Creative art in all its form has become huge in Africa. A lot of people have embraced their creativity and chosen to create iconic moments from it. While talking about that space, one name that appears almost all the time is Wole Soyinka.
If you are familiar with Literature or even a lover of books, the name Wole Soyinka won’t be new to you. The man is a legend, a mentor to many, and a role model to thousands who look up to him and aim to achieve all he has.
In 1986, the man was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature and according to the Nobel Prize page, Wole Soyinka the Nobel Prize was awarded to Soyinka “who in a wide cultural perspective and with poetic overtones fashions the drama of existence.”
This article however is not to talk about the many achievements of the legend of Wole Soyinka but to talk about one of his struggles which is about to be made into a documentary.
Onyeka Nwelue, a Nigerian author and filmmaker is set to create a documentary based on Wole Soyinka’s imprisonment following his visit then to the Biafran military leader Odumegwu Emeka Ojukwu.
The documentary will be titled ‘The Last Night in Biafra’ and the documentary might feature an interview with former Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo who will give his witness account on events that lead to the Nigerian Civil War that happened between 1967-1970.
“I am developing a documentary on Wole Soyinka, titled, “The Last Night in Biafra.” It chronicles Soyinka’s journey to Enugu, to see Ojukwu,” Nwelue wrote on Twitter.
“President Obasanjo was gracious enough, to invite me into his study and answered all my annoying questions. Frederick Forsyth appears.” – Onyeka Nwelue
What this means
It is important to document history, especially from the first-person point of view. Creating a documentary from Wole Soyinka’s experience during the Civil War, including an eyewitness account from someone like Olusegun Obasanjo will help document the things that happened during the war and prevent the history from distortion.