IShowSpeed, Breakwater Studios Partner with Obamas to Bring Documentary 'The Eyes of Ghana' to Theaters (Exclusive)
Streaming superstar IShowSpeed has teamed up with Breakwater Studios and Higher Ground, the company of Barack and Michelle Obama, to bring Ben Proudfoot's upcoming documentary "The Eyes of Ghana" to theaters for a one-night-only screening on October 28. Participating exhibitors include Regal, AMC, Cinemark, select theater chains and independent cinemas. "The Eyes of Ghana," which […]
Streaming superstar iShowSpeed has teamed up with Breakwater Studios and Barack and Michelle Obama's Higher Ground to bring Ben Proudfoot's upcoming documentary The Eyes of Ghana to theaters for a one-night run on October 28. Participating exhibitors include Regal, AMC, Cinemark, select theater chains and independent cinemas.
The Eyes of Ghana, which premiered at the 2025 Toronto International Film Festival, follows Ghanaian cinematographer Chris Hesse as he struggles to save more than 1,000 films depicting Africa's struggle for independence in the 1950s and 1960s as he suffers from vision loss. The tapes were hidden for decades after the 1996 overthrow of Kwame Nkrumah, Ghana's first president and leader of the African Liberation Movement. RELATED STORIES CNN and Google sign multi-year partnership to welcome development of benign eye-generating AI to US scripted space: 'US is a new opportunity'
IShowSpeed said, "It is a great honor to be a part of 'Ghana Eyes' and help showcase this extraordinary piece of history. When I visited Ghana this year, I felt a deep connection to Ghana, and learning about Chris Hesse's work deepened my understanding of the country and its people." "His camera captured the birth of African independence, and his determination to preserve these images has ensured that future generations can witness them for themselves. I am humbled by his legacy and honored to help bring his story to the community." Popular in Variety
IShowSpeed's involvement in "Eyes of Ghana" is just the latest example of digital creators mobilizing their audiences to movie theaters. In January, YouTuber Mark Fischbach, aka MarkPlayer, directed, starred in, and self-distributed the sci-fi horror film The Iron Lung. His fans not only called theater chains to encourage them to screen the film, but also showed up in droves on the day of the release. The film opened with $17 million and finished with $50 million worldwide against a $3 million budget.
"Chris Hesse has spent more than six decades documenting and preserving an extraordinary chapter in Ghana's and Africa's history," said Ethan Lewis, head of nonfiction at Higher Ground. “Higher Ground is proud to partner with IShowSpeed, Ben Proudfoot and Breakwater Studios and this successful team of artists to bring this remarkable story to theaters on October 28. "Eyes of Ghana" speaks to the power of film to preserve our collective memory and the responsibility we share in ensuring these stories reach the next generation.
In addition to IShowSpeed, the film is produced by Proudfoot, Nana Adwoa Frimpong, Moses Bwayo, Anita Afonu, Brandon Somerhalder, Lewis and Vinnie Malhotra. Executive producers include Barack and Michelle Obama, Sir John Akomfere, Kofi Amo-Gottfried, Paula Madison, Don and Leanne Gill, Max Johnson, Jonathan E. Lim, Michael Risley, Josh Rosenberg, David Treatman, and Esther Wojcicki.
Tickets and local showtimes are available at Check out the trailer below.