It was a ceremony of big names when African Movie Academy Awards hosted its 15th consecutive edition in Lagos penultimate Sunday.
Jahmil Qubeka, who had once cleared all the top awards at AMAA a few years ago with his cute ‘Of Good Report’ was announced as Africa’s Best Director at the star-studded ceremony.
He won the award for his latest film, ‘Sew the Winter To My Skin’, a touching story set in South Africa of the 1950s. Although he lost the coveted Best Picture Award to Rwanda’s The Mercy of the Jungle, another intensely shot narrative about two Rwandan soldiers separated at the beginning of Congolese war, Qubeka will be looking forward to his film earning an Oscar nomination in next month, Sew the Winter To My Skin being South Africa’s entry for Academy Awards nomination this year.
It was one big name after the other at the award ceremony which confirmed AMAA as not just the most consistent but also Africa’s biggest and most glamorous reward platform for filmmakers and allied professionals within Africa and African Diaspora.
Nollywood may have lost out in the big technical prizes, but Kemi Adetiba’s ‘King of Boys’ justified its hype and critical appraisal, emerging the Best Nigerian Film and earning the Actress of the Year and Supporting Actress of the Year awards for Sola Sobowale and Adesuwa Etomi-Wellington respectively.
‘King of Boys’ beat other nominees like ‘The Delivery Boy,’ Lara and the Beats, Makeroom, Gold Statue and Up North – to clinch the highly-coveted award sponsored by the National Film and Video Censors Board.
Sir Shina Peters and Ara, Africa’s first female drummer, were some of the artistes that spiced up the evening at a show brilliantly anchored by Kemi Laala-Akindoju and Lorenzo Menakaya with support from Comedian FunnyBone.
It was a good year for African cinema, according to Asantewa Olatunji, the Director of Pan African Film Festival, Los Angeles and Chairman of AMAA Jury 2019. “AMAA has done a great job of attracting the best of African films from the continent and the Diaspora each year,” she said in a Jury Statement read on her behalf by Shaibu Husseini, AMAA’s Head of College of Screeners. Only one category was stepped down by the Jury for lack of quality entries – the Best Comedy Film.
“Our Jury is one of our biggest assets,” says Peace Anyiam-Osigwe, Founder and President of AMAA. “The ceremonial aspect of the show is what everyone sees, but the real work is in attracting quality works each year and in having a pool of tested and knwowledgeable jury members to do a thorough job of selecting Africa’s Best,” she said of the 12-man Jury that has only three Nigerians. Adding that that was the reason why many films representing their countries at major film festivals or Oscar Awards have always passed through AMAA.
It was AMAA’s first time at Landmark Events Centre in its third edition in Lagos and the arrangement, from the green carpet to the neatly arranged hall, stage and green room, was quite remarkable.
In 15 years, AMAA has had eight editions in Yenagoa, Bayelsa where it started in 2005; three in Lagos, one each in Abuja, Port Harcourt, South Africa and Rwanda.
“We are a continental brand and the vision has always been to let different parts of Africa have a taste of AMAA either in hosting the actual award ceremony or the nominees party that usually precedes the award,” Anyiam-Osigwe tells TCN.
And while sponsorship is a growing challenge each year, the rest of Africa delights in being part of the platform even at their own expense.
A Ugandan nominee in the Best Make-up category, Joanna Nentege, said even though she did not win, she was happy and grateful for the opportunity to have visited Nigeria through AMAA.
” The organisers catered for just my hotel and breakfast for two days due to sponsorship constraints. But I’m happy to have paid my way down. AMAA is the talk of the town in Uganda abd the whole of East Africa which everybody looks forward to annually. I will do this all over again at my own expense because nothing compares to this experience. This is our own Oscar Awards and that is why i came with my sister” she told TCN at the ceremony.
For Haitian-born Hollywood actor, Jimmy Jean-Lewis, AMAA is every black filmmaker’s bride that must be nurtured and appreciated. Although he lost out in the Best Actor category, he says he will continue to look forward to the award ceremony each time he’s nominated or invited. “There is something about AMAA that is real, in spite of all its imperfections. It feels real and authentic. It is ours,” he stated.
Here is the full list of the winners:
1. Michael Anyiam Osigwe Award For Best Film by an African-Born Director Living
Abroad: Julius Amedume – Rattlesnakes
2. Best Diaspora Short Film: Bail (UK)
3. Best Diaspora Documentary: My Friend Fela (Brazil)
4. Best Diaspora Narrative Feature: Hero (Trinidad and Tobago/Canada)
5. Best Achievement in Production Design: Redemption (Mozambique)
6. Best Achievement in Costume Design: Mercy of the Jungle (Rwanda)
7. Best Achievement in Make-Up: Mercy of the Jungle (Rwanda)
8. Best Achievement in Soundtrack: Mabata Bata (Mozambique)
9. Best Achievement in Visual Effects: Knockout Blessing (Nigeria)
10. NFVCB Award For Best Nigerian Film: King of Boys
11. Best Documentary: Khartoum Offside (Sudan)
12. Ousmane Sembene Award For Best Film in an African Language: Rafiki (Kenya)
13. Efere Ozako Award For Best Short Film: A Tune of Kora (SENEGAL)
14. Best Achievement in Sound: Mabata Bata (Mozambique)
15. Best Achievement in Cinematography: Sew the Winter to My Skin (S. Africa)
16. Best Achievement in Editing: Rafiki (Kenya)
17. Best Achievement in Screenplay: Redemption (Mozambique)
18. Best Animation: Choices – Nigeria19. Best Young/Promising Actor: Cynthia Dankwa (Esi) BURIAL OF KOJO
20. Best Actor in a Supporting Role: Jarrid Geduld 9 (Abie) Ellen, The Ellen Parkies
Story (WINNER)
21. Best Actress in a Supporting Role: Adesua Etomi (Kemi) The King of Boys
22. Best Actor in a Leading Role: Marc Zinga (Mercy of the Jungle) (WINNER)
23. Best Actress in a Leading Role: Sola Sobowale (Eniola)
24. Best Director-First Feature Film: Blitz Bazawule – The Burial of Kojo (Ghana)
25. Best Director: Jahmil X. Qubeka – Sew the Winter to My Skin (South Africa)
26. Best Film: Mercy of the Jungle (Rwanda)