Host of #WithChude, Chude Jideonwo, has announced his first film ‘Awaiting Trial’ to acclaim across social media.
‘Awaiting Trial’ is a documentary film that explores both the #EndSARS protests and the ‘deeper illness’ they point to – the phenomenon in Nigeria’s communal justice system called ‘awaiting trial’ where people are arrested and detained indefinitely without charge.
Jideonwo made this announcement in an Instagram post… Full text below:
“About 14 years ago, Toyin Oyemade invited myself and others to an outreach at Kirikiri Prisons in Lagos, Nigeria.At the prison, I heard the most heart-rending story from the inmate I was assigned to help.He had been in prison for more than a decade. He was arrested before phones came to Nigeria, and had been awaiting trial ever since – his family back in the north not knowing if he is dead or if he is alive.
“I knew, somewhere in my heart, that if I ever followed the calling to make films, and no one had yet told this story, this was the first film I was going to make.Here we are in 2022, and I am deeply thankful to my partners, team and the courageous cast for the privilege of making that dream a reality.After two years of heart-felt work, we present ‘Awaiting Trial’ – the first film from our studio”
“Over the next 24 months, you will be seeing a slate of factual and unscripted content from our studio – docuseries, docudramas, biopics, reality soaps, stand-up, and true crime – that tell the stories of our common humanity in a way that connects deeply with audiences in and from Africa”