JOY (2020) | Drama Short Film | MYM 

Thank you to our Fully Focused family for always supporting us! We wanted to approach this topic with a new lens. The film reflects on how the streets often claim young men for themselves, only to spit them out in the form of prison, death, and trauma. Whilst most young men unwillingly volunteer themselves, how does this affect the ones called to care for them? African women are often depicted as strong, proud, independent, and rigid characters. JOY shows how the choices of a son affects his mother, and in shining a light on the toll taken on those we perceive as the strongest; it aims to deter young people from pursuing this perilous path. Thank you to everyone who has watched our film and please share if it resonated.

Who else recognised her from top boy? Edit: thanks for the likes guys!! Her acting is on POINT btw

Watching the pain of a mother really cuts deep 😪😪

Shout out to our parents who have tried their best...not without mistakes off course...but life could have been very different...God bless them 🙏🏾

Feels bad mother’s leaving there home country to gives their kids a better life but they end up in gangs

i got chills through my whole body when she screamed. PLEASE dont put your parents through this type of hell.

May Allah protect all of us from situations like this. Ameen. No parent deserves to go through this much pain.

Absolutely breathtaking. I'm in tears. The casting for this was spot on - great actors. I'm heartbroken.

I hope you guys enjoy it. We put everything into writing and making this

14:14 the cinematography here though... it's like him and his mum are drifting apart! Amazing!

the slap from the mom went like the speed of light

I hope this touches a lot of youths in this country, STOP KNIVES 🔪 LISTEN AND OBEY YOUR PARENTS, all these exclusive brand wear you can still get it with good education and bright career forget about who’s your friend because there are no friends just devils in disguise ready to render you life useless. I hope you guys watch this to reflect on life and a lesson to be taught.

The fact that she bought him new shoes from footasylyam as well bruv this was mad deep

The part where she actually went to go switch the gift she bought made my heart drop. The way she ran in the emergency room with the footasylum bag around her neck just made me want to cry. I love how MYM played with my emotions in this one and related it to the struggles of African mothers who are single and how most of them are cleaners but still manage to give their children a better life

I saw a clip of the film on IG, came here for the full thing and wasn't expecting what I saw. Also, I wasn't going to cry, my eyes were just watery from allergies.

15:50 David’s last words to his mum “I love you too mum” 😭💔

I just knew David would lose the accent as soon as there was time-skip

The lady has been in two shows in both of dem her son is involved with gangs

This is so deep, gets me sad. African families flee violence and poverty only to fall victim to violence on the streets. There has got me be a solution to this

I feel your pain. At age 17, my son decided to get in the game. It took tough love but I didn't falter. I gave him tough love and today at 27, he has a job, a child and 1 on the way. I got to give love to his wife. She is a rock. We are family ❤️💙❤️

I was brought up with good parents who fought hard for me to not go on that path and not get involved in any gangs or trouble. Although I hung around with people like that, I knew that whatever was happening over there, I'd be staying right here. I don't want to do anything that'll break my family's heart. You're meant to bury your parents, not the other way around. This is a good message tbh. Some kids need a dad in their lives cause a mom can do so much. Mums don't get the credit they deserve.

the actor that played older david is amazing !!

Come from another country for a better future just to die for pride......stay safe love your families! Remember love is all we got

That was amazing acting. The mothers cry at the end. You could hear it in her voice, absolutely broken hearted. Well done.

This touched me in soo many ways, I buried my only brother and two of my cousins, the pain is real. Hearing my mum and my Aunties cry’s of pain of loosing their sons was the hardest thing ever 😓😓

The acting in this is absolutely breath taking! MYM never fail to impress. Loved the cinematography too! Thank you for sharing this creative - I need to be in one of these short films one day. Lastly, Happy Nigerian Independence to all my people too

I love this woman

This gives me hope that society can steer away from Hollywood

This kind of film makes me reflect on single mothers jobs and duties, it's heartbreaking seeing this especially when your own mother singlehandedly raised you and 2 other brothers, Shoutout to all the mums who do their best to keep us of the streets❤️

This is so sad because this happens so much around this country around london sometimes it's not the kid it's the area and the people he is adapted to.

I felt for that mom. Speechless. A tragic story captured beautifully from a mother’s perspective

RIP GB RIP INCOG RIP SHOWKEY RIP MK RIP JOJO RIP GRINNA RIP CULPRIT RIP LATTZ RIP LIL CJAY RIP CJAY RIP ACE RIP CHROME RIP MELLO RIP K1 RIP LAMPZ RIP EDDIE RIP CHICKEN RIP KAOS RIP NEESHA RIP KOBI RIP PROMISE RIP LIL JUMBO RIP AJAY RIP BIS RIP MULLA RIP GORA RIP THUMPZ RIP STOMPZ RIP ABZ RIP OC RIP ZINO RIP PACE RIP T WIZZ RIP TEE ROSE RIP TINO RIP JASON RIP Everyone who lost their life.

That’s what I’m talking about 👏🏿👏🏿that’s how you show that we are more than a statistic there’s levels to people’s lives .🙌🏿

This lady makes the Nigerian ascent beautiful . Thanks for giving us courage to remain original

Wow...this is really well-made and incredibly heartbreaking to watch. So many African families come to this country with heaps of hope and optimism, only to have it shattered when the reality of their environment takes over and produces devastating consequences. It was really powerful to see it depicted from the parent’s point of view. Being in denial at first because you still see them as your baby who you raised so well. Then suddenly realising that despite this, external influences continue to have an effect no matter how hard you try. It’s kind of scary really. It shows how difficult it is to resist the harsh reality as there’s only so much you can do as a parent. The only options you have to truly escape are to move back to your home country or elsewhere in the UK and both of those things cost money, so you have no choice but to stay...but it’s hard to move forward when everything in your environment is dragging you down.

The pain from loosin a child is a pain that can’t be put into words. I wouldn’t wish this kinda pain on anybody

Just give her a part where her son grows up to be an accountant or doctor and live happily ever after, I know it sounds boring but it’s better than crime and looking over your shoulder all the time. Believe me prison is not a place for anyone no matter what.

This is one thing I would never put my mum through. Anything to do with gangs or violence nowadays never ends well.

This is very emotional to watch and it got me in tears that she put all her effort in to protect her son and it all went away awe. Don't put your parents through hell because they raised you up and some people still go through this as a single mum to protect ur children from all of the gangs/violence going on.This is breath taking and i thank Mym for doing this video it really means a lot to show what goes on in lives like that when u take part in a gang. #Mym you are the best.

Absolutely heartbreaking man. Mothers break their back for their kids. She just went to change the trainers😭💔. No one should ever feel the pain of losing a child.

From storytelling, production, cinematography and the cast everything was beautifully done. Thank you for sharing this with us well done to the whole cast and crew👏🏿👏🏿❤️❤️

Everytime this women plays a role it’s so so touching

I love when things are filmed local

Ahh this film is amazing made me cry

This deserves more than a million views

When they called him DSav I knew it was chaaaiiiiii💔

I’m here from Instagram saw a short clip so I had to come for the rest

I'm only half way through, but this woman's acting is so good, so much emotions

It must be hard keeping your kids safe especially in London these days on all these estates

This hits different just to think this happens in real life and it does never bring a tear to ur mothers eye

God no go shame our parents especially our mothers. We re all going to make it n make them proud 😍😍

I work in an alternative provision unit in London and teach students who have been expelled from mainstream schools. I've witnessed many beautiful, young, bright-eyed boys become unrecognisable to their family and peers. I've witnessed parents come into school in floods of tears because their child has gone missing and probably involved in county lines. I've seen promising young students end up in jail severing sentences for murder at the tender age of 16. All because of gang affiliation. The work that needs to be done is enormous, but we cannot give up. We cannot afford to give up on these children. If you're a parent, know who your children's friends are immediately when they get into Secondary school. Make sure that someone is always home with them if you work evenings or late nights. If you're a single mum raising boys, source out good male role models, and get them involved in extracurricular activities. Monitor the time they spend on their phones, hell, take their phones away when they get home. Have a routine in place at home. And make time for them over the weekends. Find out what they enjoy, and if you have the means, get them involved in what they're passionate about. Be in the know about youth culture: the music they're listening to, the films they're watching. These are delicate years. Take your eye off the ball, and the streets can take your child. But it doesn't have to be that way. You can do it, you can take control before it's too late. We can't afford to be ignorant of what's happening in their lives, we can't assume that our children are different from those "other children". We have to do our best and be as involved as we can in their lives so that this film doesn't become their reality.

Happy Independence day all my Nigerians 🇳🇬🇳🇬🇳🇬

If I was the parent, as soon as I see any foolishness your getting sent back home😒

Watching this knowing so many families have lost loved ones under these circumstances is just heart breaking

what makes it so deeeep is the reality of it - this isn't just a production but a narration of what happens...I hope it opens eyes man, this pain can never fade away it will always be there, especially the fact that she's a single parent. Single - meaning it's just her...too deep! well done to everyone that worked on portraying real life

Really did break my heart the ending and had me crying Joy was such a good mum that loved her son so much and she lost him to gang violence

This is why we especially teenagers have to be very careful out in public especially with gangs because you never know what can happen and this just proves that no one is safe. 💔😔

I am so proud of you MYM, this is a excellent film, reflecting on the problems that black parent and their children are facing on the streets of London today. May God protects all our young children.

What a storyline! 😭 Well done Wall of Productions! 👏🏼 seeing it from a mother’s perception is truly heartbreaking 💔

This is amaizng so heartbreaking. It a shame when a parent wants to create a better future for the child and loose such hope due to gang violence. Love this ❤️💯

Well done we really enjoyed this short film. Watching the love of a mother and understanding her pain now that’s deep. She really tried but to no avail. 💔💔

David as a kid is a brilliant actor

The thing what mad me cry the most is the way how she brought him new trainers and prayed for her child the amount of effort then her son ends up on a death bed the generation is getting weaker these kids arrr not living the full life because of these gangs

This was a masterpiece. Seeing mother's go through immense pain is always tough. Well done to the all the cast and crew.

Heartbreaking! This is reality in these London streets. Amazingly written and directed.

7:49 Sister gladys from meet the adebanjos If yk you are a man of culture

This was so painful to watch but it was amazingly shot, the storyline is so accurate.

I had to reassure my self it’s just a movie I felt every scene to the core , so emotional. The actors where phenomenal in each part. This saddens me for parents who have to be in these situations in real life, street don’t play fair at all. 💔🙏🏾

what a phenomenal lead actor, she deserves awarding

Brilliant short film, the music at the start was beautiful but, the storyline behind it was so sad and it really got to me. It's horrible what goes on with crime especially when a mother or father is trying to protect their child. I really hope that this short film will get so many people's attention and share it across the world and spread the awareness. Incredible work from the cast and crew.

I dropped some tears, I hope this kind of thing will finish some in our community. No parents deserve that, sometime they come from far in order us to have a better life. Please bros, let knives and Gang stuff. The same energy you put in these, let's put it in constructing thing. Let's make our parents proud and let's show to the world that we can do great things as well. "Because it's true, God makes you genius." Thanks brothers and sisters. I love you.

a mother is something that u cant replace no matter what

wow the pain in her sorry hit deep. beautifully shot, beautifully acted. absolutely amazing. WALL OF pull off some bangers and MYM kudos to you too

Hearing the mothers cry at the end cut deep. Absolutely chilling to witness and hear

People really need to stop living like this it’s breaking mothers hearts

The sad thing about this is the fact that parents actually go through this😔

Man like reece una

Epic. This has so many levels.. it shows you how powerful your environment is.. it shows you how glamorous the road is.. it shows you how he was being groomed by a few key thing's.. it shows you how heartless people really are.. it shows you how being in denial is a Recipe For Disaster!!!.. it shows you this is the reality of our youth's and it shows you another Mother Crying. How many more life's are we gonna lose? MYM. A Million Blessings!! 👏🏾💙

This was extremely hard hitting, makes me think about my Son and making sure that he doesn’t fall into the gang lifestyle

Amazing depiction of life through the eyes of a mother. Accompanied by the many nuauces and challenges that are often overlooked. GREAT FILM! Big up the whole team on this one. #JOY

Very powerful story, got man dropping some tears at the end.

This is heartbreaking to watch a life of a mother must be really tough💔

I watched with my daughter she had this movie in a workshop at her school, and when I star watch God I saw the suffering of the mom starting I Start to crying and I just cry till the end, its real life we living at the moment we can just pray 🙏 And I give my congratulations to Corey and the all the actors who did this short movie they all deserve 👏👏

Serious question: How does a parent prevent their child from going down this path? Such a moving short. Not a second wasted.

Momma Joy is EXTREMELY UNrealistic, with her head in the sand! She believes if she closes her eyes... ignore, and denies then it could NOT be true. If we all lived like that, whew!!😱 The actress in this was phenomenal!! I think that we all have expectations for our children: We teach, guide, and provide for them and pray that they listen to US instead of to the noise of the streets, which unfortunately is far too often a more power call than we can ever make...another awesome film MYM!!!

This is truly heartbreaking 💔, the story was put together so well

Powerful video , Shows the generation who is growing up to pick their life wisely and their thoughts

This film cuts very deep. I swear, our sons don't know how much we love them. If they did, they just might choose a different path. Where are the fathers, and other family, or are they judging and defining the mothers who are struggling alone, raising their children in a often unforgiving and covertly hostile environment. Too many of us feel the pain.🌼🌻🌺🏵️🌸🌹🌷🦋💕

This is beautiful work! This is what we need to see more of.. Films that have us asking the right questions like: Where is the male or father figure in this journey? How did it get this far without a mother noticing? Can you be a strong Christian/believer and still be very unaware of your own contribution to your problems? What really is the solution? Does the location of upbringing matter and how is the govt contributing to this? It really tells a very close personal story of my own too so thank you for speaking for many and to many!

We need one of these films on Netflix

Jolade is the best Nigerian actor I have ever seen she actually feels Nigerian

This was amazing, lord please 🙏🏾🙏🏾🙏🏾🙏🏾 for our children 💯💯💯🙏🏾👍🏾👍🏾👍🏾......!!!

Her kid died in both topboy and this!!! SHe truly is a top actor god bless her

Amazing film.

The cinematography was brilliant! Great work team! Sucks that this does happen every single day.

This was very bone chilling takes you through the shoes of a black London Parent losing her children to gang violence.. I live in the states & these UK short films are amazing the acting is so crisp

This short film was great! Showing the reality of what happens to some youth living in the uk when getting mixed with the wrong crowd/gangs. It's devastating for both perspectives, the parent and child. More time the mum moved abroad just to better her son's life but instead: due to growing up in the environment surrounding with gangs etc. Changes their mentality, soon resulting as a matter of life or death. The struggle mums/parents go through for their children. May God Continue to protect us/the youth and keep us safe.

this shows how much your mum loves you sh'll be ther for you at anytime any place

Got fully invested in the David & his mums relationship in such a short film .. amazing job 🙏🏽 beautifully edited & graded