Makemation film: Using entertainment to tell social impact stories 

If you have not seen the Makemation film, there are spoilers in this piece. My first interaction with the Makemation film was when I was invited to moderate a panel on ‘Storytelling as a Strategy for AI Adoption and Governance in Africa’. The precursor to the conversation was a thirty-minute screening of the film. While we watched the short clip, a close friend, whom I call my sister, was emotional to the point of tears. Following some scenes, I would catch her wiping tears from her eyes. I understood why she had teary moments, but I  could not relate. Boy, was I wrong. Then came the panel conversation, and a panellist spoke about how the main protagonist’s character (Zara) resonated. She talked about growing up in a family where her education was not prioritised. This made her growing up difficult, but she weathered every storm and surmounted every obstacle thrown her way.

Currently, she has a Ph.D and is leading a Nigerian government parastatal. Even though I could not connect with that backstory, I understood how powerful it was to see women thrive regardless of their past. Especially when they are written off as unable to succeed for the singular fact that they are female. My sister/friend has the same backstory, she said her tears were because she saw herself in  Zara. She knew what it was like to have your dreams reduced. To be resigned to marriage because it was more important to invest in her male siblings. Today, she is a very successful entrepreneur contributing to the education and business of several girls and women in Northern Nigeria. Her business has impacted lives beyond what some local governments in Nigeria have done.

Someone else said that she connected with the story because she was raised by a single mum who gave everything up to make sure she and her sister had everything they needed to thrive and succeed. While I understood these women’s stories, I could not relate to their backstories. I could not relate to feeling insufficient because I was a female child. This is because I  had a supportive father who ensured that we had all the education that he could afford to give us. On the 18th of April 2025, Makemation started showing in the cinemas.

Of course, my colleague and I had to come out to support the film. I must admit that I have the privilege of some of its back story, so I understood the intention of the Executive Producer, Toyosi. I knew that she wanted to release a film that was entertaining yet capable of creating a mind shift in our approach to Artificial Intelligence and New and Emerging  Technologies. Makemation did not disappoint me, it delivered on multiple fronts.  

Can I start by admitting that the film got me eating crow? The story that I was adamant about not connecting with, I found myself connecting with Zara. While I had a supportive father who was passionate about ensuring his girls had all the education required, I resonated with Zara’s need for validation from her father.  Sitting in the movie theatre, I had a sadness flow through me, even some teary-eyed moments, because I was reminded that even post my father’s passing, I had this deep, deep desire for his validation.

Often, girls who struggle through life without the needed validation from a father or father figure, in some cases, get it from the wrong places. Say hello to Dave, Zara’s creepy mentor. Dave seemed like a predator who gave the impression of being supportive, but I just knew that he could smell the vulnerability and wanted to capitalise on it. Sadly, young girls are unable to identify predatory behaviour when it is presented as support, niceness,  or advice. The asymmetry in their knowledge, influence, and some cases, power, is why I perceived Dave as a predator. Makemation presents a reminder to older people of the role they play in ensuring that the young girls around them understand and hone their intrinsic worth.  

Another strong theme in the film was the importance of friendships and community. I have always been a staunch believer in the necessity of having a community. Whether it is a community of friends or family, we all need community. My favourite line in the film was when Achike (Zara’s friend)said to Zara, “You deserve good things too”. Throughout the movie, this theme is reiterated in the main protagonist’s multiple relationships. Her community helped her succeed. 

This will take me to the audacity of men that women need to learn. The average man is audacious about his dreams, goals, and desires. Women, on the other hand, often second-guess themselves. Some of them lack the needed audacity to run for political office, to apply for fellowships, jobs, or opportunities. Some of them believe that they lack the tenacity to make their dreams come true. When they do, impostor syndrome sets in. There is a level of audacity that men carry that women will do well to learn. Women need to fail fast, own the room, chase their dream, and make sure they look and feel good while at it.

Another theme is the worry about the harms that artificial intelligence and technology can potentially pose.  While technology’s potential for destruction is immense, Makemation reminds us that its potential for creation is superior. Technology is not going anywhere; we might as well embrace it. To embrace it, we must work actively at harnessing its creative potential while acknowledging the gaps that it possesses.

I  appreciated that the Makemation academy was training young people to expand their minds to accommodate the possibilities of what they could create using artificial intelligence (AI). Training young people on technology and helping them to see how AI can improve healthcare, education, and social justice is a  requisite for development. We cannot leave that kind of power to those who only use it for harm.

People who are using deep fakes to foment hate and conflict need to be counteracted with knowledge. We must start to find opportunities to make this happen. While embracing AI and emerging technologies, we will be foolish to think that the humanities are going away. I have heard people say that AI will take over all the jobs and the humanities will no longer be needed because AI can do everything. They believe that AI can phase out lawyers, social engineers, political scientists, historians, etc. Implying that technology is the future is fair, but there is no society without the humanities. The humanities are about culture, traditions, social behaviour,  human interactions and everything in between.

There is a need to be aware of technology’s potential to isolate people. If this happens, a good chunk of society, especially the youth, will lose out on community. I am reminded of a prayer the reverend father gave at one of the Easter Masses, he prayed, “that the use of technologies will not replace real human relationships”. I felt that and I understood it. Daily, we are inundated with news of young people who have experienced physical and mental harm because of online behaviour,  artificial intelligence, and new technologies. To ignore the potential harms that technology presents would be dangerous. There is a need to be radical with our education strategies. 

Makemation left me dealing with a rollercoaster of emotions. I felt joy, anger, relief, happiness, sadness, and frustration. That is what Makemation does: it makes you dream. It helps the young girl or boy doubting themselves to get up and go. It reminds us that we need to surround ourselves with people who can remind us of our dreams when the journey gets exhausting. They remind us and they inspire us to keep going. As parents, it reminds us to nurture and never to destroy. To see potential in every opportunity, help our wards or children attain the heights they dream of. To understand that science, technology, and AI are not here to destroy the world but to help us help the next generation create magic. While potential for harm exists, we can train them to use these tools for good, which will lead to the kind of development we need in the region. 

Overall, Makemation is a powerfully told story that intends to make us explore our feelings about technologies and relationships. The Director got us to feel the right emotions towards every character. My senses were so elevated, I felt like I could smell the ghetto community, my skin crawled in some of the Dave scenes, and I legitimately hated some characters because of how they embodied their roles. Kudos to the  Executive Producer, Toyosi, on birthing this dream. The Makemation crew made a phenomenal film. I only hope that they continue to transform lives as they enter into the next phase of this Makemation project.