[LLG] Lights, camera, annyeong: How comedian brought Korean dialogue to Nollywood

Kemi Ikuseedun, better known as "Kemz Mama," is a Nigerian actor, comedian and content creator who turned her love for Korean drama into a groundbreaking project.

Her debut film, "My Sunshine," is a high school-based romance that blends the emotional charm of a classic K-drama with the vibrant culture of Nigeria. Released on YouTube in October, the movie has racked up over 1 million views so far, gaining attention from both Korean and Nigerian audiences.

Although "My Sunshine" had primarily aimed for Nigerian audiences, Ikuseedun was thrilled to see it gain attention in Korea. “I’ve seen reactions from Koreans on YouTube and TikTok, and they’ve been so supportive,” she said in an interview with The Korea Herald.

“This project was about celebrating Korean culture while also telling a story that felt Nigerian,” said Ikuseedun, who wrote, produced and starred in the film. “Hearing Koreans appreciate that effort was the best reward.”

The film’s warm reception in Korea stood in contrast to some of the feedback it received at home in Nigeria. While many Nigerians, especially K-drama fans, embraced the movie, others criticized it for leaning too heavily on Korean elements.

“Some people said I should’ve just made a fully Nigerian movie,” she shared. “But for me, this was about merging two cultures I love. Why not mix the two?”

Love story with K-drama roots

Ikuseedun’s first encounter with K-dramas was the 2007 series “Boys Over Flowers,” the story of an ordinary girl who becomes entangled with a group of wealthy high school boys, eventually falling in love with one of them.

“It made me fall in love with the way Koreans tell stories -- so emotional, so pure. I wanted to bring that same feeling to audiences in Nigeria,” Ikuseedun said.

Following her passion for Korean content, the actor started experimenting with Korean-inspired skits on her social media channels. The positive response encouraged her to dream bigger. “I’d always loved the name 'My Sunshine,' and I thought, why not turn it into something more? That’s how the journey began.”

”My Sunshine” follows Charis Benson -- portrayed by Ikuseedun -- who is a Nigerian Korean student at a Korean school in Nigeria, where the cultures and languages of Korean, English and Yoruba intersect. Amid this unique environment, she becomes entangled in a love triangle of her own with her crush Gerald and his jealous ex, Yewande, leading to a dramatic prom night.

“These days, a lot of movies feel so heavy and complicated,” she said. “But I wanted to go back to something simple -- the kind of love story where you just sit back, enjoy and feel good. That’s what K-dramas do so well.”

The film takes viewers into a world where two languages -- Korean and English -- mix seamlessly, blending emotional moments that will feel familiar to K-drama fans with the cultural richness of Nigeria.

Ikuseedun also ensured the film celebrates her own West African culture, using Yoruba dialogue alongside Korean phrases. “It wasn’t about abandoning Nigerian culture,” she explained. “It was about merging the two worlds in a way that felt natural.”

Made with passion, empty bank accounts

Behind the scenes, making “My Sunshine” was no easy task. As a first-time producer, Ikuseedun faced financial challenges from the start. She and her best friend poured all their savings into the project, leaving them with nothing by the end of filming.

“At one point, my bank account was empty,” she said bluntly. “My best friend and I literally spent everything we had to make this movie happen."

The film was shot over just 12 days due to budget constraints, which meant long hours on set and little room for mistakes.

Initially, Ikuseedun had hoped to release “My Sunshine” on a platform like Netflix or Amazon's Prime Video, but feedback that the film was not “indigenous enough” for Netflix led her to release it via YouTube instead. “At first, I was disappointed,” she said. “But looking back, it was the right decision. Releasing it on YouTube made it accessible to so many people, and the response has been amazing.”

Another major challenge was the language barrier.

The cast, made up of well-known Nigerian actors like Chinedu Ikedieze and “Mr. Macaroni” Adebowale "Debo" Adedayo, had to learn basic Korean for their roles. “We had two scripts — one in English and one in Korean,” Ikuseedun said. “The actors had to understand both, not just to say their lines but to deliver them with the right emotion.”

Rehearsals were intense. The group practiced Korean phrases for two weeks before shooting began, and even on set they spent hours working on their pronunciation. For many of the cast, it was their first time speaking Korean.

“It wasn’t easy,” Ikuseedun admitted. “There were moments when our Yoruba accents came through in the Korean lines, but honestly, that just made it feel more authentic. It wasn’t about being perfect — it was about trying.”

She worked with fluent Korean speakers on set to guide the cast. “We had about three or four people who spoke Korean fluently, and they helped us a lot,” she said. “By the end of filming, even my Korean got better!”

Though “My Sunshine” was challenging to make, Ikuseedun sees it as just the beginning of her journey as a filmmaker. She hopes to visit South Korea someday, especially its historical sites that she has admired from afar through K-dramas.

“I’d love to see those places in person -- the palaces, the traditional settings. Korean culture is so rich, and I want to experience it for myself,” she said.

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