Shittu Abdulafiz Opeyemi’s “Rhythm of Ancestors: Yoruba Bàtá” Gets Endorsed by Ministry of Culture

Nigerian filmmaker Shittu Abdulafiz Opeyemi’s recent documentary project, Rhythm of the Ancestors: Yoruba Bàtá got endorsed by the Federal Ministry of Art, Culture, Tourism and Creative Economy. In an Instagram post, the filmmaker behind Dodo Ikire announced the endorsement. He captioned the post saying, “Some stories entertain, but some preserve who we are. Rhythm of Ancestors: Yoruba Bàtá was born from a simple belief that our culture is our identity, memory, and legacy.”

The feature-length documentary focuses on Bàtá, the revered percussion and dance tradition of the Yoruba people of South-Western Nigeria. The unreleased documentary seeks to preserve and amplify authentic narratives surrounding the history, spirituality, and evolving significance of the Bàtá tradition. It traces its origins, spiritual role, and continued survival in Yoruba culture. Shot between July 2025 and February 2026, the documentary was filmed across South-West Nigeria and engaged with custodians of the tradition: local practitioners, historians, academics, religious leaders, and festival participants. Through immersive research, they experienced firsthand the rituals, religious significance, and communal celebrations that sustain Bàtá.

In an exclusive conversation with Culture Custodian, the director mentioned that being Nigerian and Yoruba is synonymous with his identity, so much so that it influences the kind of movies or music he consumes. For him, it’s one thing to be born a Nigerian and another to discover your love for the country. When he sees how other citizens proudly document their environment, combined with his patriotic love for Nigerian and Yoruba culture, it becomes important for him to showcase what he believes is almost taken for granted here. This is the foundation  of his artistic practice. Prior to making Bàtá, he had always wanted to document Nigerian culture, especially with the world drifting towards Western culture. 

This drift has made Nigerian and Africans see less of their immediate surroundings and rightfully appreciate its cultural and aesthetic values. This, and the recognition that most of the studies done on Bàtá were done by “foreigners” further propelled his interest. “I also pushed further to check on Google and saw that documented writers were majorly foreigners and that challenged me to come in to say “I think it’s time we document it how exactly it is and how we want it to be seen” we deserve to document our culture from our perspective too and I read somewhere on the internet that Bàtá is also taught as “Afrocuban instrument” in America and other places which kind of made me really curious.”

Prior to the endorsement, the film has done two private screenings in Lagos and Ibadan. Will this endorsement expand the scope of its distribution plans? The director isn’t certain. The production team hasn’t been able to get a positive distribution deal for the project, but with this endorsement, there’s “maybe a ray of hope.” Unmindful of the distribution deal, the intention has always been to take the film through local and international film festival circuits, targeted school screenings, and international cultural institutions. They have been able to gauge audiences’ knowledge of Bàtá and the documentary through the private screenings. “We hope to have a streaming deal that would enable us to spread it across easily, but we won’t wait until then before we start educating people about Bàtá.”

The Ministry centers Nigerian culture and its gloriousness for national integration and unity. As someone documenting indigenous culture, he would love to see FMACCE establish a cultural heritage film fund specifically for documentary filmmakers. This will be a streamlined support system for cultural documentary filmmakers. There are multiple important cultural and indigenous  stories and art forms that are lost due to funding challenges and administrative access. Opeyemi believed a dedicated grant scheme, faster approval processes, and logistical support for filmmakers working in local communities would go a long way in preserving Nigeria’s cultural heritage while making these stories accessible to wider audiences. “So far, I have made 3 documentaries about Nigerian culture, one on food, Dodo-Ikire which has been represented on a global stage, one on Adire (tie and dye) ,and recently on music. These are important cultural stories that need to be seen and well documented, self funding could get tiring and eventually kill one’s interest in such service to the nation.”

The project began its international journey at the International Cultural Journal festival in Ukraine for students of the Arts. The director believes this is a major step towards achieving the Ministry’s goals of “reshaping global perceptions of Nigeria” and promoting cultural tourism. These international screenings will raise awareness of the project among international students and audiences who would encounter it at such screenings. Also, the filmmaking team has been working closely with the Nigerian community and students in the diaspora to organise screening in their communities and schools to create awareness of this important heritage project. “Also, we collaborated with contributors from outside Nigeria who are interested in showcasing it in their various places. This, I believe, aligns with the ministry’s interest.”