For the past month and a half, I haven’t been working.
I’ve been living a documentary dream.
Somewhere along the line, this project stopped feeling like a job and started feeling like my 9 to 10. Literally. We roll out by 9am and roll back in around 10pm. But guess what? I’ll still do it again tomorrow.
Slide 1 – Day 1 vs. Day 30. The drip? Still dripping.
Slide 2 – Me, quietly losing my mind (in the best way) listening to two veteran directors work their magic. The excitement in my spirit? Ehn, no be here.
Slide 3 & 4 – Different locations, same love. Just us doing the thing.
Slide 5 – After a long rain, stepped out on the hotel balcony to admire Mother Nature. She showed out.
Slide 6 – Fully set up… talent didn’t show. We packed up and rolled out. Film life.
Slide 7 – Talent finally shows up! We set up again. No sleep til… well, you know.
Slide 8 – My 2nd cam op, Naked, looking for what’s not missing.
Slide 9 – My POV behind the lens.
Slide 10 – Gear ready. Mouths? Also ready. (Crew therapy session in progress.)
Slide 11 – Still dazzled up. Stress or no stress, we show up nice.
Slide 12 – Told my gaffer Niyi we had to wear trad for the governor’s shoot. Bro showed up in starched lace. Governor noticed them first. Said they stood out. Legendary behavior.
Slide 13 – Niyi setting up in his trad. Iconic.
Slide 14 – Another setup. Pure chaos. Pure joy.
Slide 15 – Me setting up. At this point, my steeze isn’t even steezing upward anymore.
Last slide – No idea what I was doing. Just living.
P.S. We haven’t wrapped yet. Still in the chaos. Still having fun.
Shooting on the Sony Burano — some days with DZOFILM lenses, some days with Canon Sumire. Both? Absolute favorite glasses right now.
My mother is proud of me.
My father too (even if he really doesn’t care lol).
And… I’m proud of me too.
🎬 Let the story continue.
Calmest Monday morning in Lagos since 1960.
This morning, through my waywardness of finding what’s not lost, I hovered across the most populous market in the city. And for the first time in a long time… silence.
No chaos. No mad rush. Just stillness.
Monday in Lagos is supposed to be the day every dreamer, every hustler, every 9-to-5er, every mogul leans into, like their life depends on it. Because we all know: what your Monday looks like shapes what the rest of your week becomes.
But today? Today was calm.
I found myself asking a thousand questions:
Is the dream no longer valid in this city?
Has the hope been shattered?
Or is God preparing us for something so big that even Lagos needed to catch its breath first?
Maybe the calm isn’t the absence of dreams.
Maybe it’s the pause before the loudest breakthrough.
Either way, I’m sha watching. Still hoping. Still hustling.
Happy dreamer’s Monday, Lagos.
#monday #market #fyp #cinematic #dji
You have food in your fridge and you're still complaining. I was at the dump site for 2days in Gwuagura.
I watched them dig through dirt as the trailers dumped fresh waste.
Hands moving fast.
Eyes searching.
Praying to find something.
anything to sell, to eat, to survive.
I stood there filming, and before I knew it, tears were streaming down my face.
I watched humans dig through mountains of waste as trucks emptied fresh loads.
Searching. Hoping.
Believing that today, something valuable will appear from the dirt.
standing in the filth, I wept.
Because to them, this dump is opportunity.
To them, this is survival.
This is their daily bread.
Right there I realized:
Some people's greener pasture looks like this.
They wake up every morning to scavenge, just to see evening.
And you're out here stressed about things that don't even matter.
While you're scrolling, stressing about those things that doesn't matter, someone is digging through trash hoping to eat today.
Be thankful. Be grateful. You don't know what God has carried you through.
This is their reality. This is my frame. Hamad Wil.
Shot on @sonyalpha fx3
Last year, @danielamao_@cento.montana and I, set out on a road trip that didn’t promise comfort, only truth.
From Cotonou, through Togo, and into the heart of Northern Benin, we chased stories instead of destinations.
Every day, the road gave us something new to listen to.
A face.
A rhythm.
A silence that spoke louder than words.
We camped in forests where night sounds felt ancient.
Met strangers who became guides.
Lived on soaking garri for days.
Moved endlessly, documenting not just places, but moments that refused to be staged.
Atakora.
A vast mountain range stretching across Northern Benin.
Home of the Otammari people.
The Otammari hunters are both protectors and providers — living at the intersection of survival and spirituality.
Their lives speak of balance,
man and nature,
land and spirit,
sound and silence.
Through The Atakora, we didn’t just document culture
we listened to it.
We followed its pace.
We let it lead.
This was a wild journey.
Unfiltered.
Uncomfortable.
Honest.
And some stories can only be told when you’re willing to walk into them.
— The Atakora.
Shot on @sonyalpha fx3
New short film now live on YouTube.
Traveled with @cento.montana and @hamadwil to northern Benin Republic and Togo to document the Otammari people, their way of life, rituals, and culture.
S.O to my bro @kent_frames 🤝
Shot on the Nikon ZR.
Thank you @nikonasia
Watch the full film on YouTube.
Link in bio.
#nikonzr #shortfilm #cinematicvideo
Proud to have Directed the Photography of Oraimo space arc snackables
A specially curated design by @oraimoclub and @burnaboygram
Had a blast one with the entire team.
#commercial #oraimo #cinema #filmmaking
@nike x @iretizee99 x @streetsouk
I had the chance to work as the Director of Photography on this documentary, and honestly, it was a journey.
From rhythm to resistance, i really poured my heart into this one, and having the solid G.O.D Studios crew with me made it even more special.
Check it out @nike SNKRS website, this is one for the books.
#HamadWil #GODStudios #NikeStreetouk #VisualJourney
Allow me to reintroduce myself—Ajibade Hammed Babatunde Ajadi Williams, but you can call me Hamad Wil. Born in the heart of Ibadan, Oyo State, I am an African storyteller at my core. To everyone who has journeyed with my art until this moment—thank you. Your support keeps the story alive.
Photo credit - @jcasparfilms
#art #blackandwhite #cinema #sony #filmmaker #storyteller #naija #africa #onelove #ourstorybyus #love #nigeria
