"Potato Potahto": How Shirley Frimpong-Manso put a hilarious spin on divorce

Shirley Frimpong Manso talks about the inspiration behind "Potato Potahto," casting and choice of music.

Shirley Frimpong-Manso is a Ghanaian filmmaker, who is popular for films such as "Potomanto," "Devil in the Detail" and "Love or Something Like That."

For her latest film titled "Potato Potahto," Shirley decides to treat a familiar but serious topic in a different way.

The movie tells the story of a couple, who decide to still live in their matrimonial home even after they split up. Their decision becomes a problem after the husband, Tony, played by OC Ukeje,  brings in an attractive female house help. To get back at him, his ex-wife Lulu, played by Joselyn Dumas, hires a hunky young man to help her out.

The inspiration behind “Potato Potahto” was really just wanting to write something fun: A romantic comedy that treats a serious topic differently.

"When you think of divorce and what we have seen on divorce, it’s usually angry people fighting," Shirley said to Pulse Nigeria.

"How would it be to treat divorce from a romantic comedy angle? I just wanted to write something fun and exciting, and be able to get people to laugh and have some serious sensitive moments, whilst we are all thinking about relationships and divorce and how they affect us."

Casting is indisputably one of the most important ingredients of a well-made film. A cast that aligns with a director’s vision for the project will always be more authentic.

For Shirley, casting starts whilst she is still writing a script, and then extends to her calling the intended actors.

"There are faces that come to me, and by the time I'm done writing, I've zeroed to one or two faces that I think would be good for it."

To bring the "Potato Potahto" story to life - Joselyn Dumas plays Lulu, OC Ukeje plays Tony, Joke Silva plays Mrs Wilson, Chris Attoh plays Gabby, Nikky Samonas as Mirian, Kemi Lala Akindoju as Frances and Blossom plays Fred.

For the character Tony, Shirley was in search of an actor, who could bring the drama as well as the comedy, thus OC Ukeje.

"I wasn't looking for a straight-up comedian, I needed someone who could handle it and be sensitive about it. I was also looking for a husband who would get sympathy, and I see that that happened.

He [OC Ukeje] could seem so helpless, and you need an actor who is skilled enough to get that out of you."

Prior to pairing Joselyn Dumas with Ukeje in "Potato Potahto," Shirley had worked with both before on "Love or Something Like That".

"I was hesitant to put them back together even though I know that they have great chemistry. I went round in circles for a bit and came back to her because it just seemed like it was too obvious.

"I was looking for beautiful - not just beautiful, but somebody who had that presence on screen. She needed to be stubborn, and even though Joselyn is not that stubborn in real life, she's able to bring that to bare on screen."

Shirley has been a huge fan of Joke Silva forever and was looking forward to the opportunity to have her on her set.

"I was looking for somebody who could play funky and still when she comes down to being stern, she could also bring that to bare.

And for me, it was just obvious. I remember we put Aunty J there, we put Joselyn there, and they just looked like they have been mother and daughter forever."

A character that would definitely surprise viewers is Chris Attoh as Gabby; a character different from any other they have ever seen him play.

"I knew that he had that funny bone in his body and I was looking for a handsome guy, who obviously would give OC some problem. And for some reason, Chris had worked out and he was looking so buff."

"Potato Potahto" also pairs "Catch.er" actors OC Ukeje and Blossom Chukwujekwu together as best friends. Aside from Shirley's decision to explore another side of the latter, the filmmaker took advantage of the existing off-screen chemistry between the duo.

"I needed it to be easy. The first thing that was important was chemistry between the cast, and once I got that out of the way, everything was easy."

"Lala is also another person that I have always wanted to work with. I think it just came with the package. Once I got Aunty J, I knew it was easy to get Lala," she added about getting the talented Akindoju on board.

The choice of songs in "Potato Potahto" offers viewers an experience outside the film, using a number of unfamiliar but pleasant songs such as OC Ukeje's debut track.

"I’m thinking of “Potato Potahto” the film, and I’m thinking of it without the music, and I know that perhaps 30 or 40% of the excitement would be gone from it."

For Shirley, the most important thing that music does for a film is that it creates a mood. For instance, where you have a lovemaking scene and put the right music, you enhance it , taking viewers into different places.

"We deliberately picked the songs in "Potato Potahto," and I’m happy to say that most of those songs you had never heard before . They are fresh music from a lot of talented singers, who haven’t even put a lot of their works out there."

The producers of the film intend to release the songs separately for people to purchase. They also hope to probably, shoot two or more videos for the songs.

Shirley had all she needed: a great cast, the right music, stunning location and a unique story idea. To achieve her end goal, she just had to make a mental note not to make the topic too serious.

And to achieve this, the supporting cast, especially, the mother-in-law, had an important role to play.

"Typically, mothers-in-law in a lot of African stories are these evil people, who want to take their sons away from their wives, and for whatever reasons, marry them off to other people.

"It was very important that we steered away from that, but again still maintaining the very important elements about the fact that she has a very good relationship with her daughter.

"We see when she is upset about the choices that her daughter makes. We see when she puts her foot on the ground. We see when she is trying to instigate things and the humour."

So, what will the audiences be thinking after they have seen "Potato Potahto"?

"First of all, they come out with a very warm feeling. They come out with a sense of hope, which I think is so important in the world within which we are living where things are very dark," Joke Silva told Pulse Nigeria.

"And then afterwards, it suddenly hits them, the messages they have been hit with. The quality of the work, the total package, the quality of the cinematography; all the elements come together very nicely. So people love that.

At the end of the day, the subliminal messages come in and I love that."

Shirley Frimpong-Manso's "Potato Potahto" has screened at film festivals such as  Cannes Film Festival, Silicon Valley African Film Festival,  Durban Film Festival, British Urban Film Festival among others.

It is set to debut in Nigeria on November 24, 2017.