Chidera is a coming-of-age story of a teenage girl who is bound from birth to a higher calling as a princess, but as the traditional ceremony for her to take her rightful place in the royal hierarchy, she struggles with accepting her destiny or choosing the freedom she so desires. The cast of the film, Sope Aluko, Dasan Onyx Frazier, Courtney Williams, and Bridget John, spoke with rolling out about their characters and the roles they play.
Who are your characters and what roles do they play in the film?
Sope Aluko: The film is called Chidera and I play the role of Mma. It’s a coming-of-age story of a girl who is destined for greatness. It really tackles the issue of something that’s part of the Nigerian culture, and it’s her story. It’s a short film, but it’s also proof of concept for a TV series because these casts have a lot of backstory.
Dasan Onyx Frazier: I play Luke, and he’s considered the “it” guy at the school. He’s a high school athlete, but he also is the love interest for Chidera in the film. He has a lot of status, but that status doesn’t matter once he starts to meet Chidera and learns a little bit about her backstory.
Courtney Williams: I play Chidera. The film is named after her, and it’s about her journey in this pivotal time in her life where she has grown up experiencing judgments in school and frustration with the journey that she’s been on, being unique to the environment that she’s been in and her internal conflict with herself. She’s wondering if she wants to stay on this path, being supported by her mother, but also feeling like she just wants to be a regular girl and fit in. She wants to have ease, and she’s realizing that she’s unique, but she’s deciding [if] she wants to remain in that uniqueness or does she want to blend in.
Bridget John: I play the role of Adugo. She is Mma’s best friend, and she supports her through all of this, trying to merge both the American culture and the African culture. It’s challenging for those of us here, trying to blend both cultures, especially when raising our kids and trying to make them understand that we have certain traditions that we have. It’s a very teachable moment to let people into our culture to see how things evolve. It’s going to be an eye-opener for people.
