Portal:African cinema/Selected anniversaries/29
The 20th edition of the Africa Movie Academy Awards (AMAA) took place November 2nd, 2024. Among the biggest winners was the Nigerian drama The Weekend which took home the Best Film Award for both Nigeria and Africa. Nigerian filmmaker Femi Adebayo received the Best Actor in a Supporting Role award for his performance in the historical drama Jagun Jagun, a film he also directed and among the most nominated films of the evening. Ghana’s Jackie Appiah received Best Actress in a Leading Role for her performance in Red Carpet, and Jahmil X.T. Qubeka was honored as Best Director for The Queenstown Kings, a Netflix South African sports drama.
Half Heaven (2023), a Cameroon christian drama directed by Enah Johnscott, was winner of five awards at the 28th edition of the Écrans Noirs film festival. The awards included one in the Jury Prize for International Feature award, the Best Central African Feature Award, Best Original Music, Best Costume Design, and the Jury Prize from the African Federation of Film Critics.
Nollywood filmmaker Dimeji Ajibola (b. 15 April 1980) died on November 3rd. He was known for directing Hoodrush (2012), Nigeria’s first urban musical film; Ovy’s Voice, the highest-ranked movie on Iroko TV in 2017, and more recently in 2023, Wura a Showmax original Nigerian soap opera and adaptation of the South Africa’s The River; Slum King, a lagos-based crime series; and Netflix’s crime thriller series Shantytown. His last film was the 2024 drama Saving Onome released on Amazon Prime Video about two parents (Olumide Oworu and Nancy Isime)) who go to desperate lengths to save their daughter.
The Marrakesh International Film Festival runs Nov. 29 to Dec. 7 with a line up of more than 70 films. The 6-member international jury will include Moroccan actress Nadia Kounda (Volubilis and My Dad Is Not Dead). Among the films sreening are Across the Sea directed by Saïd Hamich Benlarbi, a melodrama that follows the clandestine life of a Moroccan immigrant in Marseille; the documentary, Sudan, Remember Us by Hind Meddeb; The Village Next to Paradise, Mo Harawe’s tale of love and resilience in Somalia; Perfumed with Mint, the debut feature of Muhammed Hamdy: and Dania Reymond-Boughenou's supernatural Silent Storms starring Shirine Boutella, Khaled Benaïssa, and singer-turned-actress Camélia Jordana.
The 13th edition of the Africa International Film Festival (AFRIFF) closed out on November 9th after 160 films were screened. Among the winners were Phoenix Fury by Ifeoma N. Chukwuogo (of the award-winning 2017 short Bariga Sugar and the thriller series Diiche) which took top awards for Best Film and Best Director. Uzoamaka Onuoha won Best Actress for her role in the supernatural thriller Agemo. Ntware Mwine won Best International Documentary for Memories of loved Returned about the Ugandan photographer Kibaate Aloysius Ssalongo; and Bode Asiyanbi for Best Screenplay for the Awam Amkpa-directed film The Man Died based on Wole Soyinka’s 1972 book of the same title that recounts his experiences in prison during the Nigerian Civil War.