LSU alumni sibling duo Ugonna Njoku and Uzoamaka Njoku recently ventured into the world of filmmaking to create their first documentary.
“The Social Boot: Boundaries Unchained” began as a vision that Ugonna “Ugo” Njoku had while navigating the COVID-19 pandemic as an LSU student.  He eventually convinced his sister, Uzoamaka “Uzo” Njoku, to be involved, and the film became a collaborative project.
“I started conceptualizing this in 2020,” said Ugo, the 2022 graduate who doubled majored in psychology and sociology at LSU. “I got a boost of confidence from my friends and sister, who went on to be huge parts of the process.”
The film was shot throughout the southern United States and features a vibrant collection of music, spoken word and narrations. The Social Boot was an established creative collective, which led the Baton Rouge natives to involve longtime friends in the process.
“Community was a major aspect of this project. Our entire crew is people that we’ve went to school with or people that we’ve known for years,” said Uzo, who earned her bachelor’s in psychology from LSU in 2023. “Everybody poured into the project and trusted our vision. My favorite part of creating this was our filming sessions back in 2022.”
Ugo and Uzo credit their lived experiences as major inspirations for the project. Their Nigerian American heritage and the influence of their parents, who documented their formative years using a film camera, are ever present in the subject matter.
“That adds another layer of the ‘why’ for storytelling”, said Uzo. “We want to emphasize the importance of personal stories and how they are to you.”
The circumstances that the Njoku siblings navigated heavily influenced the direction of the documentary. Their father works in the medical industry, so through his patients, they were exposed to different stories and circumstances. This was the formative experience that got Uzo into storytelling and helped her see its importance.
“We have early memories of navigating natural disasters, and Baton Rouge is a heavily redlined city,” explained Ugo. “Just being a black kid in Louisiana and observing these things subconsciously fueled the things we’ve been building and creating.”
Major themes of the film are health, shared identity and resilience. Parallels between their West African heritage and the culture of South Louisiana is an example of the interconnectedness that the film aims to highlight.
“I want people to realize that we are more similar than we’re lead to believe, and that similarity can help us find power in our situations,” said Ugo. “Resilience is a major theme, as well as the ways our circumstances affect our health; it is a health film, but it’s not going to be told in a clinical tone.”
With Ugo earning his master’s degree in public health from Johns Hopkins, and Uzo set to earn her master’s in public health from Tulane in May, the two plan on continuously taking their creative advocacy to new heights. This film is a captivating step of a long-term mission.
“I’m excited about the way these films can go and the ways it can touch people,” said Uzo. “It isn’t your typical approach to the issues we’re discussing, but I feel like people will start to digest these concepts or build upon them.”
To keep up with this project, follow @thesocialbootnet on Instagram.

Gallery • 4 Photos

A still from the film, provided by The Social Boot.