Photos: THE EYES OF GHANA to Screen Nationwide with IShowSpeed as Producer

Breakwater Studios and Higher Ground announced a partnership with cultural phenomenon IShowSpeed to bring THE EYES OF GHANA to theaters across the United States and Canada for one night only on Wednesday, October 28. IShowSpeed has joined the film as a producer, credited under his name Darren Watkins. Directed by two-time Oscar winner Ben Proudfoot and executive produced by President Barack Obama and Michelle Obama, the acclaimed documentary follows a Ghanaian cameraman's extraordinary mission to rescue a hidden film archive documenting the birth of African independence. IShowSpeed shared the film's official trailer today.

Shot in part on IMAX 65mm film, THE EYES OF GHANA comes to the big screen for a celebration of cinema and its power to preserve history and bring generations together.

Participating exhibitors include Regal, AMC, Cinemark, additional select theater chains and independent cinemas. Tickets and local showtimes are available at TheEyesOfGhana.com.

At just 21 years old, IShowSpeed has built an audience of more than 200 million followers across platforms, making him one of the most recognizable figures in entertainment. A two-time Streamer of the Year, he was named the 'World's Most Influential Creator,' by Rolling Stone in 2025 and one of TIME Magazine's Most Influential Creators in 2026.

'It is a great honor to be part of THE EYES OF GHANA and help bring this extraordinary piece of history to the big screen. I felt a profound connection to Ghana when I visited this year, and learning about Chris Hesse's work deepened my understanding of the country and its people,' said IShowSpeed. 'His camera captured the birth of African independence, and his determination to preserve those images has ensured that future generations can witness it for themselves. I'm humbled by his legacy and proud to help bring his story to my community.'

The 90-minute film follows veteran Ghanaian cinematographer Chris Hesse, who served as personal cameraman to Kwame Nkrumah, Ghana's first president and a leading voice for African liberation. As his eyesight fades, Hesse races against time to rescue more than 1,000 films capturing the continent's struggle for independence in the 1950s and 60s. Hidden for decades after Nkrumah's overthrow in a 1966 coup, the archive becomes a bridge between generations as Hesse entrusts young Ghanaian filmmaker Anita Afonu and her classmates with his legacy and a simple charge: 'keep on filming.' Their work builds toward a public screening at Accra's historic Rex Cinema. Five years ago, after a chance encounter, Hesse asked fellow documentarian Proudfoot to tell his story.

For IShowSpeed, the connection to Ghana is personal. During his 'Speed Does Africa' tour earlier this year, the 21-year-old creator visited Accra, told viewers he was 'back home' and shared that his ancestry traces to Ghana. At the Kwame Nkrumah monument, which features prominently in the film, he recreated the pose of the same leader Hesse spent years filming. Now, the creator whose travels reach more than 60 million YouTube subscribers is inviting that audience to discover the filmmaker who captured Ghana's history nearly seventy years before his visit.

Following a breakout year for YouTube creators at the box office, the partnership brings that momentum to documentary film. IShowSpeed, Higher Ground and Breakwater Studios are calling on audiences to fill theaters on October 28 for a shared encounter with untold African history and the power of cinema to preserve it.

'Chris Hesse spent more than six decades documenting and safeguarding an extraordinary chapter of Ghanaian and African history,' stated Ethan Lewis, Head of Non-Fiction at Higher Ground, 'Higher Ground is proud to partner with IShowSpeed, Ben Proudfoot, and Breakwater Studios and this accomplished team of artists to bring this remarkable story to theaters on October 28th. THE EYES OF GHANA speaks to the power of film to preserve our collective memory, and to the responsibility we share in making sure these stories reach the next generation.'

THE EYES OF GHANA opened the TIFF Docs program at the 2025 Toronto International Film Festival and had its international premiere in competition at the BFI London Film Festival. Its honors include the Special Jury Prize and Best Documentary at the Africa International Film Festival in Lagos, Audience Awards at the Hamptons International and Annapolis Film Festivals, and Heartland Film Festival's Jimmy Stewart Legacy Award.

Cinematographer Brandon Somerhalder shot THE EYES OF GHANA across multiple formats, including sequences captured on IMAX 65mm film with a camera provided courtesy of IMAX. Somerhalder also photographed the Oscar-nominated 2025 documentary Come See Me in the Good Light, earning an American Society of Cinematographers Award nomination for his work. It was the only film nominated in both the Academy's and ASC's documentary categories in 2026.

In addition to IShowSpeed (as Darren Watkins), the film is produced by Proudfoot, Nana Adwoa Frimpong, Oscar-nominated documentarian Moses Bwayo, Anita Afonu, Brandon Somerhalder, Ethan Lewis and Vinnie Malhotra. In addition to President Barack Obama and Michelle Obama, executive producers include Sir John Akomfrah, Kofi Amoo-Gottfried, Paula Madison, Dan and Lian Gill, Max Johnson, Jonathan E. Lim, Michael Risley, Josh Rosenberg, David Treatman and Esther Wojcicki. The original score from Academy Award winner Kris Bowers, Proudfoot's frequent collaborator, was recorded with the Chineke! Orchestra and Ghanaian musicians at Abbey Road Studios.

About IShowSpeed

IShowSpeed, born Darren Watkins Jr., is an American creator and entertainer whose work connects audiences across borders and cultures. A Cincinnati native with more than 200 million followers and subscribers across platforms, he has built a global community through livestreams that invite viewers to experience the world alongside him. His international broadcasts have made cultural discovery a shared experience, bringing people from different backgrounds together in real time. He was named to the inaugural TIME100 Creators list and ranked No. 1 on Rolling Stone's 2025 Most Influential Creators list. His honors also include consecutive Streamer of the Year awards in 2024 and 2025.

About Higher Ground

Higher Ground was founded by President Barack Obama and Michelle Obama. From scripted and unscripted television, feature films, and animated series to podcasts and digital series, the company tells widely acclaimed stories across all platforms. Higher Ground has earned 3 Academy Award nominations (winning the Oscar for American Factory), 12 Emmy nominations, and 3 Grammy nominations, producing celebrated projects like Leave the World Behind, and Crip Camp. The company's hit podcasts include IMO with Michelle Obama & Craig Robinson, The Wonder of Stevie, and the Peabody Award-winning Fela Kuti: Fear No Man. For more information on Higher Ground projects, visit HigherGroundMedia.com.

About Breakwater Studios

Breakwater Studios is a two-time Academy Award-winning filmmaking company dedicated to short documentaries and the work they inspire. Founded in 2012 by Ben Proudfoot and based in Los Angeles, the studio won Oscars for The Queen of Basketball and The Last Repair Shop and earned a nomination for A Concerto Is a Conversation. Its films have been honored at Sundance, Telluride, Tribeca, SXSW, the Emmys, the Peabody Awards, and Cannes Lions, where The Final Copy of Ilon Specht won the 2025 Film Grand Prix. Alongside THE EYES OF GHANA, Breakwater's 2026 releases include Netflix's The Baddest Speechwriter of All, co-directed by Proudfoot and Stephen Curry and winner of the Sundance Short Film Grand Jury Prize; HBO Documentary Films' The Buffalo Miracle; and Victor Gabriel's I Got My Brother, an SXSW Audience Award winner executive produced by John Legend and released by L.A. Times Studios. Learn more at breakwaterstudios.com.