During his speech at the 46th Annual News & Documentary Emmy Awards on June 27, Kachi Benson declared, “This win is for Nigeria really, and we’d like to dedicate this to Anthony Madu, and every kid out there who has a dream. The world is watching and waiting to hear your story.”
For those familiar with Benson’s journey, these words carried personal weight. He wasn’t just addressing every aspiring child; he was speaking to his inner child, the young boy who was forced to abandon his education after his mother’s passing, yet persevered to become the first Nigerian filmmaker to win an Emmy for his groundbreaking film Madu.
Benson’s path began with serendipity. A self-taught videographer who stumbled upon a camera, he fell in love with the visual medium. After graduating from high school, he spent a decade—2008 to 2018, experimenting with his camera, capturing everything within his view. This eventually led him to discover virtual reality filmmaking, positioning him as Nigeria’s pioneering VR filmmaker. The project that would ultimately win Benson an Emmy began with an email. While in Nigeria, he received a message from Hunting Lane Films in Los Angeles, requesting that he create a film about Anthony Madu, a young boy who had captured global attention by dancing ballet in the rain. Production began in 2021, with Benson co-directing alongside Matthew Ogens, an Oscar-nominated and Emmy-winning filmmaker. The resulting documentary was later distributed by Disney, cementing Benson’s place in cinematic history.
Culture Custodian spoke with this trailblazing filmmaker about his humble beginnings, his innovative films, and the forces behind his remarkable career.
You’ve become Nigeria’s first Emmy winner, which is historic. Can you take us back to your early days?
My journey began when I stumbled on a camera years ago and immediately fell in love with creating moving images. Back then, I wasn’t focused on documentaries; I shot everything: weddings, birthdays, burials. I was simply exploring the craft. But over time, I became increasingly drawn to real-life stories, inspired by people doing remarkable things. I knew these were the kinds of stories I wanted to share with the world. I couldn’t afford film school, so I learned on the go, asking questions, seeking advice from more experienced filmmakers, studying their methods, and constantly shooting. I made a lot of mistakes, but I kept going. That consistency, trial and error, and hunger to grow shaped me.
What originally drew you to documentary storytelling, and what was the journey that led you from Nigeria to working with major platforms like Disney?
It wasn’t something I actively sought out. I’ve just been focused on telling stories. In 2018, I made In Bakassi, Nigeria’s first virtual reality film. Then in 2019, Daughters of Chibok really took off. After the 2020 lockdown, I got an email from a company in Los Angeles saying they wanted to do a project in Nigeria and thought I might be a good fit. That conversation led to the Disney collaboration.
While working on Madu, the lead production company, Hunting Lane, asked if I had any other projects in the pipeline. I told them about Mothers of Chibok, and we partnered on that as well. It premiered at DOC NYC in November, screened at Encounters where it won Best Documentary, and will be showing in Germany and other places soon. Honestly, it all came from staying focused on the craft and letting the work speak for itself.
You are the first Nigerian filmmaker to use VR technology for storytelling in 2018 with In Bakassi. That’s quite a leap into emerging technology. What made you decide to embrace VR as your medium of choice, and how do you see VR enhancing documentary storytelling compared to traditional formats?
It actually wasn’t my idea at first. A longtime client who’s now like family approached me wanting to make a 360-degree video. I had no idea what that was, but she insisted I learn and be the one to do it. So I did the research, flew to the U.S. to understand the process, got the gear, and came back to Nigeria to shoot what would become In Bakassi.
I was fascinated by how immersive VR is, how it places viewers directly inside a story. That’s when I realized it could be more than a corporate tool; it could be a powerful medium for social impact. With Daughters of Chibok, I saw how VR could move people from empathy to action. Viewers would take off the headset, asking, “How can I help?” That emotional immediacy is what makes VR so powerful. It’s not the most accessible tech here yet, but I believe it’s worth experimenting with, especially if you’re driven by stories that can create real change.
How have your recognitions across different international festivals so far felt like for you?
I’ve always seen myself as grounded. I don’t make films to win awards; I make them to create impact. So while winning at Venice was an incredible honor, the real victory for me is when a film amplifies a community’s voice or drives change. That’s how I measure success. Of course, recognition opens doors. Suddenly, people want to collaborate, but I’ve learned to be intentional about which opportunities I take. The question is always: Will this help me continue using film as a catalyst for change?
Your Emmy win for Madu marks a shift from VR to traditional documentary filmmaking. What prompted this transition, and how different was the creative process working on a conventional documentary after years of immersive VR storytelling?
Actually, it’s less of a shift and more of a return. I started shooting traditional documentaries back in 2008 and spent a solid 10 years in that space before exploring VR from 2018. I only worked in VR for about 2–3 years before returning to what I was already doing. So I’ve always played in both spaces.
If anything, the real shift was learning to work in VR, where your relationship with the camera and subjects changes completely. In VR, you can’t be on set because the camera captures everything in 360 degrees. That means you direct remotely and let life unfold naturally in front of the camera, which forces a different kind of storytelling. With traditional docs, like Madu, you’re back on set, fully present, guiding the shots. So in many ways, Madu felt like coming home.
Madu was co-directed by American filmmaker Matthew Ogens and distributed by Disney. How did this collaboration come about? What was it like working with a big American studio while staying true to Anthony Madu’s Nigerian story?
Staying true to Anthony’s story was non-negotiable. This was a Nigerian story about a real person from a specific place, and we were all aligned on the importance of authenticity from the very beginning. Disney was incredibly respectful of that vision. They gave us full creative control and supported us in bringing the story to life without compromise.
Working with a company like Disney also made the process much smoother. We had access to the right equipment, resources, and production support, which allowed us to focus on telling the story as powerfully and honestly as possible. It was a true collaboration, one where our voice and direction as filmmakers were respected at every step.
Anthony Madu became a viral sensation after a video showed him dancing barefoot in the rain outside Lagos. What about his story resonated with you, and how did you approach building trust with him and his family?
Anthony’s story reminded me so much of my own, chasing a dream against the odds. I didn’t go to school either, but I had a vision and held onto it, just like him. At only 11, he was dancing ballet despite being teased by his peers. That kind of resilience moved me deeply. Even though Anthony had already gone viral, I knew the story we wanted to tell had to go beyond the headlines. So I spent a lot of time with him and his family before we even turned on the camera. Building trust is essential to my process; it’s the only way to capture people’s authentic lives, emotions, and day-to-day reality. For me, a documentary is only as strong as the honesty of the people in it, and that starts with genuinely getting to know them.
Both Daughters of Chibok and Madu deal with deeply human stories that have broader social implications. How important is it for you that your films create social impact beyond entertainment, and what kind of conversations do you hope they spark?
For me, social impact is the DNA of my work. I’m always intentional about the kind of change I want a film to inspire and how to make it happen. Most of my projects are tied to specific impact campaigns. From In Bakassi to Daughters of Chibok and now Madu, I start with a question: “What do I want this film to achieve, and how can we get it done?”
With Mothers of Chibok, for example, we’re working on real interventions to improve farming yields for the women. That means meeting the right people, pushing the right buttons, and using the film as an advocacy tool. Yes, awareness matters, but talk alone doesn’t solve problems. We have to act, and for me, the film is just the beginning of that process.
As the first Nigerian to win an Emmy, you’re breaking significant barriers. What does this recognition mean for Nigerian filmmakers and African stories on the global stage? How do you see the landscape changing for African content creators?
What it really means to me is the hope that it inspires young Nigerian and African filmmakers to know that it’s possible. When I started out, I didn’t have many references, documentary filmmakers who looked or sounded like me. So if one person can now say, “If Kachi can do it, then I can too,” that means everything.
I’m also proud that I’m telling Nigerian stories from right here in Nigeria, I live and work here. That’s important because it proves something bigger: our stories are good enough. They matter. They deserve to be told, and when told with excellence and authenticity, they can resonate globally and win on the world’s biggest stages.
Looking ahead, what stories are you most excited to tell, and how do you envision your role in shaping the future of documentary filmmaking both in Nigeria and internationally?
The stories I’m most excited to tell are those that amplify our voices, stories that have the power to catalyze change in our communities, that offer dignity, and present a nuanced, balanced view of who we are as Africans. I want to show the world who we are through our own lens. If someone watches one of my films and says, “Wow, I didn’t know that about Nigeria,” or “That’s such a beautiful story from Africa,” then I’ve done my job.
As for my role, I see myself continuing on this path as a social impact storyteller, using documentary as a tool to spark conversation, reflection, and hopefully transformation. Both within Nigeria and beyond, I want to keep pushing the boundaries of what’s possible for African documentary filmmakers.
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