“This Is Love” Review—Victor Njoku’s Experiential Coverage of Queer Relationships In Nigeria 

On 7th January, 2014, former president of Nigeria Goodluck Ebele Jonathan signed the Same-Sex Marriage (Prohibition) Act 2013 (SSMPA), banning and criminalising marriage between persons of the same sex in Nigeria. While society has always frowned at homosexual conduct, the SSMPA formally institutionalised it —with the Act further recommending 10 years imprisonment for people who operated gay clubs and associations of any kind, or promoted same-sex amorous relationships.

This legislation, amongst a host of other discriminatory activities that are rooted in various Nigerian cultures, endangers the existence of queer people in Nigeria. As a result of this anti-queer reality, many Nigeria-based open-minded filmmakers and pop culture enthusiasts are careful not to step on toes and would generally boycott conversations around gay representation and homophobia in mainstream media. The passivity of the Nigerian creative is understandable: supporting queer issues puts you at loggerheads with the Nigerian government and society; just as blatantly opposing the movement detracts from your reputation in the liberal, all-inclusive international community. In spite of this, there are acknowledgements of LGBTQ+ relationships in Nigerian films and shows such as Pamela Adie and Uyaiedu Ikpe-Etim’s Ife (2020), Funmi Iyanda’s Walking With Shadows (2019), Asurf Oluseyi’s We Don’t Love Here Anymore (2018), Everything In Between (2017), Showmax’s Wura (2023 till date) and Babatunde Apalowo’s All the Colors of the World are Between Black and White (2023).

This Is Love, a queer-themed documentary co-directed by Victor Ugoo Njoku and Neec Nonso, and co-produced with Ebuka Njoku, addresses the elephant in the room, giving agency to select queer couples and magnifying their stories with the hope of creating a more enabling environment for people of their orientation. The documentary relates the experiences of three Lagos-based LGBTQ+ Nigerian couples, navigating the ups and downs of their romance in a hostile and conservative society.

Featured in the documentary are a gay couple, a lesbian couple, and a trans man and cis woman couple. All three, filmed in their respective homes and safe spaces, take turns to discuss their relationship journeys and survival as marginalized voices in the society. The filmmakers make considerable efforts to conceal the parties’ identities in a bid to protect them from being victimised, witch-hunted by the authorities, and subjected to homophobic treatment. However, while two of the couples are masked and remain anonymous, with their original voices doctored, the lesbian couple are unmasked throughout the discourse. One finds the lesbian couple and their purposeful indiscretion in the eye of the camera interesting, as it signifies a revolt against society. The documentary covers a range of topics affecting queer individuals and couples in Nigeria, from religion to health, social acceptance, and the Same-Sex Marriage Prohibition Act (SSMPA).

Njoku spearheads the project as the primary producer-director, his vision rooted in his personal experiences. The German-based Nigerian filmmaker had his childhood in Nigeria where, due to his effeminacy, he was often linked to the LGBTQ+ community. He always nursed the idea of representing this community on the big screens but wasn’t sure how to accomplish this. One day, he met a British-Nigerian man who was secretly married to another man in Nigeria for over a decade. The couple had managed to keep their affair from the authorities and most family members. This encounter opened Njoku up to the silent struggles of the LGBTQ+ community in Nigeria and became the foundation for This Is Love.

This Is Love opens with a footage-driven voice-over report of the 2020 Delta state police arrest of two hundred men on allegations of participation in a gay wedding—a practice that contravenes the SSMPA. There is quick reference to conflicting media reactions to the arrest, including a viral video of popular Nigerian cross-dresser James Brown blaming the suspects for their indiscretion. This opening is evidence of society’s cynicism and repulsion towards the LGBTQ+ community. We are then let into the confessional stories of these LGBTQ+ couples, straight from the horses’ mouths.

One easily realizes that Njoku is interested in humanizing the subjects and validating their orientations. With the camera cutting from one to another, the couples take turns to introduce themselves and their occupations—content creator, fashion designer, chef, executive assistant. Interestingly, these creativity-driven careers provoke the individualistic yet dynamic aspects of their existence, showing ways in which they connect with the world, not as outliers, but as part of a heterogenous community. The lesbian couple are content creators, with audiences on TikTok and YouTube. When they take off their masks, it signals confidence in their identity. But this act of “coming out” also reminds us of how society tends to be more accommodating of lesbian relationships than gay ones. In many societies, women who aren’t even lesbians can openly express affection for one another through hugs and kisses, and touching of sensitive body parts; whereas men do not have such privileges and would be condemned for doing so.

Certain technical and creative decisions in the documentary enhance Njoku’s goodwill and vision. From soft paying music—Obi M by Cuebitze and Wetin Be Your Own by Cuebitze—to warm, colourful lights and glossy shots, the filmmaker creates an affable atmosphere that encourages the audience to lean into the experiences of the couples and empathize with them. Scenes of the couples relaxing and having fun are inserted in-between their interviews, revealing possible ways in which they bond when the camera is not around. We are made to perceive their romance in a similarly blissful and desirable way as healthy heterosexual relationships.

This Is Love relies on factual and experiential references to achieve what feels like a defence for LGBTQ+ unions in Nigeria. As such, the documentary is a wake-up call for a more humanist and liberal society that is not only safe for queer individuals but allows for unrestricted, innocuous expressions of self-hood. In the documentary, when the couples talk about severing ties or reducing communication with family over conflicts about their gender and sexuality, our attention is drawn to the need for more open-minded conversations and objective assessments of people’s sexual dynamics. This, by extension, stimulates thoughts around the effects of social rejection, ostracization, and physical and sexual assault of queer individuals on their mental health.

What you cannot deny about Njoku and his production team is cinematic ambition—the willpower to infuse and inspire optimism, creating energy and love where it is least anticipated, all through the medium of motion pictures. While acknowledging the place of vulnerabilities, This Is Love emphasizes the elixir of genuine romantic connection between partners, regardless of gender and sexual orientation.

This is Love is courtesy of a collaboration between VUN Productions and Aguocha. The film won Best LGBTQ Feature Film at The Bahia Independent Cinema Festival (BINCIF), Brazil and is set to have its European Premiere in April, 2025 at the Independent Days International Film Festival, Germany.