Accomplished actress Lupita Nyong’o, who played Nakia in Black Panther and starred in Steve McQueen’s 12 Years A Slave, is making her producer debut with the Sudanese drama film Goodbye Julia. In addition to being Nyong’o’s producer debut, it is the first-ever Sudanese feature to screen at the Cannes Film Festival.

Nyong’o mentioned in a statement on Wednesday, “Goodbye Julia is a powerful representation of the conflict happening in Sudan right now, which affects millions of lives across Eastern Africa. Mohamed Kordofani and the filmmakers present the issues in a beautiful, deeply personal way. I’m honored to lend my voice to help bring this film’s message to the world.”

The film centers around a former singer who seeks redemption for causing the death of a southern man by hiring his wife to be her maid. Besides having a fascinating plot that has already intrigued viewers, it also takes place during the last years of Sudan as a united country. The film is already a huge success, scoring a 100% on Rotten Tomatoes very close to the film’s release date. 

The film garnered the Freedom Prize in the Un Certain Regard section at Cannes with additional accolades at festivals such as Chicago, Cyprus, France’s Festival Paysages de Cineastes, Barcelona’s War on Screen, and Amsterdam’s Septimius Awards. As for Nyong’o, she will soon appear in the Quiet Place spinoff A Quiet Place: Day One.