Binti: Home author Nnedi Okorafor recently shared some exciting news via Facebook: Her science-meets-witchcraft short story “Hello, Moto” has been optioned by Fiery Film, a Nigerian film/TV company/studio based in Lagos and Owerri. The 2011 tale, about a woman who discovers that there is a witchcraft in science and a science in witchcraft when she creates wigs for her friends that gives them incredible powers, is the next project for filmmaker C.J. “Fiery” Obasi, known for the horror/thriller film OJUJU and the gangster thriller O-Town. Obasi recently completed the shoot for his new short film Bruja.
In “Hello, Moto,” scientist and witch Rain hopes that her inventions, wigs that allow their wearers to wield influence and power, will help battle corruption. Instead, she watches her friends Philo and Coco themselves become corrupted, turning them against Rain as she attempts to make up for what she’s done. And yes, the title does refer to that iconic ringtone, which plays a key role in the story. Below is a selection from “Hello, Moto,” which you can read on Tor.com:
This is a tale you will only hear once. Then it will be gone in a flash of green light. Maybe all will be well after that. Maybe the story has a happy ending. Maybe there is nothing but darkness when the story ends.
We were three women. Three friends. We had goals, hopes and dreams. We had careers. Two of us had boyfriends. We owned houses. We all had love. Then I made these… wigs. I gave them to my two friends. The three of us put them on. The wigs were supposed to make things better. But something went wrong. Like the nation we were trying to improve, we became backward. Instead of giving, we took.
Walk with me. This is the story of How the Smart Woman Tried to Right Her Great Wrong.
Follow along with the project on Fiery Film’s Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube.
