Ifa Therapy is the story of mental illness in relation to tradition.
It is believed that Africans had answers to virtually all the problems they had before the advent of the white men, including psychological ones. This is the subject matter of this short film of 20 minutes.
In Ifa Therapy, there is the problem of suicide which transcends generations. It is believed that children who grow into adults with suicidal tendencies inherited such from their parents. And for there to be a solution, Ifa, the oracle with the answer to all human questions, must be consulted. With civilization, however, a lot of these things have changed.
Ipadeola, in foregrounding this fact, presents us with a contrast between orthodox and traditional medicine by showcasing two characters – Akanni and his son, Akin. Akanni is faced with suicidal tendencies that he overcomes by seeking the help of the Ifa diviners while his son, Akin, faced with the same tendencies resorts to orthodox medicine. When he, unfortunately, finds no repose in psychology, he retraces his steps to tradition.
Ipadeola in explaining his motivation for producing the film explains that ‘it’s an experiment on my flagship of the TradoFiction genre, a genre that I have hidden under to explore suicide, depression and hereditary traits. And more so, cultural renaissance.’
Ifa Therapy is a Film Freeway project written and directed by Moses Ipadeola, produced by Ojewale Ojediran, Meduoye Ayoade Demilade and Moses Ipadeola. Actors featured in the film include Temilolu Fosudo, Bisi Ariyo and Sinmilolu Hassan, among others.
You can watch Ifa Therapy here.
