Nigeria goes for the Oscars

When Kenyan Lupita Nyong won the prestigious Oscar Award, it was celebrated beyond the shores of Kenya. It was a boost to the African film industry. But the question most Nigerians asked was: When will Nigerian movie industry, taunted as the third largest in the world, win The Oscars?

In same vein, and following the success of his countrywoman at the last Oscars, Mo, a Kenyan DJ twitted that a Nigerian would never win the Oscars, basing his claim on the notion in some quarters that Nollywood, which is touted by stakeholders as the third biggest movie industry in the world, is more about quantity than quality.

No matter the argument, Nollywood has moved far ahead in quality and production, going by the many high budget movies that premiere in cinemas across the world.

But the main reason Nigeria is hopeful of wining The Oscar soon is the unveiling of the 12-man Nigerian Oscar Selection Committee (NOSC) in Lagos, approved by The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) ahead of the 2015 Oscars.  The responsibility of the committee headed by Chineze Anyaele, an ace movie producer, is to lookout for and also selects indigenous Nigerian movies that will feature in the Best Foreign Language Film category of the Academy Awards, otherwise called Oscars, from next year.

Speaking at media event to unveil the committee in Lekki, Lagos, recently, Anyaele, producer of ‘Ije’, a popular movie, explained that with the acquisition of the right to select indigenous Nigerian movies for The Oscars after over two years effort, hope rises for Nigeria on the global movie platform, attention and investment opportunities.

As welcomed as the development is, Anyaele warned that it is a call for quality production and observance of global best practice in movie production because only movies that meet The Oscar selection standards would be selected.

“Remember many countries even from Africa are after the same category we are selecting. So, any wrong selection or choice denies Nigeria the opportunity to win her first Oscars”, she warned.

 According to Academy rules, the members will consider submissions on seven criteria, which are: story, direction, acting, cinematography, sound, music and universal theme. Also, the qualifying movies must have not less than 51 percent indigenous language and must have been screened in the cinemas across the country for not less than seven days.

Also speaking at the unveiling, Chioma Ude, CEO, Africa International Film Festival (AFRIF), and member of the 12-man committee, said:  “It is a great opportunity for Nigerian film makers as it will guarantees the right exposure and attention needed”.

Furthering the call for quality production, Shuaibu Husseini, a member of the committee, noted the quality in imperative because the selected movie would compete with 76 others from other countries, of which the best five will be nominated by the Academy, and the winner announced at the ceremony.

The 12-man committee drawn from relevant stakeholders in the Nigerian movie industry include: Chineze Anyaele, chairman, Shuaibu Husseini, journalist, Charles Novia, film makers, Mildred Okwo, film maker, Ramsey Nouah, actor, Chioma Ude, film festival organiser, and Emeka Mbah, former director general, Nigerian Video Censors Board.  Others are Biola Alabi, Ngozi Okafor, Olumide Amure, Kene Mkparu, and Akin Salami.

However, while the approval of the committee is expected to pave the way for Nigerian entries to be considered for the world’s most prestigious prizes for films especially the 2015 Oscars, Nollywood fans hope the best for the films at the prestigious film awards in the United States of America.

OBINNA EMELIKE