AFRIFF opens its fifteenth edition in Lagos with Djimon Hounsou as guest of honour

With an opening gala on Sunday evening, 1 November, the fifteenth edition of the Africa International Film Festival has begun in Lagos. Besides Hollywood actor Djimon Hounsou, Rita Dominic and Wale Ojo were among those who walked the red carpet.

Rita Dominic, Wale Ojo and Osas Ighodaro were at the opening gala of the Africa International Film Festival (AFRIFF) in Lagos on Sunday 1 November. According to the Nigerian outlet QED.NG, they posed on the red carpet with Hollywood actor Djimon Hounsou and other Nigerian and international guests. That is how AFRIFF kicked off its fifteenth edition.

Juliet Ibrahim, Darey Alade, Ruggedman, Prince Nwerem, Damilola Oni and Real Warri Pikin were also spotted at the event. According to QED.NG, a video of the evening shows founder Chioma Ude arriving. Hounsou is the festival's guest of honour.

A week of films and business

Ude founded the festival in 2010. According to ShockNG, she wanted to give African filmmakers the chance to meet audiences and the international film world. This year's edition runs from 1 to 7 November under the theme "Frames of the Future: Africa's Creative Intelligence". The programme includes film screenings, masterclasses, conversations about the industry and the Africa Film and Content Market.

The opening film is Lady, the feature debut of Nigerian director Olive Nwosu. The film follows a young taxi driver in Lagos who drives a group of sex workers on their nightly rounds. According to ThisDay, the British-Nigerian co-production won a Special Jury Award at the Sundance Film Festival this year, after earlier screenings in Berlin and London. ThisDay also reports that women have a role in 55 percent of the selected films.

The closing film is It's the Blackness, the directorial debut of Hakeem Kae-Kazim. The festival ends on 7 November with the Globe Awards. The figures on the size of the selection differ. The organisers speak of 130 films from Africa and the rest of the world, while ThisDay earlier wrote of 135 selections.

For the first time, AFRIFF is selling tickets for screenings and events. According to Voice of Nigeria, the Obi Adada Foundation covers the cost of tickets for screenings, so that young creators and festivalgoers can watch films for free. According to the Rio Times, the ten masterclasses are free after registration. A basic badge for the industry market costs between 150 and 300 US dollars, depending on the booking date, according to the same source.

The second edition of the Africa Film and Content Market takes place from 2 to 5 November at Twinwaters in Lekki. According to WhatKeptMeUp, it is four days devoted to production, financing and distribution, connecting filmmakers with investors and buyers.

What Hounsou and Dominic are up to

At the festival, Hounsou presents Calabash, a film the festival describes as a short. He also joins a panel discussion on how African stories reach a global audience. According to ShockNG's panel programme, the session is called "Beyond Nollywood" and takes place on Monday 2 November at 12:00. Funke Akindele and Ramsey Nouah are also at the table. On 4 November, Hounsou and Richard Mofe-Damijo will hold a conversation about African identity and Hollywood.

Calabash already screened in Berlin in February, as part of the AfroBerlin programme, Deadline reports. The film is the first title from Hounsou's new production company Fanaticus Media Group and, according to the trade publication, is directed by Omar S. Kamara. The story is about two families with different traditions who come together for a wedding, after which tensions rise. At AfroBerlin, Hounsou said the film fits with his foundation, which aims to strengthen the connection between Africa and the diaspora.

Dominic is connected to the festival in a different way. Her project The Spectacular Death of Prisca is in the selection, and according to QED.NG she promoted the screening on social media. The programme describes the film by director Kaelo Iyizoba as a surrealist quest that combines melodrama with a tribute to classic Nollywood.

QED.NG also reports that American actress Meagan Good has arrived in Lagos. She takes part in a conversation titled "The Art of Becoming: Craft, Identity and Reinvention" during the film market. Danielle Brooks appears as a special guest in the film If I Go Will They Miss Me, according to ShockNG.

Technology and a broad audience

The programme looks not only at storytelling, but also at production, financing, distribution and access to international markets. Together with TikTok, AFRIFF is organising a hands-on lab on creating with artificial intelligence on 6 November. That same Friday is devoted to music, culture and creators, in collaboration with CANEX, the creative economy programme of the African Export-Import Bank. Earlier in the week, according to ShockNG, a day on women in film (4 November) and a day on co-productions (5 November) are planned.

The short films include many works by African and diaspora creators. The organisers mention delegations from more than ten countries, including Kenya, South Africa, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Cameroon, Sweden, France, Oman, the United States and Canada.

Why this matters

For Afro-Dutch readers and the wider diaspora, AFRIFF is a place where African filmmakers show their work to guests from outside the continent. That the guest of honour is a Hollywood actor who brings along a film about the bond between Africa and the diaspora fits that pattern. The festival also combines screenings with an industry market, so it is about who can finance and distribute films as well.

Want to read more? The report on the opening night is on QED.NG. You can find the full festival programme at afriff.com/program.

Bronnen

• QED.NG
• ShockNG
• Voice of Nigeria
• ThisDay
• City Post
• ShockNG, programma 15e editie
• ShockNG, alles over AFRIFF 2026
• ThisDay, Lady set to open AFRIFF 2026
• The Rio Times