In her feature-length screenwriting debut, “Everything Is New Again”, Nicole Chikwe writes a story that explores womanhood, choice, and the beauty of new beginnings.
Nicole Chikwe’s first feature screenplay, “Everything Is New Again”, arrives with the assurance of a writer who knows exactly what she wants to say. Produced by Inkblot and directed by Naz Onuzo, the film marks a confident debut into long-form storytelling. One rooted in emotional intelligence and clarity. Chikwe writes this romance story with the intuition of a natural storyteller, blending tenderness as she explores love, reinvention, and female agency.
What makes “Everything Is New Again” especially resonant is how Chikwe’s handled telling the story of an older woman’s life as worthy of romance, desire, and narrative centrality. In her hands, age becomes a lens through which growth, vulnerability, and self-authorship are examined with grace. The film unfolds as a persuasive reminder that new beginnings can happen at any stage of life. Chikwe’s debut is thoughtful and signals the arrival of a writer whose voice is both soulful and empowering.
In this exclusive interview, Chikwe shares how writing the film allowed her to confront socially ingrained ideas around age, desirability, and who is afforded the freedom to start over. She speaks to a broader message behind the story by inviting viewers, particularly women, to embrace choice and self-definition without apology. She encourages them to see their lives as limitless rather than fixed to cultural limitations.
Congratulations on the premiere of your film, “Everything is New Again”. How have you been feeling since its release?
Honestly, I feel so humbled being able to see and experience words that I had written on my phone and on my laptop on the big screen. I felt really overwhelmed being at the premiere, with people watching and reacting in real time and seeing them enjoy it. This is something I’ve always wanted to do, and I’m so grateful, and it’s definitely been a big win for me.
“Everything is New Again” marks your first feature film and your first solo screenwriting project. What moment made you feel ready to make that leap into long-form storytelling?
I’ve felt ready since I finished my first project. For that, I worked alongside a writing team, which allowed me to hone my skills. That experience shaped me, and that gave me the confidence to take on something myself and take on something a little bit longer. The first thing I had ever worked on was “Under the Influence”, which is a TV show, and the run time for each episode was about 32 minutes. Which definitely isn’t as long as a feature film. When I got approached by InkBlot to write this, I honestly thought I was going to be part of a writer’s team again.
But when I got to the meeting, they kept saying “when you do this”, and I questioned them, as in “Us as a team”, and they confirmed that it was just me. I was scared for two seconds, and then I had to remind myself, “I can do this, I’m adequately prepared”.
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You’ve built a strong career working as a model, content creator and influencer. Do you feel like your digital platform has helped shape the way you approach writing and working on this film?
Absolutely. The way I create content is really about storytelling. I’m interested in more than just aesthetics; I’m very interested in what the story is. I’ve always loved stories, even when Instagram was mostly about photos. I would always try to have a captivating caption. In fact, the caption is what I was more excited by when creating a post. Having had the opportunity to write and share stories on my platform definitely helped me be prepared for this because I’ve been writing stories and telling stories for such a long time. I think that working on the screenplay wasn’t too much of a stretch for me because I’ve used my platforms for many years now to explore my writing.
The film explores a relationship between an older woman and a young man. What drew you to this dynamic, and why did it feel important for you to explore?
The story was actually formed loosely by Naz Onuzo, who’s the director and also is one half of the production company Inkblot. So when I got on the project, I already had the premise of the film. I was so drawn to it as soon as I was told what it was. My answer was an immediate yes because it is a story centred around a woman. I love women-led or focused stories that have always been my thing, and hopefully that will always be my thing.
With the script, I’ve always loved the idea of new beginnings. I love the idea of a woman being able to start again whenever they choose. In the relationship, I liked the idea of the woman being older; the character is 45, and I just turned 38. It’s one of those things that isn’t really explored enough, particularly on film, because older women aren’t really seen as an interesting story dynamic or even given the opportunity to be seen as the lead character.
I wanted her to feel beautiful and desirable and just able to start again. As someone who is continually looking for the next thing to do, I don’t ever feel limited by my age. I feel like I can pick up whatever I want, whenever I want. And so to have gotten a story where the woman was older and starting again and looking good and feeling good, I felt that it absolutely sounded like a project that I wanted to be a part of.
In this film, how did you try to challenge and reframe traditional narratives around romance and age?
I actually had the option to navigate how I wanted the story to end… (I don’t want to give too much away.) But I loved the ending of the film, and I think that most people really appreciated the ending of the film because it felt real.
The main thing I wanted to challenge was that older women can be desirable. When I look at myself, I have felt more and more beautiful the older I have gotten. So I really love the idea of an older woman in her mid-40’s being desired, particularly by someone younger. And then I also think that another thing I wanted to challenge was that young men are all unserious. I think that it’s easy to generalise and paint them with the same brush, but I thought that it would be interesting to have a younger man be intentional. To have him pursue an older woman with actual seriousness, as opposed to it being a game, which I think would become a traditional trope.
Also, I thought it would be interesting for it to be the man who’s trying to be serious and then the woman is trying to decide what it is she wants to do, as opposed to it being the other way around.
Do you have any favourite scenes in the film?
I think my favourite scenes are the interactions between FI, who’s the lead and her best friend. While I’m very excited that it’s such a sweet love story for me, some of the greatest love stories and romances in my own life are the love stories that I have with my friends. I really wanted to highlight the intimacy of female friendship. A lot of the time, they’re having open, vulnerable conversations, and they are lying in bed together. They are so close and often have a lot of cheeky moments where they banter, but the love and intimacy are there. It was important to me to highlight how beautiful and intimate female friendship can be and how that is a love story in itself.
What was the most surprising or challenging part of seeing your script come to life on screen?
I didn’t experience anything particularly challenging negatively. The most challenging thing when working on scripts is learning to let the story go. I wrote a story that Inkblot will be able to execute and take the ideas that I had to make it even better. For me, it was also waiting from when I had handed in the script last year in August and watching the film in January. I didn’t want to see any of the clips of the film; I wanted to see it in its entirety.
That was the most challenging part: just trying to wait and be patient, watch the story play out, and just experience it for the first time with my family, my friends and my loved ones at the premiere. Having all these amazing people around me from the film industry, huge stars, people who contributed so positively towards the Nigerian film industry, and just being able to watch it with them was the best possible outcome. It was stressful waiting to see how it would turn out, but I’m so glad that I did.
Are there any films and scripts that inspired you to go into film?
There are too many films to count because I’ve been a film lover for the longest time. I’m a huge cinephile, and I am inspired almost every day by what I watch because films are such a moving art form. I find films to be really inspiring. I may like films more than I like books, but I don’t know. But I really love films and books because I love stories.
As a woman telling a story that centres on female desire, agency, and growth, what conversations were you hoping to spark among audiences?
I was hoping to spark a conversation around agency. The idea of being able to rediscover yourself at any age, being able to press forward even when people think it’s a terrible idea, and not being worried about what people have to say. This doesn’t necessarily apply strictly to romance. I think that, especially as a Nigerian woman, people overburden us with this need to be perfect and to meet their expectations, whatever those may be.
It was very important to me to be able to share with women that you can make your own decisions and choose, and it doesn’t really matter what people have to say. As long as you are doing something that feels real and true to you. It can be down to your career choice. It could be just pursuing whatever fulfils you. You should always try your best to go for it and not be too worried about people. That was the main thing I wanted people to take away from this film: that this message applies across the board, not just with relationships.
February and Valentine’s Day often focus on idealised romance. How do you think “Everything Is New Again” offers a different perspective on love and connection?
There’s an unusual kind of dynamic around a younger man openly celebrating love. I think the film definitely has a lot of conventional romance; it’s very cute, and watching them interact is really, really sweet and romantic. I think it’s a perfect film for Valentine’s. However, I think there’s a vulnerability and a truthfulness, particularly towards the end, that just makes it stand out as a romantic film.
How has this project changed the way you see yourself creatively, now that you’ve stepped fully into filmmaking?
The way I see myself has changed quite a bit. I love that I’ve been able to do this, but I’ve also always known that I have the capacity to be able to do it. It’s definitely made me feel more confident in my creative ability. It’s a process that stretched me, and I feel that I’ve grown so much from it.
This is my first foray into Nollywood. I’ve been able to learn so much that I’ll be able to take it into my future projects. In terms of my overall confidence in myself, it definitely helps to complete this project. Having done it makes me feel good knowing that I kept a promise to myself. I also feel really proud of myself, setting a goal and being able to accomplish it. My confidence in tackling difficult tasks has grown, which motivates me. I love to challenge myself. This was a challenge, and I’ve done it. I’m ready for the next challenge. I also feel humbled by the feedback I’ve gotten regarding the story and the script, which makes me grateful and happy.
What are you most excited about in the future, and where do you see your career evolving from here?
I am definitely looking forward to writing more feature films. I really enjoyed this, and I would love to do some more scripts. Also, I would like to produce. And I would like to play a more significant role in putting the story together because the script is just one very small part of the entire process. I would like to be a little bit more involved in the project in the future. But for right now, I’m definitely enjoying writing scripts. I’m already working on my second project, which is really exciting. I can’t wait to do more films and be able to tell some of our amazing Nigerian stories and hopefully export them to the world.
