. The film, set to debut soon, is the only African film awarded in the fund’s 2023 edition in the fiction feature category. The grant, supported by the New York Foundation for the Arts, will support the film’s post-production and premiere in New York in 2024.
While commenting on winning the grant, the film’s writer, Clementina Ojie, said, “I’m thrilled and humbled to be named a recipient of the 2023 NYC Women’s Fund. Not only is it an honour to be among the talented women creators and artists awarded the finishing grant, but I’m also thankful to the Mayor’s Office of Media and Entertainment for believing in me and helping me complete this project.”
The film, directed by Orire Nwani, produced by Josh Olaoluwa, and written by Clementina Ojie, tells the story of a married woman trying to conceive a child while quarantining. Love & Seduction features Tope Olowoniyan, Efa Iwara, Anthonia Okojie, Inem King, Jaybo Charles, and many others.
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The NYC Women’s Fund for Media, Music, and Theatre Fund is an initiative by The Mayor’s Office of Media and Entertainment (MOME) created to address the underrepresentation of all who identify as women in music, theatre, film, and television. This year’s edition will serve as the fourth round of a $7.5 million five-year program funded by MOME and administered by NYFA. Carolyn Funk, Easmaine Michel, Sheri Barclay, Claudia Zamora-Valencia, Tina DiFeliciantonio, and many other experts in different parts of the entertainment sector vetted through a total number of 1,103 applications to arrive at the selected projects.
For its fourth edition, the initiative’s panelists announced the selection of 96 projects, led by women creatives or projects from a woman’s perspective, that will be awarded $2 million. Some of the other grant recipients include Jackie Aude’s The Comedians, Rachel Wolther’s The French Italian, Brittain Ashford’s Hand Wringing/In the Wings, Marine Assaiante’s MOM TO BE, and many others.
Check out the complete list of recipients here.