A Nigerian Yoruba-language film is making an ambitious entry into the global conversation about artificial intelligence and the future of cinema.
Asiri Ilu Awon Osu (Mystery of Osu Land), produced by Tanwa Hammed, is being described by its makers as the world’s first photorealistic AI feature film. The production blends artificial intelligence with conventional filmmaking while maintaining a distinctly Nigerian cultural identity.
Completed in September 2025, the film predates the public announcement of the American AI movie Deep Frame by several months, according to the Nigerian production team. The filmmakers say the timeline forms a key part of their claim to an early place in the development of AI-powered feature filmmaking. The project has also received recognition at the G-Spark Tech Summit.
At the heart of the production is a hybrid filmmaking model. Rather than relying entirely on artificial intelligence, Asiri Ilu Awon Osu comprises approximately 80 per cent AI-generated or AI-assisted material and 20 per cent live-action performances.
The technology was integrated across the creative process, with the filmmakers using AI in developing the storyline, characters and cinematic environments rather than limiting its application to individual images.
The film is entirely in Yoruba and incorporates Nigerian cultural elements, bringing a local identity to a project exploring technology at the cutting edge of modern filmmaking.
Hammed said the team intentionally delayed a major publicity campaign after completing the movie because the production had already been submitted to Guinness World Records and was awaiting verification.
“We deliberately delayed the public media campaign because we had already submitted our breakthrough to Guinness World Records and were waiting for official verification,” she said.
The producer believes the production date strengthens the film’s claim, arguing that it was completed before other documented projects that have subsequently been associated with similar AI filmmaking milestones.
“This distinct timeline proves that no other documented feature film had successfully merged artificial intelligence with traditional cinema before the Nigerian team’s September completion date,” Hammed said.
Hammed also pointed to the production method as another distinction between the Nigerian film and Deep Frame, which she described as a completely automated American production.
“Beyond its historical head start, Asiri Ilu Awon Osu stands out from the completely automated American film by utilising a distinct hybrid filmmaking model,” she said.
The project has also drawn attention to questions about whether AI can produce convincing, photorealistic cinema without visible distortions in human faces, backgrounds and other visual details.
Hammed has challenged critics to judge the finished production rather than base their assessment solely on assumptions about the technology’s limitations.
The filmmakers are inviting industry professionals and audiences to examine the film’s trailer and production records as they pursue wider recognition for the project.
Although Guinness World Records is yet to complete its verification, Asiri Ilu Awon Osu has already placed a Nigerian production within an increasingly important global conversation about AI and cinema.
More importantly, the project shows how emerging technology can be used alongside human performance and indigenous storytelling without abandoning cultural identity. Through Yoruba language, Nigerian themes and a blend of live-action and AI-assisted production, the filmmakers have taken a distinctly Nigerian approach to an evolving form of cinema.
If the Guinness World Records claim is verified, the achievement could further strengthen Nigeria’s place in the history of AI filmmaking. Regardless of the outcome, the production has demonstrated that Nigeria’s creative industry can engage with new filmmaking technologies on its own terms and contribute to the direction in which cinema is heading.
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