Yao

Yao is a 13-year-old living in a village in northern Senegal who sets out to meet the French actor Seydou Tall, his idol. When Seydou travels to Dakar to promote his new book, visiting his country of birth for the first time, Yao runs away and covers 387 kilometres alone to reach the capital. Moved by the boy's determination, Seydou abandons his professional obligations and drives him back towards his village. The journey across Senegal leads the actor to reflect on the roots he left behind.

Philippe Godeau directed the film, his second feature after 11.6 (2013), from a screenplay by Agnès de Sacy. Godeau produced alongside Omar Sy, who plays Seydou Tall. The cast also includes Fatoumata Diawara, Lionel Louis Basse as Yao, Germaine Acogny, Alibeta and Gwendolyn Gourvenec. A co-production between Senegal and France, the adventure comedy-drama runs 103 minutes.

Released in January 2019, the film took in around 4 million dollars worldwide. On IMDb it holds a rating of 6.4 from roughly 1,400 votes, while on TMDB it sits at 6.6 from about 282 votes, a modest and broadly similar reception across both audiences.