Every great director starts somewhere, and 2025 has proven to be the year when several talented Nollywood professionals took that decisive step from supporting roles to the director’s chair. These aren’t just debuts—they’re statements of artistic vision. From an actor crafting a harrowing crime thriller to a music video director orchestrating a socially conscious narrative about Lagos’ chaos.
This year’s first-time feature directors have brought skill, intention, and undeniable talent to their projects. Here are the new directors who captured our attention and earned their place in Nollywood’s evolving story.
Daniel Etim-Effiong – The Herd
Daniel Etim-Effiong’s directorial debut with The Herd catches everyone by surprise. Best known for his captivating performances in romantic roles. Transitions beautifully behind the camera while also taking on the lead character—delivering brilliantly on both fronts and further solidifying his commitment to excellent storytelling.
The Herd is a Nollywood crime thriller that explores Nigeria’s ongoing crisis of kidnapping and insecurity. The film follows Gosi (played by Etim-Effiong), a young man who is abducted alongside his newly married best friends and several other travelers. The feature offers a deeply affecting and uncomfortably realistic portrayal of the pain and anguish that families and friends endure when a loved one is kidnapped.
The Herd is currently streaming on Netflix.
Dele Doherty – Landline
Landline follows the life of a stranded military sergeant who receives eerie calls from an old landline. Each guiding him to save his pregnant wife from a relentless killer. Only to watch her die again and again in a nightmarish loop.
For Dele Doherty, the directorial debut with Landline is a great leap from behind-the-scenes roles like writer (Eva’s Love Story), editor (The Gift), and Camera Handler (Room 7). One of Landline’s highest score points would be its attention to detail in its plot and story structure.
Wingonia Ikpi – Lost Days
The First Features initiative has continued to deliver fresh and intriguing acts and stories. Wingonia Ikpi is no stranger to film production. From being a Content Development Producer for FilmOne Entertainment from 2022 to 2023. To launching Boxonia Blueprint, her own film production and talent management company in 2024. And production credits that span multiple Nollywood hits, including Toyin Abraham’s Ijakumo, Okey Bakassi’s Bank Alert, and Son Of The Soil.
In Lost Days, Chisom Agu embarks on a journey to reunite with the man she once loved and the child she left behind. But buried secrets surface, and she discovers that the past is far more complicated-and dangerous.
Lost Days is currently still streaming on Prime Video.
Akinola Davies Jr – My Father’s Shadow
Akinola Davies Jr. began his career creating music videos and commercials before venturing into narrative filmmaking in 2020 with the short film Lizard. The film won Best Short Film at the 2021 BAFTA Awards and earned nominations from the London Critics Circle Film Awards. This year, he made his feature directorial debut with My Father’s Shadow, co-written with his brother Daniel Davies.
Set against the backdrop of Nigeria’s 1993 presidential election, My Father’s Shadow follows two young boys who spend a day with their estranged father. The film is slow-paced yet crafted with remarkable intentionality—a quality that makes its accolades unsurprising. It has been selected as the UK’s official entry for the Oscars’ International Feature Film category and recently earned Davies the Best Director award at the 2025 British Independent Film Awards.
Sarah Kwaji – Out In The Darkness
Sarah Kwaji began her film career in 2017 as a student at the Toronto Film School and later pursued postgraduate studies in Advanced Film Production at Sheridan College. She has worked on various projects in the Canadian Film and Television industry in roles including casting, assistant director, and production manager
Out In The Darkness illuminates a dark and often unspoken reality of the mental and emotional collapse that can follow childbirth. The film dives into postpartum depression and psychosis with sincerity.
Afolabi Olalekan – Freedom Way
Prior to Afolabi Olalekan’s directorial debut earlier this year, he had worked as an editor, content director, producer, and music video director at the notable Mavin record label. This leap stands as not just a national but a global success.
Freedom Way presents a tightly woven story about nine individuals caught in the chaos of Lagos and the consequences of unjust laws. At the center of the story are Tayo and Themba, two tech entrepreneurs who launch a ride-share app for motorcyclists. But in typical fashion, things in Nigeria shift quickly. A sudden motorcycle ban threatens to wipe out their company overnight — not due to bad decisions, but due to erratic government policies that benefit the wealthy and hurt everyday citizens.
Toluwani Osibe – Color True Me
Toluwani Osibe is also not new to the filmmaking space, as she has juggled roles that include screenwriting for Ponzi, This Lady Called Life, and Something Like Gold. She also directed the short film Heart & Might and authored a self-help book, Becoming A Spectacular Woman.
Colour True Me tells the story of Sylvia Philips. A beauty queen and celebrity, whose picture-perfect life goes tumbling when the truth about her past comes out. And now she must face the consequences and seek refuge in the same past she thought was completely buried.
These directors represent diverse backgrounds, from acting and engineering to music video production and television writing, all converging to bring fresh perspectives to Nollywood feature filmmaking in 2025.
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