“This is my first directorial feature, but it doesn’t feel like my first because of all the hard work that has been put in all these years”. – Wingonia Ikpi
By Vivian Nneka Nwajiaku
Wingonia Ikpi, director of The Lost Days (2025) has worn many hats. Her Nollywood journey started with screenwriting, but when Afrocritik caught up with her in 2023, the Cross River State native was a content development producer at Film One Studios and had just founded her own film production and talent management company, Boxonia Blueprint.
She had also directed a short film, Otana (2020) which earned her a spot on the First Features Project, an initiative of Natives Filmworks and Michelangelo Productions, helmed by Steve Gukas and Dotun Olakunri (both known for producing 93 Days (2016) and Living in Bondage: Breaking Free (2019)). Her debut feature, The Lost Days, is the result of that opportunity as well as all the experience she has gathered through the years.
The ninth film on the First Features slate, The Lost Days follows a wealthy, older woman on a journey of healing, both physically and emotionally, whose efforts to reunite with the man she once loved trigger unresolved issues and complications that force her loved ones to confront the past.
In this conversation with Afrocritik, Wingonia Ikpi discusses The Lost Days, the impact of the First Features Project on her filmmaking, her upcoming short film, Nolly Babes, and the kind of stories she hopes to tell next.
*This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
Congratulations on the premiere of The Lost Days. What does this mean to you, to be releasing your debut feature?
Thank you. It’s deeply personal to me. This film, basically, is a culmination of all my years of hard work, struggle and obsession in the film space, because it has a lot of my learnings. In this film, I’ve had to tap into my background as a casting director, as a talent manager, as a producer, in the sense of understanding how productions run. And as a person, as a writer, I come from a place where we like to tell stories. So, I tapped into my storytelling sensibilities as well. I daresay, it’s a testament to my hard work as a filmmaker.
This is my first directorial feature, but it doesn’t feel like my first because of all the hard work that has been put in all these years.
At the centre of The Lost Days is an older couple romance, which we rarely get in Nollywood. What inspired this choice and the story?
We don’t have a lot of stories like this, and I think that we should. But also, one of the reasons why filmmakers do not tell these types of stories is because we are led to believe that people of that age do not buy films. Which, to be honest, is valid when you check cinemas data.
I didn’t choose this story. It was a random selection from a spin game orchestrated by the Natives Filmworks team. When I saw this one, I just thought to myself that I didn’t want this to go unnoticed.
The kind of love story we’re telling is cute and soft. So, I really wanted those sensibilities present in the film. We went on a really long search to find our lead, Chisom, played by Ifeoma Fafunwa, because there were certain qualities and nuances I needed the character to have.
Even in real life, Madam Fafunwa is really sweet. And we wanted somebody who could carry the sensibilities of someone who had just gone through the tiring process of cancer, who understood what it meant, and who would just carry the role elegantly. Mrs. Fafunwa is a theatre director, so it was very easy to work with her. It was very easy to communicate what I wanted. And she was very supportive.
It really is a surprising choice because she’s ordinarily not a screen actor.
She’s not. But we did a chemistry test. I spoke to her a couple of times to know if she even understood the soul of the film, and every time I had a conversation with her, I wanted to have more conversations with her.
As you said, the story chose you, so we can assume that it came with the setting. These days, we’re getting more and more films shot outside of Lagos. What do you think is the reason for this branching out, and why was it important, in making The Lost Days, to explore outside of Lagos, Abeokuta to be precise?
I’m going to answer this question in three different layers. The first layer would be that you’re right, I did not exactly choose this location. ABK (Abeokuta) was one of the locations in the script.
Secondly, is it possible to make this film in Lagos? Yes. However, the one thing ingrained in the soul of this film is honesty. Seeing as some of my directing choices were inspired by a real-life story of my friend who had cancer four years ago, I could not fathom telling a story that isn’t honest in its fibre.
There was absolutely no way that we would not shoot in Abeokuta, even if it’s just exteriors. We wanted to represent the people of Abeokuta as well as imbibe its colours and African flavour. We shot in a village called Siun (Ogun State). We also shot a couple of scenes that we went to Abeokuta itself to shoot, for instance, the mountain scene.
Thirdly, it’s true that some filmmakers actually say, “I want to go and shoot outside Lagos”, and they now write their story according to the location. I’ll say the reason that happens is because of all the numerous problems emanating from the shooting in Lagos.
First of all, you have to pay Lagos Omonile. As filmmakers, we also understand that we should grow the communities we film in where possible, but the problem is that even after paying, sometimes you’re still being harassed and humiliated.
I remember that after our shoot in Abeokuta, our EPs, Mr Dotun Olakunri and Mr Steve Gukas, wrote a petition to stop a company that has been polluting the environment.
Another problem is that Lagos locations are overpriced. These are some of the reasons why Lagos filmmakers would rather go elsewhere.
Did that decision come with any particular challenges, logistics, or otherwise?
The reason we go to places like Ibadan and Abeokuta is that they are close to Lagos. The film industry is saturated in Lagos. We have beautiful places like Abuja and Cross River, but there are a lot of logistical issues with carrying equipment all the way from Lagos to Cross River.
Here in Lagos, if something goes wrong, say that the equipment is wrong, I can quickly call the equipment house. A car gets bad, you can quickly replace it. When we were shooting in Abeokuta, we needed a car to arrive in a couple of hours. It was a struggle as there was no vendor in Abeokuta who could provide us with that type of car.
Until we’re able to decentralise filmmaking from Lagos, we’ll continue having these types of conversations.
The Lost Days is the latest in the First Features Project. What difference has the First Features training made in your approach to filmmaking?
I don’t think there is anyone else who has done it to this level in the industry. People have certainly tried to mentor other young filmmakers, but this is the greatest level it has ever been pushed to.
The reason that project was so special to all twelve of us who attended was the sense of community that it gave us. We were twelve, we were young, we were talented, all very ambitious. And [with] this person whom we all respected in the industry—because Mr. Steve Gukas is very well respected, he’s literally one of the foundational layers of the industry—it was such an honour.
Even though, in four years whilst preparing for this project, I grew in other ramifications of my career, what the First Features project did was to lay down the fundamentals of directing for me, take me through the process, instil a directing discipline in me, and also build confidence in my vision.
You shared your references for The Lost Days on social media, and the list included international heavyweights. How exactly did these films influence The Lost Days?
I’ll divide these films into two. The first part would be Fences, Adú, Really Love, and Amélie. In fact, there are two references here that may not necessarily be regarded as references, but when you watch the film, you’ll feel like, “Wait, what? That feels familiar.” One of them would be A Cinderella Story, and the other one would be Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho.
So, on one hand, we have Fences, Really Love, Adú, Amélie, Lost in Translation, and Cinderella story. This first part of inspiration embodies the intimacy and messiness of emotions. We have a lot of very vulnerable moments and warmth. All that is captured through the first part of these films.
Then, the other side is the grit of the film, but grit in the sense of our world. One of the things our film does really well is obey the sensibilities of our world. It’s a grit that is grounded in the world of our story. The grit also comes with pain, the grit carries other emotions that are not intimate, other possibly dark, deep, hurtful, and loud emotions.
A lot of times as Nigerians, even though we’re very loud people, we make it seem as though people that are loud are crazy. I have come to understand that loud emotions are the ways that we also communicate as Nigerians. So, can we capture those loud emotions in ways that show care? For instance, Kola’s pain is masqueraded in loudness and brute force.
The grit part of this film is inspired by the second half of my references, including Samurai, Inglourious Basterds, and Psycho. Really, this film (The Lost Days) is a blend of intimacy and grit.
While we’re on the topic of references, we’re still expecting Nolly Babes, a short film you produced that pays homage to Y2K Nollywood.
We’re currently cooking the trailer. We got to license a few amazing songs. Don’t worry, we’re coming. It’s a project that I’m very excited about, and has a lot of very heavy-handed conversations handled in a respectful manner whilst paying an ode to the Y2K era.
Even though it’s Y2K, we also had a mix between the modern and the Y2K era in a way that blends. The visuals are heavily Y2K inspired, locations as well, but for the sound, we leaned towards a blend between Y2K and new sounds. We’re truly about to give you guys a treat.
After The Lost Days, what kind of stories are you hoping to tell next?
I’m very interested in directing an action next. I believe that if I have been able to handle intimacy and emotions, then the next step is to handle high octane action. At the end of the day, a good action balances emotions and high stakes energy. I’ve been entrusted with emotions. Now, I want to know how to handle the high stakes energy.
*The Lost Days premiered on Prime Video on 11th July, 2025
Vivian Nneka Nwajiaku is a writer, film critic, TV lover, and occasional storyteller writing from Lagos. She has a master’s degree in law but spends most of her time watching, reading about and discussing films and TV shows. She’s particularly concerned about what art has to say about society’s relationship with women. Connect with her on X @Nneka_Viv