Four Things Learnt From Opening Night At AFRIFF

Over the weekend, the Africa International Film Festival (AFRIFF) opened with pomp and pageantry as filmmakers, movie lovers and stakeholders across Nollywood flocked to the impressive Cube 65 for the opening night of the global film festival.

Away from the excitement and showbiz on the night, here are five takeaways from the opening night of Africa’s biggest film festival:

Lagos Film City will cover 100 hectares of land:

Last month, the Lagos state government held the ceremonial groundbreaking of the Lagos Film City in Ejinrin, Epe Lagos.

One interesting detail Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu revealed about the Lagos Film City at AFRIFF was that it would cover over 100 hectares of land and it is an investment worth over $ 100 million.

France is investing €100 million in Nigeria’s creative sector:

Since 2018 when the French President, Emmanuel Macron visited the New Afrika Shrine in Ikeja, Lagos, the French embassy has time and again shown its interest in the creative sector of Nigeria’s economy.

So it came as no surprise when the French Ambassador to Nigeria, Emmanuelle Blatmann, announced that the French Agency for Development recently had co-signed a financial agreement with the Federal Government to invest € 100 million in Nigeria’s creative sector.

In her words, she was making “small shakara” with only €100 million. This is the kind of shakara I hope to make one day.

5G will open new frontiers in filmmaking:

Technology no doubt plays a vital role in filmmaking today and according to the Chief Marketing Officer of MTN Nigeria, Adia Sowho, the adoption of 5G technology in filmmaking offers more than just faster internet speed but will help open up new frontiers for filmmakers.

She added that 5G will reduce production headaches with faster rendering, improve upload times for expansive stories, increase collaborative efforts across borders as well as aid distribution of Nollywood stories worldwide.

MTN will honour 11 Nollywood Icons at AFRIFF Globe Awards:

As one of the sponsors of AFRIFF this year, MTN Nigeria will honour Nollywood icons who have made significant contributions to the Nigerian film industry and will celebrate them for their achievements.

Recipients of the MTN AFRIFF honours are Richard Mofe Damijo, Funke Akindele, Nse Ikpe-Etim, Femi Adebayo, Adedimeji Lateef, Tobi Bakare, Ini Edo, Kunle Remi, Blossom Chukwujekwu, Chioma Chukwuka and Chidi Mokeme.

Now in its 12th edition, the festival welcomes government delegates, media enthusiasts, international movie studios and audiences worldwide over one week to a beehive of activities that range from masterclasses to panel discussions, film screenings and an awards night.