The 93rd Academy Award ceremony was the first Oscar ceremony held since the pandemic. The toll that the covid-19 pandemic has had on the entertainment industry was evident in the sitting arrangement which was starkly different from that of the years prior.

However, the pandemic didn’t stop the ceremony from showcasing some of the best films made within the last year.

Two African films, The Man Who Sold His Skin and My Octopus Teacher were showcased in the event which was held in the early hours of today.

A few weeks ago, we wrote about our thoughts and expectations for the Best International Feature Film category of the Oscar awards.

Five films were nominated in that category of which the Tunisian film, The Man Who Sold his Skin, was one of them. While we stated that it generally ticked many boxes for us when compared to the previous year’s submissions that failed to get nominated, we also stated that it would face some real opposition from the Danish Film, Another Round.

So, we weren’t really surprised that Another Round took home the award for Best International Feature Film for the 93rd Academy Awards ceremony.

So, you might ask, “Why did Another Round win the Oscars?”. Have you seen the movie? You might find it counter productive that we answered a question with a question. Don’t blame us; blame our nationality.

But on a serious note, understanding why Another Round won the Oscars for Best International Feature Film for 2021 starts and ends with spending the time (a little below 2 hours) to see the movie on Hulu.

Where The Man Who Sold His Skin was brilliant, Another Round was a living, breathing masterpiece of a film. Where the former was artistic and edgy, the latter was life-affirming and a little unsteady on its feet.

Another Round, or Druk as it is known in Denmark, is a film about life, friendship and alcohol. The synopsis is based on Norwegian psychiatrist, Finn Skårderud’s theory that humans are born with an alcohol blood level 0.05% too low. Another Round is a test on what it would mean to get drunk and stay drunk consistently every day.

Directed by Thomas Vinterberg, Another Round is the fourth film from Denmark to win the Oscars in this category, while The Man Who Sold His Skin is Tunisia’s first time around. So, Denmark has some experience on what it takes to win that prize. It also helps that Vinterberg is internationally known for the purist filmmaking movement, Dogme 95.

The Man Who Sold His Skin is a good movie but Another Round is better, in our opinion and deserves its win.

While The Man Who Sold His Skin didn’t win in its category, the other African film, My Octopus Teacher, took home the prize for Best Documentary Feature.

My Octopus Teacher is a South African Documentary by Craig Foster, Pippa Ehrlich and James Reed. We loved My Octopus teacher and are not surprised it won the Oscars. However, we were surprised that it didn’t even make it into the nominee list for the Best Documentary Feature category in the African Movie Academy Awards that held earlier in the year.

My Octopus Teacher was a no-brainer for us here at AMDB.tv and if it hadn’t won the Oscars, it can be rest assured that it won in our hearts. My Octopus Teacher was up against the likes of The Mole Agent, Collective, Crip Camp and Time.

My Octopus Teacher tells the story of a human-octopus friendship starring South African film-maker and diver, Craig Foster, as he explores an underwater kelp forest near Cape Town, South Africa, where he meets and forms a friendship with an octopus over her 18-month lifespan.

My Octopus Teacher, which started as a personal video project was 10 years in the making. The film is everything a film should be. It is uplifting, life-changing and it has heart. We say a big congratulations to the producer and directors of this great feature. They deserved their win.

Prior to the Oscars, My Octopus teacher had already garnered several awards in 2020 including the Critics Choice Documentary Awards for Best Science/Nature Documentary and Best Cinematography, the BAFTA Awards for Best Documentary and the PGA Awards for Best Documentary.

The documentary also won the Grand Teton Award at the Jackson Wild Media Awards where it received 8 nominations and the Best Feature Film Award at the EarthX film festival.

You can see my Octopus Teacher on Netflix.

We hope to see more African projects compete on an international level.

Tell us in the comment section what you think about the just concluded 93rd Academy Awards ceremony and what African filmmakers can do to get better.

The announcement for the 93rd Academy Awards nominations was recently made on the 16th of March 2021. The announcement saw the likes of “Nomadland”, “Mank”, “Minari”, “The Father,” “The Trial of the Chicago 7″, “Judas and the Black Messiah,” “Promising Young Woman” and “Sound of Metal” nominated for Best Picture.

While most of the buzz is focused on the Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor and Best Actress spots, we at AMDB.tv are looking forward to the Best International Feature Film category.

The nominees for the 93rd Academy Awards for Best International Feature Film are

“The Man Who Sold His Skin” (Tunisia)

“Another Round” (Denmark) 

“Better Days” (Hong Kong)

“Collective” (Romania) 

“Quo Vadis, Aida?”(Bosnia and Herzegovina) 

We are happy to see that Tunisia made the list considering that last year, despite the 10 Oscar submissions from Africa for the Best International Feature Film category, none was nominated.

In our “Things that African filmmakers can learn from the 92nd Academy Awards” article last year, we outlined some of our thoughts on why Parasite won and how African filmmakers can apply some of the lessons learned in that experience.

The Tunisian movie, The Man Who Sold His Skin, seems to tick most of the boxes for us. The film is artistic, fun, tragic and most importantly, it tells a bizarre story that is somehow still relatable. Hence, we are not surprised that it managed to do what last year’s Papicha and other African movies tried to achieve. This, in our books, means progress.

Directed by the female Tunisian director, Kaouther Ben Hania, The Man Who Sold His Skin stars Yahya Mahay, Monica Bellucci, Koen De Bouw and Najoua Zouhair.

The other contenders in the Best International Feature Film category are no slouch either. The Man Who Sold His Skin will especially find itself up against Another Round which, frankly, we think is a brilliant movie.

The Man Who Sold His Skin marks the first ever Oscar nomination for Tunisia and if it wins, that will be a win not just for Tunisia but for Africa.

The 93rd Academy Awards ceremony is expected to hold on the 25th of April 2021 at the Dolby Theatre and Union Station in Los Angeles.

A while back, we made our predictions from a list of contenders on who the winners of the 16th African Movie Academy Awards come 20th of December 2020 would be.

Finally, those winners were unveiled at the first virtual AMAA awards ceremony, held in Lagos, Nigeria. The event was broadcast live on social media platforms due to the COVID-19 protocol on public gatherings.

Some of our predictions were spot on, while others were a clear miss. However, we must say that we were surprised by the Best Film win by The Milkmaid even though it made our list of most anticipated movies to see in 2020.

Without much ado, here are the 2020 African Movie Academy Awards winners.

AMAA 2020 AWARD FOR BEST FILM

The Ghost and the House of Truth

The Fisherman’s Diary : Our Prediction

Knuckle City

The Milkmaid

40 Sticks

Desrances

This is Not A Burial, It’s a Resurrection

Gold Coast Lounge

AMAA 2020 AWARD FOR BEST DIRECTOR

Akin Omotoso – The Ghost and House of Truth

Enah Johnscott – The Fisherman’s Diary

Jahmil X.T Quebeka- Knuckle City

Desmond Ovbiagele- The Milkmaid

Victor Gatonye- 40 Sticks

Appoline Traore – Desrances

Jeremiah Lemohang Mosese – This is Not A Burial, It’s a Resurrection: Our Prediction and Winner

Pascal Aka – Gold Coast Lounge

AMAA 2020 AWARD FOR BEST ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE

Jimmy Jean-Louis – Desrances

Gabriel Afolayan – Coming From Insanity

Kang Quintus – The Fisherman’s Diary

Bongile Mantsai – Knuckle City: Our Prediciton

Alphonse Menyo – Gold Coast Lounge

Eyinna Nwigwe – Badamasi

Robert Agengo/Mwaura Bilal/Andreo Kamau/ Xavier Ywawa – 40 Sticks

Darrin Dewitt Henson – Zulu Wedding

AMAA 2020 AWARD FOR BEST ACTRESS IN A LEADING ROLE

Joselyn Dumas – Cold Feet

Mary Twala Mhlongo – This is Not A Burial, It’s a Resurrection: Our Prediction and Winner

Stella Damasus – Between

Meg Otanwa – For Maria: Ebun Pataki

Zenobia Kloppers – Fiela’s Child

Elvina Ibru – The Bling Lagosian

Girley Jazama – The White Line

Kelly Khumalo – Zulu Wedding

AMAA 2020 AWARD FOR BEST ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE

Arabrun Nyyeneque – 40 Sticks

Adjatey Annang- Gold Ghost Lounge

Narcissus Afeli – Desrances

Cosson Chinepoh – The Fisherman’s Diary

Ramsey Noah Jnr – Living in Bondage: Breaking Free: Our Prediction and Winner

AMAA 2020 AWARD FOR BEST ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE

Maryam Booth – The Milkmaid: Our Prediction and Winner

Chairmaine Mujeri – Mirage

Linda Ejiofor – 4th Republic

Ndano Tramanse – The Fisherman’s Diary

Tina Mba – The Set Up

Faniswa Yisa – Knuckle City

Evelyne Juhen – Desrances

AMAA 2020 AWARD FOR BEST YOUNG/ PROMISING ACTOR

Faith Fidel – The Fisherman’s Diary: Our Prediction and Winner

Naomi Nemlin – Desrances

Chimezie Imo – Nimbe

Swanky JKA – Living in Bondage: Breaking Free

Wayne Smith – Fiela’s Child

Cina Soul – Gold Coast Lounge

Anthonieta Kalunta – The Milkmaid

AMAA 2020 AWARD FOR BEST FIRST FEATURE FILM BY A DIRECTOR

Coming From Insanity – Akinyemi Sebastine Akinropo

Living in Bondage – Ramsey Noah Jnr. Our Prediction

Bling Lagosian – Bolanle Austen- Peters

For Maria: Ebun Pataki – Damilola E. Orimogunje

The Zulu Wedding – Lineo Sekeleoana

A Taste of Our Land -–Yuhi Amuli –

Mirage – Malaika Mushandu

The White Line – Desire Kahikapo

AMAA 2020 AWARD FOR BEST DOCUMENTARY

January 15, 1970: Untold memoir of the Biafran war- Nigeria

Journey to Kenya – Sudan

No Gold for Kalsaka – B/Faso: Our Prediction and Winner

Days of Cannibalism – South Africa

Finding Sally – Ethiopia/Canada

The letter – Kenya

Becoming Black- Togo/Germany

Influence – South Africa

EFERE OZAKO AMAA 2020 AWARD FOR BEST SHORT FILM

Baxu & the Giant –Namibia: Our Prediction

Songs About My Mother – South Africa

Idi Amin’s Boat – Uganda

Yahoo – Nigeria

SEMA (Speak Out) – DRC

The Letter Reader – South Africa

A Canvas for a Visa – Senegal

After the War – Egypt

JUBRIL MALAFIA AMAA 2020 AWARD FOR BEST ANIMATION

From Here To Timbuktu – Kenya

Malaika (The Warrior Queen) – Nigeria/USA: Our Prediction

A Special Gift – Mozambique

The legend of Lwanda Magere – Kenya

FTFO – Nigeria

Sankofa – Cote D’Voire

I am Living In Ghana Get Me Out of Here – Ghana

A Gugie Day – Nigeria

AMAA 2020 AWARD FOR BEST DIASPORA SHORT

Boxed – USA: Our Prediction and Winner

June 14 – USA

Egun – Brazil

Brick By Brick – USA

AMAA 2020 AWARD FOR BEST DIASPORA DOCUMENTARY

Once In Hundred Years – USA

Revolution From Afar – USA

Meeting My Father – France

Becoming Black – Germany: Our Prediction and Winner

If Objects Could Speak – Germany

AMAA 2020 AWARD FOR BEST DIASPORA NARRATIVE FEATURE

Aiyai: Wrathful Soul – Australia: Our Prediction

Lola – USA

A day With Jerusa – Brazil

Black and Blue – USA

Joseph – Barbados

MICHAEL ANYIAM OSIGWE AMAA 2020 AWARD FOR BEST FILM BY AN AFRICAN LIVING ABROAD

The Eagle’s Nest – Olivier Assoua

Two Weeks in Lagos – Kathryn Fasegha

Idemuza – Olaoye Amoke

Between – Daniel Adenimokan: Our Prediction

No Shades – Claire Ayiam Osigwe

OUSMANE SEMBENE AMAA 2020 AWARD FOR BEST FILM IN AN AFRICAN LANGUAGE

The Milkmaid – Nigeria: Our Prediction and Winner

Knuckle City – South Africa

This is Not A Burial…it’s a Resurrection – Lesotho

Fiela’s Child – South Africa

The White Line – Namibia

AMAA 2020 ACHIEVEMENT IN COSTUME DESIGN

This is Not A Burial, It’s a Resurrection: Our Prediction and Winner

The White Line

Heroes of Africa; Tette Quarshie

Ibi (The Birth)

Foreigner’s God

AMAA 2020 AWARD FOR ACHIEVEMENT IN MAKE-UP

Knuckle City: Our Prediction

Ratnik

The Milkmaid

1929

Heroes of Africa; Tette Quarshie

AMAA 2020 AWARD FOR ACHIEVEMENT IN SOUNDTRACK

The Fisherman’s Diary

Coming from Insanity

Zulu Wedding

Gold Coast Lounge: Our Prediction and Winner

For Maria: Ebun Pataki

Walking with Shadows

Living in Bondage

Mirage

AMAA 2020 AWARD FOR ACHIEVEMENT IN VISUAL EFFECT

Heroes of Africa; Tette Quarshie

Desrances

Knuckle City

Living in Bondage: Breaking Free

Badamasi

Ratnik: Our Prediction

Foreigner’s God

A Taste of Our Land

AMAA 2020 AWARD FOR ACHIEVEMENT IN SOUND

Fiela’s Child

Knuckle City

Children of The Storm

The Ghost and House of Truth

For Maria: Ebun Pataki

40 Sticks

Desrances

Gold Coast Lounge: Our Prediction

AMAA 2020 AWARD FOR ACHIEVEMENT IN PRODUCTION DESIGN

Ratnik

Knuckle City: Our Prediction and Winner

Zulu Wedding

Perfect Picture: 10 Years Later

This is Not A Burial, It’s a resurrection

Foreigner’s God

Gold Coast Lounge

The Ghost and the House of Truth

AMAA 2020 AWARD FOR ACHIEVEMENT IN CINEMATOGRAPHY

The Ghost and House of Truth

The Fisherman’s Diary

Knuckle City

The Milkmaid

40 Sticks

Desrances

This is Not A Burial, It’s a Resurrection: Our Prediction and Winner

Gold Coast Lounge

AMAA 2020 AWARD FOR ACHIEVEMENT IN EDITING

Perfect Picture: 10 Years Later

The Ghost and House of Truth

Knuckle City: Our Prediction

40 Sticks

Desrances

AMAA 2020 AWARD FOR ACHIEVEMENT IN SCREENPLAY

For Maria: Ebun Pataki

The White line

4th Republic

The Fisherman’s Diary: Our Prediction and Winner

Knuckle City

40 Sticks

Perfect Picture: 10 Years Later

3 Days To Go

AMAA 2020- NATIONAL FILM AND VIDEO CENSORS BOARD (NFVCB) AWARD FOR BEST NIGERIAN FILM

Cold Feet

Living in Bondage: Breaking Free

4th Republic

For Maria: Ebun Pataki

The Bling Lagosian

Coming From Insanity

The Ghost and The House of Truth: Our Prediction

The Milkmaid

Leave a comment below telling us your thoughts on the just concluded 2020 African Movie Academy Awards winners

We are a week away from this year’s AMAA award ceremony slated for 20th of December 2020. The list of contenders was announced on the 30th of November 2020 with most nominations going to Jahmil X. T Quebeka’s Knuckle City, Desmond Ovbiagele’s The Milkmaid and Akin Omotoso’s The Ghost and The House of Truth.

This year’s nominee list is quite interesting with some anticipated entries clearly omitted (Here’s looking at you, My Octopus Teacher). We have gone through the list and we have come up with our predictions of who the likely winners will be.

Our predictions are based on the general quality of the movies, the general consensus out there and our own little biases on how these movies made us feel.

Having said that, let’s dive into our predictions for the 2020 African Movie Academy Awards.

AMAA 2020 AWARD FOR BEST FILM

The Ghost and the House of Truth

The Fisherman’s Diary

Knuckle City

The Milkmaid

40 Sticks

Desrances

This is Not A Burial, It’s a Resurrection

Gold Coast Lounge

AMAA 2020 AWARD FOR BEST DIRECTOR

Akin Omotoso – The Ghost and House of Truth

Enah Johnscott – The Fisherman’s Diary

Jahmil X.T Quebeka- Knuckle City

Desmond Ovbiagele- The Milkmaid

Victor Gatonye- 40 Sticks

Appoline Traore – Desrances

Jeremiah Lemohang Mosese – This is Not A Burial, It’s a resurrection

Pascal Aka – Gold Coast Lounge

AMAA 2020 AWARD FOR BEST ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE

Jimmy Jean-Louis – Desrances

Gabriel Afolayan – Coming From Insanity

Kang Quintus – The Fisherman’s Diary

Bongile Mantsai – Knuckle City

Alphonse Menyo – Gold Coast Lounge

Eyinna Nwigwe – Badamasi

Robert Agengo/Mwaura Bilal/Andreo Kamau/ Xavier Ywawa – 40 Sticks

Darrin Dewitt Henson – Zulu Wedding

AMAA 2020 AWARD FOR BEST ACTRESS IN A LEADING ROLE

Joselyn Dumas – Cold Feet

Mary Twala Mhlongo – This is Not A Burial, It’s a Resurrection

Stella Damasus – Between

Meg Otanwa – For Maria: Ebun Pataki

Zenobia Kloppers – Fiela’s Child

Elvina Ibru – The Bling Lagosian

Girley Jazama – The White Line

Kelly Khumalo – Zulu Wedding

AMAA 2020 AWARD FOR BEST ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE

Arabrun Nyyeneque – 40 Sticks

Adjatey Annang- Gold Ghost Lounge

Narcissus Afeli – Desrances

Cosson Chinepoh – The Fisherman’s Diary

Ramsey Noah Jnr – Living in Bondage: Breaking Free

AMAA 2020 AWARD FOR BEST ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE

Maryam Booth – The Milkmaid

Chairmaine Mujeri – Mirage

Linda Ejiofor – 4th Republic

Ndano Tramanse – The Fisherman’s Diary

Tina Mba – The Set Up

Faniswa Yisa – Knuckle City

Evelyne Juhen – Desrances

AMAA 2020 AWARD FOR BEST YOUNG/ PROMISING ACTOR

Faith Fidel – The Fisherman’s Diary

Naomi Nemlin – Desrances

Chimezie Imo – Nimbe

Swanky JKA – Living in Bondage: Breaking Free

Wayne Smith – Fiela’s Child

Cina Soul – Gold Coast Lounge

Anthonieta Kalunta – The Milkmaid

AMAA 2020 AWARD FOR BEST FIRST FEATURE FILM BY A DIRECTOR

Coming From Insanity – Akinyemi Sebastine Akinropo

Living in Bondage – Ramsey Noah Jnr.

Bling Lagosian – Bolanle Austen- Peters

For Maria: Ebun Pataki – Damilola E. Orimogunje

The Zulu Wedding – Lineo Sekeleoana

A Taste of Our Land -–Yuhi Amuli –

Mirage – Malaika Mushandu

The White Line – Desire Kahikapo

AMAA 2020 AWARD FOR BEST DOCUMENTARY

January 15, 1970: Untold memoir of the Biafran war- Nigeria

Journey to Kenya – Sudan

No Gold for Kalsaka – B/Faso

Days of Cannibalism – South Africa

Finding Sally – Ethiopia/Canada

The letter – Kenya

Becoming Black- Togo/Germany

Influence – South Africa

EFERE OZAKO AMAA 2020 AWARD FOR BEST SHORT FILM

Baxu & the Giant –Namibia

Songs About My Mother – South Africa

Idi Amin’s Boat – Uganda

Yahoo – Nigeria

SEMA (Speak Out) – DRC

The letter reader – South Africa

A Canvas for a Visa – Senegal

After the War – Egypt

JUBRIL MALAFIA AMAA 2020 AWARD FOR BEST ANIMATION

From Here To Timbuktu – Kenya

Malaika (The Warrior Queen) – Nigeria/USA

A Special Gift – Mozambique

The legend of Lwanda Magere – Kenya

FTFO – Nigeria

Sankofa – Cote D’Voire

I am leaving In Ghana Get Me Out of Here – Ghana

A Gugie Day – Nigeria

AMAA 2020 AWARD FOR BEST DIASPORA SHORT

Boxed – USA

June 14 – USA

Egun – Brazil

Brick By Brick – USA

AMAA 2020 AWARD FOR BEST DIASPORA DOCUMENTARY

Once In Hundred Years – USA

Revolution From Afar – USA

Meeting My Father – France

Becoming Black – Germany

If Objects Could Speak – Germany

AMAA 2020 AWARD FOR BEST DIASPORA NARRATIVE FEATURE

Aiyai: Wrathful Soul – Australia

Lola – USA

A day With Jerusa – Brazil

Black and Blue – USA

Joseph – Barbados

MICHAEL ANYIAM OSIGWE AMAA 2020 AWARD FOR BEST FILM BY AN AFRICAN LIVING ABROAD

The Eagle’s Nest – Olivier Assoua

Two Weeks in Lagos – Kathryn Fasegha

Idemuza – Olaoye Amoke

Between – Daniel Adenimokan

No Shades – Claire Ayiam Osigwe

OUSMANE SEMBENE AMAA 2020 AWARD FOR BEST FILM IN AN AFRICAN LANGUAGE

The Milkmaid – Nigeria

Knuckle City – South Africa

This is Not A Burial…it’s a Resurrection – Lesotho

Fiela’s Child – South Africa

The White Line – Namibia

AMAA 2020 ACHIEVEMENT IN COSTUME DESIGN

This is Not A Burial, It’s a Resurrection

Heroes of Africa; Tette Quarshie

The White Line

Ibi (The Birth)

Foreigner’s God

AMAA 2020 AWARD FOR ACHIEVEMENT IN MAKE-UP

Knuckle City

Ratnik

The Milkmaid

1929

Heroes of Africa; Tette Quarshie

AMAA 2020 AWARD FOR ACHIEVEMENT IN SOUNDTRACK

The Fisherman’s Diary

Coming from Insanity

Zulu Wedding

Gold Coast Lounge

For Maria: Ebun Pataki

Walking with Shadows

Living in Bondage

Mirage

AMAA 2020 AWARD FOR ACHIEVEMENT IN VISUAL EFFECT

Heroes of Africa; Tette Quarshie

Desrances

Knuckle City

Living in Bondage: Breaking Free

Badamasi

Ratnik

Foreigner’s God

A Taste of Our Land

AMAA 2020 AWARD FOR ACHIEVEMENT IN SOUND

Fiela’s Child

Knuckle City

Children of The Storm

The Ghost and House of Truth

For Maria: Ebun Pataki

40 Sticks

Desrances

Gold Coast Lounge

AMAA 2020 AWARD FOR ACHIEVEMENT IN PRODUCTION DESIGN

Ratnik

Knuckle City

Zulu Wedding

Perfect Picture: 10 Years Later

This is Not A Burial, It’s a resurrection

Foreigner’s God

Gold Coast Lounge

The Ghost and the House of Truth

AMAA 2020 AWARD FOR ACHIEVEMENT IN CINEMATOGRAPHY

The Ghost and House of Truth

The Fisherman’s Diary

Knuckle City

The Milkmaid

40 Sticks

Desrances

This is Not A Burial, It’s a resurrection

Gold Coast Lounge

AMAA 2020 AWARD FOR ACHIEVEMENT IN EDITING

Perfect Picture: 10 Years Later

The Ghost and House of Truth

Knuckle City

40 Sticks

Desrances

AMAA 2020 AWARD FOR ACHIEVEMENT IN SCREENPLAY

For Maria: Ebun Pataki

The White line

4th Republic

The Fisherman’s Diary

Knuckle City

40 Sticks

Perfect Picture: 10 Years Later

3 Days To Go

AMAA 2020- NATIONAL FILM AND VIDEO CENSORS BOARD (NFVCB) AWARD FOR BEST NIGERIAN FILM

Cold Feet

Living in Bondage: Breaking Free

4th Republic

For Maria: Ebun Pataki

The Bling Lagosian

Coming From Insanity

The Ghost and The House of Truth

The Milkmaid

It’s amazing that we made it to the middle of the year seeing how 2020 has been weird so far with the COVID-19 pandemic coming completely out of left field.

This has hampered so many plans including movie premieres, awards and festivals. The status quo has changed with film organizations like the Academy already making concessions on eligibility for the 93rd Oscars come 2021.

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However, some African filmmakers have gone above and beyond to release some great African cinema in these trying times.

So, here is our mid-year edition of the 10 best African movies in 2020.

Poppie Nongena (31 January 2020)

Poppie Nongena is a South African film adaptation of Elsa Joubert’s novel, Die swerfjare van Poppie Nongena (The Long Journey of Poppie Nongena).

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Read: 12 Best African Movies Based on Books

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Poppie Nongena follows the true-life story of a Xhosa mother and domestic worker, Poppie Nongena, who did everything in her power to keep her family together when she was declared an illegal resident in South Africa under the pass law system in the 1970s.

Despite some controversy when the movie was released in January, Poppie Nongena is a great movie, highlighting the plight of many black South African families in that era.

The success of Poppie Nongena can be attributed to many things including the spellbinding performance by Clementine Mosimane – a portrayal that might go down as one of her best.

Directed and written by Christiaan Olwagen and Saartjie Botha, Poppie Nongena stars Anna-Mart van der Merwe, Rolanda Marais, Chris Gxalaba, and Siya.

Poppie Nongena was released on 31 January 2020 and has received rave reviews from several critics.

Eyimofe (24 February 2020)

One of the best African films in 2020 so far, Eyimofe (Translated: This is my desire), is a Nigerian independent film that examines the lives of two Lagosians, whose dreams revolve around migrating to Europe.

Amidst an unending hopelessness in the country as people trudge on with their daily lives, getting out seems to be the only way out in Eyimofe.

With a sharp script that took three years to write and realistic acting, Eyimofe is a prime example of films to expect from Nigeria when everyone sits up.

Eyimofe premiered at the 70th Berlin International Film Festival (Berlinale) on 24 February 2020, the first independent Nigerian film to do so.

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Read: Things That African Filmmakers Can Learn From the 92nd Academy Awards

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The movie is directed by Arie Esiri, written by Chuko Esiri and produced by Melissa Adeyemo. It stars Jude Akuwudike, Tomiwa Edun, Temi Ami-Williams, Emmanuel Adeji, Mary Agholor, Kemi Lala Akindoju, Cynthia Ebijie, and Jacob Alexander.

Eyimofe was also nominated for the GWFF First Feature Film Award at Berlinale.  

Arab Blues (12th February 2020)

A first-time feature film by Tunisian female director, Manele Labidi, Arab Blues (Un divan à Tunis) is a culture-clash comedy about reintegration in the aftermath of the Arab Spring.

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Read: Top 10 African female movie directors

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It follows Selma, a psychotherapist, who has lived and worked for several years in Paris. She decides to come back home to Tunisia to open up a new practice in a locale where everything is complicated and no one believes in talking to mental health practitioners. 

At 88 minutes, Arab Blues showcases a cast of funny patients, using humor to explore cultural quirks, traditions and misconceptions. Farahani’s portrayal of Selma is effortless, charismatic and convincing.

Written and directed by Manèle Labidi Labbé and produced by Jean-Christophe Reymond, Arab Blues stars the likes of Golshifteh Farahani, Majd Mastoura, Najoua Zouhair, Jamel Sassi, Ramla Ayari, Hichem Yacoubi, Aïsha Ben Miled and Feryel Chammari.

Griekwastad (5 May 2020)

Griekwastad is another film adaptation from South Africa that happens to be one of the best African movies in 2020 so far.

The movie adaptation is based on the true crime novel, The Griekwastad Murders: The Crime that Shook South Africa by Jacques Steenkamp.

The film, like the book, follows the investigations surrounding the triple homicide of a man, his wife and his daughter in a farm in Naauwhoek, Griekwastad – an act perpetrated by their only son, Don Steenkamp.

In 103 minutes, Griekwastad takes you through the thrilling and gruesome events surrounding those murders, something true crime fans will certainly relish.

The movie is nothing short of brilliant with performances from Arnold Vosloo (The Mummy) and Alex van Dyk (Die Stropers) lending further credence to the story.

Other cast members include Jane De Wet, Deon Lotz, Albert Pretorius, Jody Abrahams, Albert Martiz, Ira Blanckenberg, Rolanda Marais and Tim Theron.

Having been postponed several times due to the COVID-19 outbreak, Griekwastad was finally premiered on DStv Box Office on the 5^th of May 2020.

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Read: Top 5 African Movie Streaming Websites

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Griekwastad is directed by Jozua Malherbe, written by Tertius Kapp and produced by SCENE23.

The Legend of Inikpi (24 January 2020)

The Legend of Inikpi is a Nigerian epic drama about the two warring ancient kingdoms of Bini and Igala and how the princess of Igala, Inikpi Oma Ufedo Baba, chose to sacrifice her life for the freedom of her people.

The Legend of Inikpi premiered on the 19^th of January 2020 at the Filmhouse Cinemas in Lagos and was theatrically released on the 24^th of January 2020 in theaters across Nigeria and Ghana.

Since then, the critically acclaimed movie has performed well at the box office, garnering over 20 million naira by its second weekend, a record-breaking feat for a Nigerian movie in that genre.

Directed by Frank Rajah Arase and produced by popular Nollywood actress, Mercy Johnson, The Legend of Inikpi marks Mercy Johnson’s debut as a film producer.

The movie stars newcomer, Nancy Ameh, as Inikpi. Other cast members include Sam Dede, Mercy Johnson, Paul Obazele, Odunlade Adekola and Saidi Balogun.

A Day and A Night (6 January 2020)

The feature film, A Day and a Night (Youm W Leila) is one of the first Egyptian films to be released in 2020.

With a runtime of 108 minutes, A Day and a Night explores key social issues that many Egyptians encounter on their daily lives as portrayed by the lives of the film’s main characters in Sayeda Zainab, Cairo.

Directed by Ayman Makram, produced by Remon Youssef and written by Yehia Fekry, A Day and a Night stars Khaled El-Nabawy, Ahmed El-Fishawy, Hanan Metaweh, Dorra, and Khaled Sarhan.

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Read: 10 Best Egyptian Movies Released in 2019

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The film was first screened at the Malmo Arab Film Festival (MAFF) in October 2019 and was theatrically released on the 6^th of January 2020.

Joseph (24 January 2020)

Joseph is the African-Caribbean collaboration between Ghana, Barbados and Jamaica. It follows the life of Joseph King, a young doctor from a family of doctors, who is being groomed to take over the family practice in Jamaica.

Guided by the memories of his early childhood in Ghana, he embarks on a journey back to Africa to discover his heritage amidst strong disapproval from his family.

Written and directed by Marcia Weekes and produced by Marietta Carter-Narcisse, Joseph stars an international cast that includes Kevoy Burton, Alison Hinds, Christopher MacFarlane, Shontelle Layne, and Stogie Kenyatta.

Other stars include Mawuli Gavor, Adjetey Anang, Miriam Owusu-Poku, Harold Amenyah, Sika Osei, Richard Yaw Boateng, Edward Kufuor, Ernest Odame, and Edinam Atatsi.

The movie was privately screened on 7th December 2019 at the Accra Metropolitan Assembly in Accra, Ghana.

Joseph premiered on January 22, 2020 at Filmhouse Cinemas in Lagos and later had its theatrical release at cinemas in Nigeria and Ghana on the 24th of January 2020.

The White Line (20 March 2020)

With a runtime of 100 minutes, The White Line is a Namibian love story, set against the backdrop of South Africa’s apartheid and the encroachment of its laws into pre-independence Namibian territory.

The White Line follows the romance between a black maid and an Afrikaner police man who she meets during a routine passbook check in 1963.

The encounter marks the start of an illicit love affair. The relationship, sometimes chronicled in love letters, faces several challenges in a society obsessed with color.

Directed and written by Desiree Kahikopo and Michael Pulse, The White Line stars Joalette de Villiers, Charl Botha, Girley Jazama, Cheez Uahupirapi, Jan-Barend Scheepers and Sunet van Wyk.

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Read: African Movies In The Time of Coronavirus

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The White Line was screened at festivals in December 2019 and was meant to have its premiere on the 20^th of March 2020. However, the Namibian film commission had to cancel the event due to the coronavirus outbreak.

Made in Senegal (8 April 2020)

One of the best African films so far in 2020 isn’t one made in Africa but one made in Germany by German director, Jermain Raffington, Algerian director, Mehdi Benhadj-Djilali and Peta Jenkin.

Made in Senegal is a documentary about Sadio Mané, the 2019 African Footballer of The Year and his rise from Bambali, Senegal to world and European champion.

Made in Senegal explores the challenges and obstacles the Liverpool footballer had to encounter and overcome on his way to becoming the sports superstar that he is today.  

Sadio Mané is a spectacular sportsman, no doubt. This documentary shows us why.

The film features exclusive interviews with Jürgen Klopp, Virgil van Dijk, Mohamed Salah and Naby Keïta, as well as Sadio Mané’s family and friends.

Made in Senegal is a great film that should be seen by everyone whether you are a sports fan or not.  

In Europe, the documentary is available to watch for free on Rakuten TV. It can also be seen on Canal+ in Francophone countries in Africa.

Outside of Africa and Europe, Made in Senegal is available to watch here on pay-per-view for $1-$2, with proceeds going to charity.

Mama Drama (20 March 2020)

Mama Drama, a movie about infertility and surrogacy in Nigeria, is one of the best African films released in 2020 so far.

It follows the life of a woman, who having suffered from infertility for many years with severe pressure from in-laws, opts for surrogacy in an effort to have a child. Unfortunately, things don’t quite work out.

Mama Drama is directed by Seyi Babatope and produced by Joy Grant-Ekong. It features Osas Ighodaro and Kehinde Bankole in the lead roles.

Other cast members include Femi Adebayo, Chinyere Wilfred, Shaffy Bello, Adunni Ade, Opeyemi Aiyeola and Kunle Remi.

Mama Drama premiered at Filmhouse Cinemas on 20 March 2020 and was available at cinemas for a short while before the nation-wide lockdown in Nigeria due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Conclusion

So, that is our list on the top 10 African movies released so far in 2020. Interestingly enough, none of our most anticipated movies for 2020 made this list.

By the end of the year, we will be writing the final list of the best African movies in 2020. We hope to see better movies released between now and then.

Tell us your thoughts in the comments section.

What is guerilla film-making?

Pronounced ‘Gorilla’, guerilla film-making is a form of independent film-making identified by low budgets, skeletal crews and no permits.

Scenes are shot stealthily in real locations with no permission obtained from the appropriate authorities. Any film can be a guerilla film.

In guerilla film-making, most times, the roles of director, screenwriter, producer, and cinematographer fall on one person mostly because the budget is usually too low to hire people.

Hence, this style of film-making is more prevalent with independent filmmakers than big film studios.

The affordability and advancements in digital cameras and film editing software are contributing factors to the increase in guerrilla film-making in recent times, giving filmmakers the ability to acquire professional quality digital cameras and accessories.

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Origins of guerilla film-making and directors who made it popular

Guerilla film-making has been around for a long time. At the advent of cinema in 1895, movies were mostly shot without location permits because there wasn’t any need for one.  

At some point down the road, rules were made for permits and guerilla film-making was born.

All around the world, film directors have employed guerilla tactics to bring their ideas to life. In the 1984 film, The Terminator, the director, James Cameron (known for Titanic and Avatar) was hard on cash for his movie that he shot it guerilla style. 

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Read: How to Get a Sponsor or Grant for Your African Movie Idea

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At some point during his shoot, law enforcement asked him for his permit and Cameron pretended that The Terminator (1984) was a student film, for which he was reprimanded with only a warning.

Another famous example of guerilla film-making is The French Connection (1971). The French connection was shot in various locations in New York City with no permits and a large crew (a big no-no for guerilla films).

French Connection went on to win 5 out of 8 Oscar nominations including Best Picture in the 44^th Academy Awards ceremony that was held in 1972.

Spike Lee’s first feature film, She’s Gotta Have It (1986), was a guerrilla film which went on to become a huge box office success, making over $7.1 million USD on a budget of $175,000.

The experience inspired Spike Lee to publish the book, Spike Lee’s Gotta Have It: Inside Guerrilla Film-making, in 1987.

Robert Rodriguez’s Spanish film, El Mariachi (1992) is a fan favorite when it comes to guerilla film-making. El Mariachi was shot on a budget of about $7,000.

Rodriguez’s movie was filmed in Mexico on locations he could get for free and most of the scenes were shot with just one take to save time.

El Mariachi went on to win several awards including the Audience Award at the Sundance Film Festival in 1993. In 1995, Rodriguez documented his experience in the book, Rebel Without a Crew, which has since been a guerilla film bible.

Rodriguez’s success further inspired other guerilla movies like Oren Peli’s Paranormal Activity (2007), which was shot on a budget of $10,000 using guerilla tactics.

Super Demetrios (2011) is a Greek superhero film that was shot on a budget of €2,000 using guerilla tactics. The film quickly gained a cult following.

It went on to win the Audience Award at the 52nd Thessaloniki International Film Festival in 2011, getting the highest number of votes in the history of the festival.

Escape From Tomorrow (2013) was filmed over several weeks at Disneyland and Disney World without any permit. Fears of a lawsuit resulted in the movie being released via video on demand in 2013.

Guerilla film-making in Africa

Even Africa is not left out in the world of guerilla film-making. Considering the low budget, the locations used and the few crew members involved in a typical production, most African movies fall under guerilla films.

Many film industries across Africa attest to this. For instance, the popular Nigerian film industry, Nollywood, has been known to use skeletal film crews and several guerilla tactics to shoot full-length feature films in under a week.

Remi Vaughan-Richards, known for directing the documentary, Faaji Agba (2015), is one female guerilla filmmaker working in Nigeria today. She is known for directing the movie, Unspoken (2015), a movie about child marriage in Nigeria.

Cairo Exit by the Egyptian film director, Hesham Issawi, was shot as a guerrilla film with no permits because the Egyptian censor board refused to issue out one due to the subject matter covered in the film.

Cairo Exit (2010) was filmed in Cairo one year before the 18-day uprising, it addresses some of the events that led to the uprising. It also featured a controversial relationship between a Muslim boy and a Coptic Christian girl.

In Morocco, Nabil Ayouch’s Much Loved (2015) was a low budget film shot guerilla style.

The prolific Senegalese film director, the late Ousmane Sembène (Known for Xala and Moolaadé) started out his career in film by employing several guerilla film-making tactics as he had few resources at the time and no sponsors.

Why Guerilla film-making?

There are two main reasons why people go the route of guerilla film-making: Time and Money. In Africa, these reasons become three: Time, Money and Censorship.

The main reason to shoot guerilla style is that you can save a lot of money by avoiding permits and the corresponding insurance and other documentations. In some countries, these cost quite a lot.

Hence, a filmmaker who has a low budget might choose to forgo this and channel whatever little resources he might have to more important areas of the production.

Saving time is also another huge benefit you can gain from guerilla film-making. On a small production, every second counts and getting permits takes time, from a few days to several weeks.

Many countries especially in Africa have some sort of censorship authority when it comes to film productions. Depending on the film’s subject matter, most productions might never see the light of day as the required permits will never be issued out to such films.

Why Not?

In as much as there are benefits to gain from guerilla film-making, there are also reasons why you shouldn’t shoot guerilla style.

One of such reasons is that you can get shut down. Depending on the area, city or country, you might have to pay a large fine and have your equipment confiscated.

Other than that, shooting guerilla films can be dangerous; people have been known to die on such productions. Take for instance, the 2014 Midnight Rider, a biopic of Gregg Allman.

The production attempted to film on a railroad bridge without any permits. A train came along and shattered the hospital bed placed on the tracks, killing camera operator, Sarah Jones.

Director, Randall Miller was sentenced to two years imprisonment while producer, Jay Sedrish, received a sentence of ten years’ probation. They were both charged with involuntary manslaughter.

Midnight Rider was never released

How to be a guerilla filmmaker

So, you’ve still decided to do this. We’ve have outlined some tips on how to be a successful guerilla filmmaker, but here is a disclaimer: Do this at your own risk.

PLAN

Time is essential in guerilla film-making. You have to film quickly with as little as one take in most cases. The longer you are on set, the higher the chance that you might get caught. To ensure that time is not wasted, a plan needs to be in place.

So, you have to plan your rehearsals, locations, equipment needed etc. beforehand. When you’re ready to go, move to location, shoot what you need and leave as soon as you can.

Planning helps you to prepare your crew as well as finding the best film-friendly locations for your shoot. It goes without saying that you also need to plan for contingencies. So, there should be a Plan B and even a Plan C where necessary.

PEOPLE

Keep your crew as small and as inconspicuous as possible. The bigger your crew, the more attention you’re going to attract and you don’t want that.

Have only your actors and DP visible. You might even have one person double as both director and DP. The rest of your crew – Audio, Makeup, PA’s, Craft, etc.  need to be out of sight.

The more you make it look like a single person holding a camera, the better.

EQUIPMENT

Camera

Any camera used for guerilla film-making must be as inconspicuous as possible, drawing little to no attention to its holder.

This is where a DSLR or any small camera like the Blackmagic Pocket Cinema camera is ideal. This is definitely not the time to whip out your Red Ranger 8k camera.

A smartphone is another good choice here if you have one and can’t afford an additional camera. If you are worried about the quality of a smart phone’s camera, don’t be.

High Fantasy (2017) was shot on the iPhone 7 by the South African female director, Jenna Bass. Another movie that was shot on a smartphone was Tangerine (2015) which was shot using three iPhone 5s.

Sound

A big boom mic is a big giveaway that you are shooting something professional. So, get rid of your boom mic.

In its place, use lav mics, preferable something wireless like the Rode Wireless Go. It is also imperative that your sound engineer keeps his/her gear out of sight

Tripod

As much as possible, avoid using a tripod as it’s another dead giveaway of a professional shoot.

If you must use a stabilizer, use an inconspicuous monopod like the Manfrotto Element Aluminium Monopod or a small shoulder mount like the Neewer Rig Set System.

Bottom Line

Guerilla film-making is an interesting film-making style that has seen both small and large productions adopt it over the years.

In Africa, more and more filmmakers will venture down this road as film equipment become cheaper. With the right mix of planning, minimal gear and a stealth crew, the next guerilla filmmaker might just be around the corner.

Tell us in the comment section your thoughts on guerilla film-making in Africa.

Some of the topmost searches that drive traffic to this website are: Where can I watch this substitute movie name here?, Where can I download this substitute TV show here?, Where can I watch substitute movie name here for free?, Free download of substitute TV series here etc.

These searches show the extent to which movie piracy has eaten into the fabric of a society where people expect to get copyrighted works for free.

What is Piracy?

Piracy is the duplication of copyrighted content without authorization or permission from the copyright owner with the aim of making the content available at little to no cost to the end user.

Piracy comes in various shapes and forms, affecting music, books, games, software, movies and television shows around the world.

Television content remains the most pirated content globally, accounting for 49.38% of 190 billion visits to pirate websites in 2018. Illegal download of copyrighted content consumes over 24% of the world’s bandwidth and accounts for a yearly revenue loss of over $40 to $97.1 billion in the movie industry alone.

From the statistics above, it’s easy to see that piracy is a huge problem around the world. However, we will be looking at movie piracy in Africa and how it has affected film industries across Africa.

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Effects of Movie Piracy on Some African Countries

South Africa made the piracy leaderboard

Some countries are better known for visiting pirate sites than others. At the top of that list are the United States of America, Russia, India, China and Brazil (as at December 2019). South Africa, a few years back, ranked 14th.

At first glance, South Africa occupying the 14^th position might not seem ‘impressive’ on the leaderboard of film piracy until you consider that being 14th translates to over one million pirated movies every month from sites such as Pirate Bay and KickAss Torrent.

Locally, the South African Federation Against Copyright Theft (SAFACT) estimates that the revenue loss due to illegal film downloads is as high as 220 million rand every year.

Piracy is killing the Egyptian film industry

The Egyptian film industry is no stranger to movie piracy. In fact, Egypt’s film industry, which once had a golden age, has seen more and more viewers boycotting cinemas in favor of DVDs and the internet, thanks to piracy.

In turn, this has led to a sharp decline in production as filmmakers are struggling to recoup their investments.

Many have blamed the unregulated nature of the internet as the main reason behind the widespread growth of movie piracy in Egypt.

This has led many stakeholders in the Egyptian film industry on a fight against movie piracy in the country, launching several campaigns seeking to shutdown popular pirate websites in Egypt. One of the pirate websites affected was the popular, EgyBest, in 2019.

But like the Hydra in Greek mythology that grows two heads back after one has been cut off, these websites continue to sprout up under different names.

Cinemas are shutting down in Morocco due to movie piracy

Morocco is one of the top film destinations in Africa, with international film and television productions trooping into the country by the dozen. Locally, Moroccan films continue to maintain a high level of viewership among its local audience.

However, one of the main challenges facing the Moroccan film industry is the lack of theaters, with many old cinemas closed down in recent years – the main culprit: the flagrant piracy which has eaten deep into the cinema business in the country.

Uganda’s fame without fortune

Piracy has made many Ugandan actors and actresses famous. But these practitioners have nothing to show for that fame. In Uganda, actors have been known to take on additional odd jobs to make ends meet as acting alone doesn’t cut it financially.

Actors aren’t the only ones affected by movie piracy in Uganda. Pirated movies, sold for a fourth of what an original would go for, have also seen many Ugandan film producers lose their investment with many afraid to venture into film production in the country.

The Ugandan film industry, fondly known as Wakaliwood, might be growing. Unfortunately, that growth is being hampered by an old copyright law that isn’t quite clear on movie piracy, creating loopholes which many pirates have exploited to the detriment of the industry.

Algeria’s battle with movie piracy

Piracy is one of the main challenges facing Algeria’s content owners, affecting an estimated 60% of music and films productions in the country.

Like most countries, Algeria’s movie piracy problem is complex with no easy solution to it. One of the chief causes of movie piracy in Algeria is the low cost of technology, which has made it much easier for pirates to duplicate and distribute unauthorized copies of movies.

Things are further complicated by the lack of consumer awareness on what intellectual property means, seeing as many Algerian locals think it OK to buy “Best of” collections of their favorite actors and actresses in an all-in-one package, at ridiculously low prices.

Nigeria’s very own piracy ‘Mafia’

The top three countries by the number of feature films produced are India, Nigeria and China. Nigeria alone produces close to 2,000 movies a year.

It is estimated that Nollywood generates more than $7bn (about N2.6tn), employs over 1 million people yearly and accounts for about 1.4% of Nigeria’s GDP, according to the IMF.

Movie piracy is almost a given in Nigeria seeing as everyone wants a piece of the pie; including movie pirates who take a huge chunk amounting to over $1bn every year.

It is estimated that for every authentic copy of a Nigerian movie out there, nine are pirated. The revenue loss is immense as movie producers fail to recoup their investment and government loses out on tax revenue.

Behind this, is an intricate ring of pirates that run a smooth operation across the country. With an informal network of informants, corrupt law enforcement, unscrupulous film distributors and street vendors at every nook and cranny, these ‘mafia’ pirates are as powerful as it gets.

Unfortunately, with no viable film distribution chain or official film market in Nigeria, these pirates aren’t just the biggest and the largest movie distributors, they are the distribution.  

Although, Nigeria has had laws protecting copyrights since 1988, movie piracy still remains a goldmine for its practitioners.

How Piracy Works in Africa?

There are similarities in the way piracy works in Africa when compared to the rest of the world. It usually consists of two steps

1. Acquisition
2. Duplication and Distribution

1. Acquisition

There are several ways a pirate can obtain an original copy of a movie.

Leaked Copies

A copy of a movie can be acquired by pirates from film industry insiders. This might come in the form of an unscrupulous employee on set, post-production studios looking for extra cash or cinema operators at movie premieres. Bribes, scare tactics and blackmail are popular methods used here.

In-Theater

Though not quite popular in Africa, in-theater recordings are another way a pirated copy of a movie can be obtained. Movies obtained this way are usually rife with ambient cinema sounds and poor video quality.

Streaming Platforms

Because of the proliferation of streaming services in Africa, more filmmakers are opting to release on platforms like Netflix and Showmax because of their perceived immunity to piracy. However, pirates have been known to record streamed content via special software.

DVD or Blu-ray Originals

While seen by most as a fading technology, DVD is still a thing, especially here in Africa. Pirates still find ways to work around DRMs installed on DVDs.

2. Duplication and Distribution

While illegal download of movie content in the form of torrents is quite popular in Africa, the cost of internet services is still high in some parts of the continent, making DVDs a popular medium for many.

Once an original copy of a movie has been obtained, pirates go on to mass reproduce these films thanks to the low cost of DVD duplicating machines (some going for as low as $500 on Amazon).

These copies are then sold at street corners or exported to nearby African countries and onto the rest of the world.

Why do people consume pirated movies?

There is no piracy without the consumer. Despite the many disadvantages to consuming pirated content like breaking the law, identity theft, malware and viruses, people still go for pirated movies.

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” There is no piracy without the consumer.

-AMDB.tv (2020)

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Before we proffer measures to help reduce movie piracy, it is important to understand why people pirate and watch pirated movies in the first place.

Money

Money seems to be a culprit behind many vices including movie piracy. Money is a major reason why pirates steal and sell other people’s work. Money is also the reason why people buy pirated copies from pirates as 9 times out of 10, a pirated movie is cheaper than its original and in some African countries, that makes all the difference.

Nothing Beats Free

Do you know what is better than cheap pirated movies? Free pirated movies on the internet. Why pay $10 to go see a movie at the cinemas or $10 on Netflix or $7.99 on Showmax when you can easily download that movie and several others on a free Wi-Fi network?

Restrictions

Many streaming platforms usually have different content libraries for different countries. Some restrictions placed on a region have been known to push users towards piracy to see their favorite shows from other regions.

Victimless Crime

Like stolen museum artifacts, there is the misinformed notion that movie piracy is a victimless crime and it’s not really hurting anyone.

How to reduce movie piracy

Now, that we have some insights on why movie piracy is popular, here are some ways piracy can be mitigated if not eradicated.

Use of Tech

Everything hinges on technology these days including movie piracy. To disrupt the movie piracy industry, technology must be employed. Firms like Custos Media Technologies understand this.

Custos is a South African tech company using blockchain technology to fight piracy. They use financial bounties to trace pirates who illegally distribute copyrighted films. So far, Custos has protected over 350,000 films globally.

In Kenya, the copyright board has the Anti-Piracy Security Device (APSD) which uses barcode and hologram technologies to differentiate between an original copy of a film and its counterfeit.

Countries are also recruiting the help of Internet Service Providers (ISPs) who have internal tracking and monitoring systems which can detect when pirated content is accessed over the internet.

Legislation and Enforcement

One of the reasons why movie piracy thrives in Africa is because there is little to no laws covering it and there are no real punishments to serve as deterrent to prosecuted movie pirates.

However, some African countries are gradually changing the narrative. In Uganda, a new policy on intellectual property was passed in 2019, for the promotion and protection of IP rights in the country.

In South Africa, there are different punishments for pirating a movie. A first-time offender receives up to R5000 in fines or 3 years in jail for each item that is distributed while a repeat offender could receive up to R10,000 in fines or 5 years in jail.

In Algeria, the National Copyright Office (ONDA) has been known to go on nation-wide anti-piracy raids, seizing and destroying millions of pirated materials found.

This is made possible by Algeria’s law on copyright and related rights which empowers ONDA to carry out searches, record copyright infringements and seize counterfeit materials.

Distribution Channels

To combat the activities of movie pirates, Africa needs to rethink the distribution channels

Cinemas

Cinema going has all but died in most African countries. But stakeholders in the film industry have to find a way to release more movies in theaters at affordable rates.

Instead of charging high ticket rates, filmmakers can negotiate product placement deals with brands and advertisers while keeping the price cheap to the general public.

Additionally, a long theatrical run spanning 8 to 12 weeks is key here as it will help investors recoup a good portion of their expenses before the DVD release where most pirates hold sway.

Grassroot Outreach

Not many people can afford to go see a movie in a theater. This was evident when Mahamat-Saleh Haroun, the Chadian filmmaker, had to pay for ticket prices for locals to come see his film, Bye Bye Africa (1999) in Chad.

Grassroot outreach is a way to have more people see African movies at little to no cost to them without resorting to pirated copies. One filmmaker that employs this tactic is the Nigerian film director, Tunde Kelani.

Kelani first used this method in his 2009 film, Arugbá, where he reached more than 2,500 people in 57 local councils at free outdoor viewing centers.

In his 2011 film, Ma’ami, Kelani, funded by sponsors, reached over 70,000 Lagosians by using the 700+ sports centres of the Lagos State Viewing Sports Centre Associations to show his film whenever there was a free slot in the schedule.

Streaming Services and Rentals

The use of streaming platforms is another way to reduce movie piracy in Africa. It shortens the supply chain between the filmmaker and the viewer ensuring that movie pirates have a lesser chance of reaching the end user before the content owner.

Hence, African filmmakers are taking advantage of the opportunity provided by streaming platforms such as Amazon and Netflix. For example, the rights to Nabil Ayouch’s Moroccan movie, Razzia (2017), were sold to Amazon while Lionheart (2018), a movie directed by Nigerian actress, Genevieve Nnaji, was acquired by Netflix.

African content providers are not left out. South Africa’s DSTV offers movie rentals from the comfort of one’s home, thanks to various partnerships with content owners. African platforms like Irokotv, Afrinolly, StarNews Mobile, Shofha.com and ReelAfrican offer similar offerings.

Conclusion

Movie piracy is a sad reality that we have to live with in this world of unending TV shows and movie franchises. However, we can find ways to cut down its spread across Africa.

And while some school of thought may say that the African film industry got popular because of piracy, it’s also important to note that piracy will be the death of the film industry in Africa if measures are not taken to reduce it.

Tell us in the comment section what you think about movie piracy in Africa.

This is part of the series: Some of the Most Recognizable Faces in African Cinema

Gavin Hood (South African Filmmaker)

Born: 12 May 1963 (age 57 years), Johannesburg, South Africa

Gavin Hood is a South African film director, made famous by the movie Tsotsi (2005), a film that went on to win South Africa’s first Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film at the 92nd Academy Awards ceremony. He is also known for directing other international titles like X-Men Origins: Wolverine, Ender’s Game, and Eye in the Sky.

Early Life

Gavin Hood was born on the 12th of May 1963 to a South African retailer, Gordon Hood.

Being from a theatrical family, it was natural for Gavin Hood to tow the theatrical line. However, he didn’t feel it was a viable career path in Johannesburg, South Africa. Hence, he went on to study at St Stithians College and later studied law at the University of the Witwatersrand.

Years later as a lawyer, he was influenced by a case that he thought would make a good movie. Driven by that, in 1991, he left the law profession for Los Angeles to study screenwriting and directing at UCLA.

While there, Gavin wrote the screenplay for A Reasonable Man (1999), inspired by that law case, which went on to win the Diane Thomas Screen Writing Award in 1993.  Prior to that, his only foray into the film industry was a part in the 1989 TV series, The Game.

This early success didn’t come to its proper end as Gavin Hood disagreed with the producers on the direction of the film which eventually caused a postponement in production. It was only after he gained success in the 1998 movie, The Store Keeper, that he was able to finally make A Reasonable Man in 1999.

With these successes, Peter Fudakowski approached Hood for a film adaptation of Athol Fugard’s book, Tsotsi in 2003. The film went on to win several awards including a Best Foreign Language Film at the 2006 Oscars.

Notable Works

Hood’s first commercial short film was The Storekeeper (1998).

Hood wrote and produced his first feature film, A Reasonable Man (1999), which portrays the accidental killing of a young child mistaken for a tokoloshe. He then directed the Polish language 2001 feature film In Desert and Wilderness (W pustyni i w puszczy) when the original director fell ill.

Hood’s journey as a director continued with the 2005 gangster film, Tsotsi which was critically acclaimed.

After the success of Tsotsi, Hood directed several Hollywood and international films including Rendition (2007), X-Men Origins: Wolverine and Eye in the Sky.

Awards and Honors

Hood’s film, The Storekeeper (1998), won 13 international film festival awards including top honors at the Melbourne International Film Festival.

A Reasonable Man (1999) won Best Film and Best Anglophone Film at the 2001 All Africa Film Awards. In addition, Gavin won Best Actor, Best Director and the Award for Excellence in Screenwriting. The film also won several awards at various festivals including the Sundance Festival in 2000.

His 2005 film, Tsotsi, did not only win the Best Foreign Language Film at the 78th Academy Awards ceremony, it also won several awards at various festivals around the world such as Edinburgh, Toronto, and Los Angeles.

The film also won the People’s Choice Award at the 2005 Toronto International Film Festival and the 2007 Signis Award at FESPACO. Tsotsi was nominated for a Screen International Award at the European Film Awards and for Best Foreign Language Film at the Golden Globes in 2006.

Personal Life

Gavin was married to actress Janine Eser from 1994 to 2004. He is presently married to Nerissa Black.

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Genevieve Nnaji (Nigerian Actress, Producer, Director)

Date of Birth: 3 May 1979 (age 41 years), Imo State, Nigeria

Early Life

Genevieve Nnaji was born in May 3, 1979 to Theophilius and Bebedatte Nnaji in Imo State, Nigeria. She is the fourth child in a family of seven.

She attended Methodist Girls College, Yaba, Lagos, after which she studied creative arts at the University of Lagos for her bachelor’s degree where she began auditioning for roles in Nollywood.

Having had a prior stint as an 8-year old child actor in the television soap opera, Ripples, Genevieve found her first Nollywood role in the 1998 film, Most Wanted, at the age of 19. Since then, she has starred in over 200 Nollywood movies.

In 2009, Genevieve Nnaji became the first Nigerian actress to be featured on The Oprah Winfrey Show where Oprah tagged her, “The Julia Roberts of Africa.”

In 2011, Genevieve Nnaji was ranked 19th on Forbes list of 40 Most Powerful Celebrities in Africa.

Affected by the ban that was placed on some film industry actors in Nigeria, Genevieve briefly ventured into the music industry and years later, in November 2015, produced her first movie, Road to Yesterday (2015), which won the Best Movie Overall-West Africa at the 2016 Africa Magic Viewers Choice Awards (AMVCA).

In September 7, 2018, Genevieve made her directorial debut film, Lionheart, which was later acquired by the online streaming service, Netflix, for ($3.8 million), making it the first Netflix film from Nigeria.

Notable Works

Genevieve has featured in several movies over the years. Notable ones include Most Wanted (1998), Ijele (1999), Power of Love (2002), 30 Days (2006), Tango With Me (2009), Ije (2010), Weekend Getaway (2012), Doctor Bello (2013) and Half of a Yellow Sun (2013).

She produced the film, Road to Yesterday, in 2015 – her debut as a producer.

In 2018, she directed her first feature film, Lionheart.

Awards and Honors

Genevieve has received several awards and nominations over her career.

In the 2001 City Peoples Awards, she was awarded the Best Actress Award for her contributions to the film industry in Nigeria. In 2003, she became the first actor to be awarded the Best Actress Award by the Censors Board of Nigeria.

In 2005, she won the Africa Movie Academy Award (AMAA) for Best Actress in a Leading Role, becoming the first actor to win the award.

In 2011, she was honored by the Nigerian government with an MFR (Member of the Order of the Federal Republic) for her contributions to Nollywood.

She also won Best Actress in a Supporting Role in the 2014 Nigerian Entertainment Awards for her role in Half of a Yellow Sun (2013).

In 2019, her movie, Lionheart (2018), was Nigeria’s submission to the 92nd Academy Awards for Best International Feature Film Category. It was the first film ever submitted to the Oscars by Nigeria.

Personal Life

Genevieve is a single mother of one.

She launched a clothing line, St. Genevieve in 2014. She also models for many brands in and outside Nigeria.

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Mahamat-Saleh Haroun (Chadian Filmmaker)

Born: 12 May 1961 (age 57 years), Abéché, Chad

Mahamat-Saleh Haroun is a film director from Chad who moved to France in 1982. He made his first feature film, Bye Bye Africa, in 1999. Since then, he has made 7 feature films with the latest being, A Season in France in 2017.

Early Life

Mahamat-Saleh Haroun was born in N’Djamena, Chad in 1963. He went to Paris in 1982 to study film at the Conservatoire Libre du Cinéma in Paris, and went on to study journalism at Bordeaux I.U.T. (Technical Institute).

After his studies, he worked for the press for several years before venturing into film. Mahamat’s directional debut was Bye Bye, Africa, a semi-autobiographical movie which so happens to be Chad’s first feature film. The film received a jury mention at the Venice Film Festival, 1999. Needless to say, Bye Bye Africa was the film that launched his career.

In 2011 and 2014, Mahamat was a member of the jury at the Cannes Film Festival.

In 2017, Mahamat made the film, A Season in France, a film about the African refugee crisis in France.

Notable Works

Mahamat has directed 7 feature length films to date. They are

1. Bye Bye Africa (1999)
2. Abouna (2002)
3. Daratt (2006)
4. Sex, Okra and Salted Butter (2008)
5. A Screaming Man (2010)
6. Grigris (2013)
7. A Season in France (2017)

Awards and Honors

Almost all of Mahamat Haroun’s movies have either a win or a nomination from various film awards.

His first film, Bye Bye Africa, Chad’s first feature length film, got a jury mention at the Venice Film Festival in 1999.

Mahamat’s second feature film, Abouna, came out in 2002 and won the best cinematography award at FESPACO.

His 2006 film, Daratt, won the Grand Special Jury Prize at the 63rd Venice International Film Festival.

His 2010 feature film, A Screaming Man, won the Jury Prize at the Cannes Film Festival, making Haroun the first Chadian director to enter as well as win an award in the main Cannes competition.

His 2013 film, Grigris, was nominated for the Palme d’Or at the 2013 Cannes Film Festival.

Personal Life

Mahamat is a father of two. He also serves as the culture minister in Chad.

This is part of the series: Some of the Most Recognizable Faces in African Cinema

If we look closely, beyond the everyday grind that takes up most of our attention, we will realize one thing – that at the heart of it all, the world around us is beautiful. And nowhere is this more visible than in Africa.

Africa has one of the most breathtaking scenes in the world. From one end to the other, the continent is blessed with lush greenery, sand dunes, high mountains, sandy beaches and clement weather. On this backdrop, many filmmakers around the world have journeyed to tell their stories.

There are many film destinations in Africa but some countries are more popular than others. Here are the top 6 film destinations in Africa in no particular order.

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South Africa

Home to a thriving local film industry and some of the best film directors in the continent, South Africa is one of the top film destinations in Africa. Top filmmakers around the world troop to South Africa to shoot their films/projects, in part or in full.

Many locations in South Africa have seen a movie or two shot in them like Soweto (District 9 2009) and Sun City (Blended 2014). However, the two most popular film locations in South Africa are Cape Town and Johannesburg.

Cape Town, located in the Western Cape of South Africa, has seen many foreign movies and television productions like Homeland (2011), Doomsday (2008), Lord of War (2005), Resident Evil: The Final Chapter (2016), Safe House (2012), The Giver (2014), Black Sails (2014), Maze Runner(2014), Tomb Raider (2018) and the Netflix series, Troy: Fall of a City (2018).

Many local and international films like Hotel Rwanda (2004) have been shot in Johannesburg. Johannesburg is also pretty popular for American and European productions. The city, enriched with Victorian Colonial and Edwardian Baroque architecture, is a good stand-in for many places in the US and Europe.

The need to shoot in South Africa can be traced to the fact that shooting a project in the US or the UK is expensive; sometimes three times more expensive than in South Africa.

Also, the South African Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) goes a step further by giving out generous 20% (capped at 50 Million Rand) filming incentives to production companies willing to shoot in the country.

Couple that with the availability of skilled workers and flexible locations, South Africa is the go-to place to shoot your film in Africa.

Our favorite foreign movies shot in South Africa remain Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015), Eye in the Sky (2015), Hitman (2007), Hotel Rwanda (2004) and Blood Diamond (2006).

Morocco

We have written about Morocco before. What astounds us about Morocco is not just the myriad and great number of films that have been shot in the country – thus making it one of the top film destinations in Africa.

It’s the fact that Morocco has mastered the art of camouflage, passing for places like Tibet in Kundun (1997), Martin Scorsese’s tale of the 14th Dalai Lama and Somalia in Black Hawk Down (2001).

Since 1919, Morocco has seen many foreign film productions. Some of the popular ones are

• Tom Cruise’s Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation shot in Casablanca,
• Oliver Stone’s Alexander (2004), Orson Welles’ film adaptation of William Shakespeare’s Othello (1951) and John Wick 3 (2019) shot in Essaouira,
• Sex and the City 2 (2010) in Marrakech,
• Lawrence of Arabia (1962), Gladiator (2000) and Game of Thrones in Ait Benhaddou and
• Inception (2010) in Tangier.

Other movies shot in Morocco include The Jewel of the Nile (1985), Aquaman (2018), The Dictator (2012), The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen (2003), Mamma Mia! (2008), War Dogs (2016), Men in Black: International (2019), Queen of the Desert (2015), Rendition (2007) and Rules of Engagement (2000).

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Read: Why Morocco is One of the Top Film Destinations in Africa

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Thanks to Morocco’s 20% tax rebate on foreign films, the number of foreign movies and television series shot in Morocco continue to rise every year, making it a top film destination in Africa.

According to the Moroccan Cinema Center (CCM), the total foreign production spend in Morocco grew from $32 million in 2017 to $50 million in 2018 to over $80 million in 2019.

The rebate, which has a yearly budget of about $11 million, grants foreign investors a 20% refund on qualifying expenses, provided that they spend at least 18 days shooting on location and have a production cost of at least $1 million. 

Our favorite foreign films shot in Morocco are Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time (2010), The Mummy (1999), Babel (2006), American Sniper (2014), The Bourne Ultimatum (2007), Gladiator (2000), Kingdom of Heaven (2005) and Captain Phillips (2013).

Kenya

Many foreign films were shot in Kenya as far back as the 1950’s like Mogambo (1953) starring Ava Gardner and Clark Gable and King Solomon’s Mines in the 80’s.

However, many didn’t fall in love with Kenya as a film destination until the 1985 film, Out of Africa featuring Meryl Streep and Robert Redford.

Since then, Kenya has seen itself grow as a popular film destination in Africa with over 80 foreign films shot in the country.

Out of Africa (1985) was shot in Ngong Hills, pushing the location to film-making limelight. Ngong Hills is about 22 kilometers southwest of Kenya’s capital, Nairobi.

Other popular film locations in Kenya include Loiyangalani near the coast of Lake Turkana where The Constant Gardener (2005) was shot, Hell’s Gate National Park where Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life (2003) was filmed, Nairobi where the Netflix series, Sense8 (2015) was shot and Baringo where Nowhere in Africa (2001) was shot.

Nowhere in Africa went on to win over 14 international awards, including the 2003 Academy Award for Best Foreign Language film.

Kenya is also a great destination for television wildlife productions. Many award winning wildlife series have been shot in Kenya by Discovery and BBC Natural History. BBC’s Big Cat Diary, shot in Maasai Mara, follows the lives of the predators there.

Kenya’s natural beauty, predictable weather and wildlife experience are the main incentives that draw filmmakers from around the world.

In addition, Kenya has a single-window system, a one-stop shop that allows foreign filmmakers to obtain and submit regulatory documents such as permits and licensing at a single location instead of having to visit different government agencies in different locations.

Our favorite foreign films shot in Kenya include Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls (1995), Going Bananas (1987), Out of Africa (1985) and Nowhere in Africa (2001).

Egypt

There’s just something exotic, mysterious and otherworldly about Egypt. From its ancient history and mythology to its stunning architecture and landscape, Egypt has appeared time and time again in many works of art including film. It’s no wonder that almost every film director worth his salt wants to shoot at least one movie in Egypt.

Egypt has had a long history with hosting foreign film and TV productions like

• Michael Bay’s Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen shot in Luxor and at the Pyramids,
• The Spy Who Loved Me (1977) shot at Karnak Temple in Luxor,
• The Mummy (1999) shot in Luxor,
• The Ten Commandments (1956) shot in Memphis,
• Malcom X (1992) and
• Fair Game (2010) shot in Cairo. Fair Game also stars Egyptian actor Hanaa Abdel Fattah

However, due to past incidents of unrest in Egypt and great competition from countries like Morocco, some projects have been known to opt for other locations as evident in Ridley Scott’s Exodus: Gods and Kings.

This has led to a slow decline of foreign film productions in Egypt. In trying to remedy the situation, the Egyptian authorities have established a series of financial incentives and a trade body to promote Egyptian films abroad and to attract more international productions into the country.

Our favorite films shot in Egypt include Malcolm X (1992), Cleopatra (1963), Death on the Nile (1978), The Spy Who Loved Me (1977) and Syriana (2005), produced by George Clooney.

Tunisia

Tunisia is another northern African country that has proven over the years to be a top film destination in Africa.

One of the most popular franchise in modern film-making, Star Wars, was shot in Tunisia. The original Star Wars was filmed in Tunisia in 1976. George Lucas had originally planned for scenes involving Tatooine, Luke Skywalker’s home, to be shot in the Philippines, but later changed his mind for Tataouine, a location in Tunisia.

Subsequently, other films in the series (The Phantom Menace in 1997, Attack of the Clones in 2000 and Revenge of the Sith in 2003) were all shot in the country.

Other famous movies filmed in Tunisia include Monty Python’s Life of Brian (1979), where Tunisia stood in for Israel, The English Patient (1996) shot in Tunis and The Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) set in Kairouan masquerading as Egypt’s Cairo. 1001 Nights (1990) and Black Gold (2011) were also shot in Tunisia.

Tunisia can attribute its success as a top film destination in Africa to many factors. Firstly, the variety of scenes found in the country like deserts, forests, beaches, mountains, industrial landscapes and souks are simply outstanding.

Secondly, getting permission for a foreign film production is pretty easy in Tunisia as it requires obtaining only one permit from the Ministry of Culture to cover the entire shoot. Also cast and crew members, who are US or EU citizens, are not required to have work visas before shooting in the country.

Thirdly, Tunisia has adequate infrastructure to cater to the film industry as well as locally skilled film workers to help in production.

Our favorite foreign movies shot in Tunisia include the 1977 miniseries, Jesus of Nazareth, all the Star Wars movies and Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981).

Namibia

Mesmerizing, desolate and enthralling, the Namibian desert, located in the southern part of Africa, is a juxtaposition of emotions at first glance. On this backdrop, has many a movie been made.

Stanley Kubrick’s stunning opening scene in 2001: A Space Odyssey was shot in Spitzkoppe, Namibia. The 1968 movie went on to win four Oscar awards one of which was for Best Visual Effects.

Namibia was also the film destination for the 2003 Beyond Borders starring Angelina Jolie and Clive Owen. The Hunters (1957), The Cell (2000), Flight of the Phoenix (2004), 10,000 BC (2008) and Gallowwalkers (2012) are all movies that were shot in the Namib Desert in Namibia

2015 saw the shooting of the box office film, Mad Max: Fury Road. The film was shot on location in Namibia for 100 days after rains cut short the film’s initial plan for the Australian desert outback.

Namibia is a great film destination in Africa that happens to be politically stable. Its proximity to South Africa is also another plus. Additionally, Namibia has a very supportive film commission that helps out with local permits and logistics which intending filmmakers consider when looking for film locations in Africa.

Our favorite foreign films shot in Namibia include Dhoom 2 (2006), Mad Max: Fury Road (2015) and The Mummy (2017) starring Tom Cruise.

Conclusion

Africa as a film destination is growing in leaps and bounds every day as more and more productions move to the continent. We hope to see this collaboration yield tangible results like a more vibrant film industry across Africa.

Tell us in the comment section about other great film destinations in Africa that you know of.

An education is a prerequisite for practically anything in life. Whether formal, informal or self-taught, there is a learning process that one interested in sharpening his skill must undergo. This is true for most professions including film-making.

There are film schools everywhere in the world with some schools more popular than others. In Africa, many of these film schools are cropping up making intending students indecisive on where to go.

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” An education is a prerequisite for practically anything in life.

-AMDB.tv (2020)

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So, we took the time to go through the available films schools in Africa and here is our pick of the top 10 film schools in Africa.

National Film Institute, Jos (Nigeria)

The National Film Institute is located in Jos, Nigeria. The school was established in 1992. It is a CILECT accredited school. CILECT, located in Brussels, is the international association of film and television schools, made up of some of the best film and television schools in the world.

NFI offers certificate course programs in

• Cinematography
• Film Editing
• Scriptwriting
• Digital Still Photography
• Acting/Directing
• Makeup, and Special Effects

Notable alumna of the NFI include the Nigerian Actor, Daniel Effiong known for Plan B (2018).

For more details, visit: nfi.edu.ng

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AFDA (South Africa)

With campuses located in several locations in South Africa and Botswana, AFDA is one of the biggest film schools in Africa. Established in 1994 by Garth Holmes, Bata Passchier and Deon Opperman, AFDA is a CILECT accredited film school that offers courses in

• Directing
• Acting  
• Producing
• Scriptwriting
• Cinematography
• Production Design
• Animation
• Data and Grading
• Costume, Makeup and Styling
• Editing
• Visual Effects
• Sound Design
• Music Media Production
• Live Performance

Notable AFDA alumni include Pierre de Villiers, the cinematographer for This Is Not a Burial, It’s a Resurrection (2019) and Thapelo Mokoena, an actor and presenter known for acting in Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom, the 2013 film, based on the Nelson Mandela’s book of the same name.

For more details, visit: https://www.afda.co.za/

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Read: 12 Best African Movies Based on Books

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Imagine Film Institute (Burkina Faso)

In 2005, the Burkinabe film director, Gaston Kabore, opened a film school in Ouagadougou called Imagine. Famous for his film, Buud Yam which won the top prize at FESPACO in 1997, Kabore founded Imagine and officially opened its doors at FESPACO in 2005.

Kabore, one of the best directors in Burkina Faso, stated that one of his reasons for opening the film school was due to the lack of training schools within the continent at the time, causing many aspiring African filmmakers to venture abroad for their training.

With state-of-the-art infrastructure and film professionals as instructors, Imagine offers courses in

• Screenwriting
• Cinematography
• Video Production
• Stage Production etc.

The Imagine Institute is open not only to professionals but also to film enthusiasts who want to gain a basic understanding of the film-making process.

For more details, visit: www.institutimagine.com

Ecole Supérieure des Arts Visuels (the School of Visual Arts) ESAV (Morocco)

Located in Marrakech, Morocco, Ecole Supérieure des Arts Visuels (the School of Visual Arts) ESAV is considered one of the best international film schools in the world. It is also accredited by CILECT.

ESAV was founded by Susanna Biderman and Vincent Melilli in 2006. ESAV offers courses in

• Film and Television
• Cinematography,
• Graphic Design
• Interactive Design.

ESAV also has a running scholarship program targeting young and upcoming talent in Sub-Saharan Africa.

For more details, visit: http://esavmarrakech.com/

University of the Witwatersrand (WITS) (South Africa)

Named one of the top 15 international film schools in 2016 by the Hollywood Reporter, the WITS School of Art (WSOA) at the University of the Witwatersrand is located in Johannesburg, South Africa.

They offer degree programs at undergraduate, graduate and doctorate levels in

• Film and Television
• Digital Arts
• Music, Theatre and Performance
• Fine Arts
• Drama for Life (Applied Theatre and Drama Therapies)
• History of Art
• Interdisciplinary Arts & Culture Studies
• Cultural Policy and Management

University of the Witwatersrand is Gavin Hood’s alma mater though he studied law there.

For more details, visit: https://www.wits.ac.za/wsoa/

Del-York Creative Academy (Nigeria)

Del-York Creative Academy (DCA) was established by Linus Idahosa in 2010 and is located in Abuja, Nigeria.

Boasting a partnership with the New York Film Academy and by extension Hollywood, DCA offers a wide range of courses in

• Directing
• Acting
• Producing
• Screenwriting
• Cinematography
• Editing
• Sound Design and Scoring
• Music Video Production
• Graphics & Special Effects
• Set Design
• Costume Design and Makeup
• Broadcast Journalism
• Animation
• Digital Photography
• Digital Marketing

Notable alumni include Eric Aghimien (Director – Slow Country – 2017), Adeyemi Okanlawon (Actor – Dinner – 2016), James Omokwe (Director – Awakening – 2013)

For more details, visit: https://www.delyorkcreative.academy/

Kwetu Film Institute (Rwanda)

In 2005, the Kwetu Film Institute was founded by Kabera Eric, a Rwandan filmmaker. Situated in Kigali, Rwanda, Kwetu is a growing film institution in Africa providing training for students in film and television.

The school offers programs in

• Directing
• Scriptwriting
• Film and TV Production
• Cinematography
• Editing
• Sound and Light
• History of Film
• Marketing
• Film Industry Laws and Regulations

A popular short-term film course at Kwetu is the 3-month ‘Fast Track Filmmaker’. Cost is pegged at RWF 320 000.

Another program is their 2-year full time diploma training for media designers which they offer in conjunction with Rwanda Media Project. The program costs about RWF1.4 million.

For more details, visit: https://kwetu.rw/

Pefti Film Institute (Nigeria)

The PEFTI Film Institute was founded by the popular Nigerian TV series producer, Wale Adenuga, in 2004. At the time, Adenuga felt the need for a film school in Nigeria as there weren’t many of its kind in the country. Located in Lagos, Nigeria, PEFTI offers diploma programs in

• Acting
• Writing
• Film Production
• Photography
• Presentation
• Music Production
• Choreography

Alumna of the PEFTI Film institute include Chuks Agoziem, a film director known for the 2016 film, The Awakening.

For more details, visit: https://www.pefti.tv/

African Digital Media Institute (Kenya)

JFTA is an African film school that was founded by Wilfred Kiumi in 2011. In 2015, JFTA was rebranded to ADMI. ADMI prides itself in its creative media and technology programs as well as its competent instructors made up of industry professionals.

Courses offered include

• Film & TV Production,
• Sound Engineering,
• Music Production,
• Animation & Motion Graphics,
• Photography,
• Journalism & Multimedia,
• Mobile App & Game Development,
• Graphic Design,
• Multimedia and Digital Marketing.

Notable alumni include Wambui Muigai known for her cinematography work in Netflix’s Sense8 and Evans Sunday Okello, known for directing The Legion, which got him a nomination for Best Director at the 2017 Zanzibar International Film Festival (ZIFF)

For more details, visit: https://admi.ac.ke

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Read: Things That African Filmmakers Can Learn From the 92nd Academy Awards

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Lufodo Academy of Performing Arts (Nigeria)

Lufodo Academy of Performing Arts (LAPA) is one of the choicest film schools in Nigeria. Founded in 2009 by two Nollywood acting veterans, Olu Jacobs, and wife, Joke Silva, LAPA has provided formal training to individuals interested in the film-making process.

Located in Lagos, Nigeria, LAPA offers diploma and certificate programs in

• Acting
• Directing
• Scriptwriting
• Cinematography
• Critique
• Set Design
• Make-up
• Costume Design
• Dance for Stage
• Radio Presentation

The school has churned out notable professionals through the years like Omoye Uzamere, Orji Ibe, Abiodun Kassim, Ayobami Ajike etc.

For more details, visit: https://lapa.edu.ng/

Conclusion

Africa is gradually coming into her own. With the growth of the film industry across Africa, we expect to see more and more film schools with great standards on par with what’s obtainable everywhere in the world.

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Read: How To Get A Sponsor or Grant For Your Movie Idea

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If you are looking to go to film school or you have been to one, tell us your about experience in the comment section.