Nigerian filmmaker Hassan Oyindamola Ahmed, popularly known as Hassan Tha Kreator, is taking aim at bureaucracy, power and institutional inaction in his new short film, The Committee, which is set to begin its journey through the film festival circuit.

Produced by Juju Film Studios and Y Film Studios, the film centres on a community committee tasked with solving what should be a simple problem, a pothole.

However, what begins as an easy decision gradually becomes a cycle of meetings, arguments, procedures and power struggles, with committee members becoming more invested in the process than in solving the problem.

At the centre of the story is Kunle, a young committee member who believes the pothole can simply be fixed. His desire to take action, however, puts him at odds with a system seemingly determined to discuss the problem rather than solve it.

The premise of the film is summed up in its central line: “47 meetings. Zero results. One pothole.”

Ahmed said The Committee serves as a reflection of a broader reality in which bureaucracy can overshadow action.

“Although the story is set around a community committee, the idea reflects a much larger reality. The committee becomes a microcosm of a system where bureaucracy can sometimes overshadow action,” Ahmed said.

Rather than presenting the subject as a conventional social drama, The Committee employs comedy and satire, with the characters taking their roles seriously even as the situation around them becomes increasingly absurd.

The film stars Eric Nwanso, Kanyin Eros, Sim Baba Jatau, Riyo David, Ifeanyi Okondu and Adekanmbi Nimi. Ahmed serves as writer, director and editor.

At its core, the film examines what happens when institutions become better at discussing problems than solving them.

While some characters are focused on authority and procedure, others are concerned with documentation and committee politics. Kunle, meanwhile, represents the individual who believes that sometimes the only way to solve a problem is to act.

Ahmed said the film is not intended as a lecture on bureaucracy but as a work that can stimulate conversations among audiences.

“I want the film to travel, start conversations, and allow different audiences to interpret it through their own lived experiences,” he said.

The filmmaker believes the film’s central theme can resonate beyond Nigeria, despite its specifically Nigerian setting, as bureaucracy, delayed decisions and institutions struggling to act are not unique to the country.

The Committee is currently in the submission process for festivals that align with its themes.

The film was developed as a collaborative production, with Ahmed working closely with the cast and crew to build the fictional world of the committee.

The production team includes cinematographers Samuel Yusuf and Collins Onuwa, production manager Sandra Somorin, location manager John Oghota and behind-the-scenes filmmaker Marvin Onuwa.

Ahmed also highlighted the chemistry and timing of the cast as important to the film’s comedy, particularly as the humour depends on the characters maintaining a serious attitude while the situation around them becomes increasingly ridiculous.

Reflecting on the production, he said seeing the performances, cinematography, production design and dialogue come together was one of the defining moments of the project.

“That’s one of those moments as a filmmaker when you realize that something that existed in your head is becoming a real film,” he said.

The film’s official trailer is scheduled for release on October 1, 2026, ahead of its festival run.

The trailer is expected to introduce the committee and its characters while offering audiences a first look at the film’s comedic tone and the increasingly chaotic effort to deal with an ordinary pothole.

With submissions underway, Ahmed hopes The Committee will entertain audiences while encouraging them to reflect on experiences where meetings and discussions continue without concrete action.