Award-winning Nigerian filmmaker Kunle Afolayan has entered a major international partnership with the Benin Republic government, signing a landmark Memorandum of Understanding.
The agreement with the Société de Productions Audiovisuelles (SOPA) was signed on Thursday in Lagos, positioning Afolayan and Kunle Afolayan Productions as strategic partners in Benin’s efforts to develop a globally competitive film ecosystem.
Central to the partnership is the planned co-production of a large-scale Orisha/Vodun-themed television series.
The project will merge Nigerian and Beninese cultural narratives, drawing from shared spiritual traditions to create a story designed for international audiences.
Producers say the series will employ advanced production techniques, including the innovative use of artificial intelligence for pre-visualisation, virtual environments, visual effects, and story development.
The collaboration highlights Afolayan’s expanding influence beyond Nigeria, building on the global reception of projects such as Aníkúlápó.
Kunle Afolayan
Born in 1974, Afolayan is widely credited with elevating production standards in Nollywood through technically refined and culturally grounded storytelling.
He is the son of late filmmaker Adeyemi Josiah Afolayan, also known as Ade Love, and studied Economics at the University of Lagos before obtaining a diploma in digital filmmaking from the New York Film Academy.
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In recent years, the filmmaker has expanded his creative reach with projects distributed on Netflix and films such as Recall.
His extended creative enterprise, KAP Group, oversees key industry infrastructure, including the KAP Film & Television Academy and the KAP Film Village & Resort, both designed to train talent and support large-scale productions.
Afolayan is also recognised as a leading figure of the “New Nollywood” movement, noted for high-budget films that prioritise strong narratives and technical excellence.
His breakthrough feature, The Figurine (Araromire), is widely regarded as a landmark production and won multiple honours, including Best Picture at the Africa Movie Academy Awards.
He later achieved commercial and global success with October 1, a historical psychological thriller that performed strongly at the box office and received major award nominations.
Other notable titles in his filmography include the romantic comedy Phone Swap, the socially conscious drama Citation, and the coming-of-age story Mokalik, all of which elevated his reputation for harmonising entertainment with social commentary.
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