Tolu Ajayi’s Feature Film ‘Over The Bridge’ Stands Out in Nigerian Movie Industry 

“Over the Bridge,” Tolu Ajayi’s first feature film, is the opening film of this year’s New York African Film Festival and is up for numerous awards.

This week, the film “Over the Bridge,” which is making its North American premiere at the New York African Film Festival, will be part of the esteemed 31st-anniversary lineup, which also includes “London Recruits.”

That film, also making its North American premiere, will screen at the Brooklyn Academy of Music on May 29, co-presented by OkayAfrica.

Over the Bridge bagged 12 nominations in this year’s Africa Magic Viewers’ Choice Awards, making it one of the two films with the most nominations in this edition—the second, being C.J. Obasi’s Mami Wata.

The cast was carefully selected to portray a very deep message. Tolu Ajayi was searching for an actor for his debut film, “Over the Bridge,” who could play a role with depth. Ozzy Agu, who is well-known for his roles in “MTV Shuga” and “The Lost Okoroshi,” proved to be that actor.

With Ajayi’s direction and Agu’s intense performance, they created one of the most significant Nollywood films of the 21st century.

In ‘Over the Bridge, a man’s integrity is tested within Nigeria’s corporate and political spheres, prompting a journey of self-discovery. Unlike typical Nollywood political commentary, Ajayi’s film communicates its message in a subtle manner.

The portrayal of Ozzy Agu’s character effectively conveys the unspoken problems associated with masculinity. It illustrates how men in society bear the burdens of their lives alone. It was crucial to portray the character’s fragility in order to highlight the inner hardships that men frequently face in silence.

“While making this film, I was putting pretty much a lot of eggs in one basket. And I’m super happy that it’s paying off. It took a lot of heart, but I’m happy that a lot of my team agreed with the essential part of what we were trying to do. There was so much confidence and belief in what we were doing together, and that made the task much less daunting.” Ajayi said this in an interview with Okay Africa.

“I’ve been a part of corporate for a while, where I was able to observe the corporate mentality. Something I’ve observed is that certain notions and ideas from very well-meaning people sometimes can be a part of the problem.” Ajayi said.

In the future, Tolu Ajayi hopes to make biopics, bringing attention to lesser-known people, and writing stories that are influenced by his views of the world and personal experiences.