Meta4 Films has announced that its short film Ekun Iyawo: A Tale of a Runaway Bride has been acquired by Homi TV for streaming distribution. The film is now available to rent globally on the platform at $2.99, with Nigerian viewers able to pay the naira equivalent via bank card, Apple Pay, or Google Pay. The agreement is a non-exclusive licensing arrangement for a period of one year, with rental revenue shared between Meta4 Films and Homi TV.
Written, directed, and produced by Moses Ipadeola, Ekun Iyawo is a 12-minute romance-drama set against a historical backdrop. The acquisition marks the film’s first standalone commercial streaming debut. The romance-drama is now available to rent on Homi TV at $2.99, with viewers in Nigeria able to pay the naira equivalent via bank card, Apple Pay, or Google Pay. The agreement is a non-exclusive license for a period of one year, with rental revenue shared between Meta4 Films and the platform.
Background: The Film and Its Festival Run
Ekún Ìyàwó was produced through the inaugural British Council Film Lab Africa programme, launched in 2023. The programme attracted over 600 applications for its first cohort, with 60 participants selected for training. Ten filmmakers from that group each received a £5,000 production grant to produce original short films. Ipadeola was among the recipients.
The film subsequently ran on MultiChoice Nigeria and WapTV in 2025 as part of a broadcast package featuring all ten films from the cohort, but the Homi TV release is its first individual commercial streaming appearance.
Before the Homi TV deal, Ekun Iyawo completed an international festival circuit spanning Africa, Europe, and North America. It received Best Short Film at Quramo Fest 2024, the Audience Cheese Prize and Best Cinematography at The Annual Film Mischief 2024, and at the FilmJoint Awards 2025 it received Best Picture, Best African Film, Best Indigenous Film Nigeria, and Best Production Design. The Accra Indie Film Festival 2025 awarded it an additional Best Production Design prize.
Official festival selections included Film Africa in London, the African International Film Festival (AFRIFF), NollywoodWeek Paris, the Barbados Indie Film Festival, the RTF Realtime International Film Festival in London, Noir Fest at Harvard and Yale, and the 7 Resilient Women Showcase in Nairobi, Kenya.
The Film
Set against an imagined historical backdrop, Ekún Ìyàwó follows Omolewa, a young bride forced at gunpoint to shed her tears at a “Bridal Tears” ceremony steeped in dark rumour. Faced with an arranged marriage to Balogun, a man whose intentions for those tears are the subject of alarming speculation, she must choose between submitting to tradition and escaping with her secret lover, David. When her tears are secretly swapped by an accomplice, Omolewa and David flee toward the river, only to be pursued by Balogun’s armed men.
Ugoh Amanda leads the film as Omolewa, with Soledayo Adegbite as David. The film’s production design, recognised with awards at both the FilmJoint Awards 2025 and the Accra Indie Film Festival 2025, is among its most celebrated qualities, and the cinematography, which earned the film a prize at The Annual Film Mischief 2024, grounds its historical world in visual specificity that belies its short runtime and modest budget.
On the Acquisition
For Ipadeola, the Homi TV deal represents more than a distribution milestone. It signals a widening of opportunity for independent Nigerian short films that have historically struggled to find streaming homes despite strong festival performances.
“Ekún Ìyàwó was born from a desire to tell a unique story that honours our culture while asking timeless questions about duty, courage, and self-determination,” Ipadeola said. “I’m excited that it is now streaming on Homi TV where audiences everywhere can discover this Trado-Fiction and connect with its message.”
He added: “Not only does this open more opportunities for Ekún Ìyàwó, but for more beautiful Nigerian indie films to be discovered regardless of their form; short or feature length. Because before now, it has proven to be a hustle getting distributions for many beautiful short films from this part of the world even with multiple festival runs.”
Enoch Mensah, CEO of Homi TV, framed the acquisition as a statement of intent for the platform. “At Homi TV, we believe every great story deserves a global stage, and Ekun Iyawo is exactly that kind of story,” he said, adding that the platform is committed to championing narratives that are rooted in culture yet universally resonant.
About Homi TV
Founded in 2021 and launched in Africa in September 2022, Homi TV is a streaming platform headquartered in Middletown, Delaware, with its operational office in Ghana. The platform streams content from over 40 African countries, including movies, documentaries, lifestyle shows, and originals, available in major African ethnic languages. It is accessible via web, iOS, Android, and smart TV apps.
Ekun Iyawo: A Tale of a Runaway Bride is now available to stream on Homi TV. See the trailer below!
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