DIRECTOR’S STATEMENT

Bam Bam began with a simple spark: a boy and a computer bound by an unlikely friendship. At its core, it’s a story about wanting to be seen. That longing is something I know well, from my own youth, filled with loneliness, doubt, and the restless need to belong.

Babatunde, my main character, is a gifted but withdrawn teenager navigating first love. His closest companion is Bam Bam, the one who listens, understands, and pushes him forward. But the closer he gets to opening his heart, the more he has to ask himself what it really means to be human.

Coming-of-age stories have always held a special place in my heart because they remind us that growing up never really ends. We are always learning, unlearning, and becoming. And science fiction, my other great love, lets me look at these questions with wonder. In this case, helping explore how technology blends memory, fatherhood, and the anxieties of passing something meaningful on to the next generation.

A film like Bam Bam doesn’t exist in Nigeria. That’s why I had to make it. Our stories deserve to live in every genre, including sci-fi. Just as Babatunde struggles to find his place in the world, I believe African cinema is also finding its place in the world.

This film has stretched me in every way: writing it, shooting it with a small but committed team, and shaping it into something that can stand proudly on the world stage. Like Babatunde, I’ve had to take risks, guided by the quiet and steady support of those closest to me. My hope is that Bam Bam offers audiences what it first offered me: the courage to step forward, to look inward, and to keep becoming.

Welcome,

Tolulope Itegboje

Writer & Director