Wale Igbintade
Nigeria LNG Limited (NLNG) has challenged Nigerian filmmakers to discover underreported features of the nation’s historical past, tradition and on a regular basis experiences, unveiling a US$20,000 prize for excellent documentary productions within the 2027 version of The Nigeria Prize for Creative Arts.
The competitors, themed Nigeria Unseen, seeks to encourage filmmakers to inform tales that not often obtain consideration, study acquainted topics from ignored views and current audiences with a deeper understanding of Nigeria and its folks.
The initiative, which follows the inaugural version of the competitors in 2026, is open to Nigerian filmmakers aged between 18 and 35, no matter their nation of residence.
As a part of efforts to strengthen the competitors’s administration and preserve its requirements, NLNG has additionally appointed a three-member Advisory Board chaired by award-winning filmmaker and producer, Femi Odugbemi.
The board has journalist and broadcaster, Kadaria Ahmed, and documentary filmmaker, Joel Kachi Benson, as members.
The Advisory Board will present strategic path, oversee the administration of the prize and safeguard the integrity of its adjudication course of.
Its tasks will embody selling originality, inventive excellence and compelling storytelling, whereas making certain that the competitors stays clear, unbiased and responsive to developments in Nigeria’s inventive business.
Speaking on the 2027 name for entries, NLNG’s General Manager, External Relations and Sustainable Development, Sophia Horsfall, stated the brand new version would construct on the corporate’s dedication to supporting Nigerian inventive expertise and recognising excellence in filmmaking.
She defined that the Nigeria Unseen theme was designed to encourage filmmakers to pursue tales that broaden public understanding of the nation, notably experiences and views which can be typically ignored.
According to her, documentary filmmaking requires appreciable funding of time, analysis and endurance to perceive a topic earlier than presenting it to an viewers.
Horsfall stated NLNG’s assist for the prize mirrored its confidence in Nigerian expertise and recognition of the painstaking work concerned in producing well-researched and structured documentary content material.
She added that the competitors would offer excellent filmmakers with the popularity their work deserved whereas introducing audiences to features of Nigerian life they may not in any other case encounter.
Chairman of the Advisory Board, Odugbemi, stated the theme provided filmmakers appreciable freedom in selecting their topics, stressing that Nigeria Unseen didn’t essentially require discovering locations or experiences that had by no means been documented.
Rather, he stated, filmmakers might uncover recent views by inspecting acquainted topics, on a regular basis encounters and experiences that folks typically overlook.
He urged potential entrants to look past the novelty of their topics and focus on discovering compelling tales, establishing their significance and presenting them with depth and authenticity.
According to him, profitable documentary filmmaking requires thorough analysis, entry to topics and the belief of the folks whose experiences are being documented.
Odugbemi additionally emphasised the significance of moral storytelling, urging filmmakers to problem their assumptions and permit the folks featured of their documentaries to communicate for themselves.
He stated the selections filmmakers make throughout manufacturing and modifying ought to mirror the complexity of the experiences being portrayed reasonably than cut back folks’s lives to simplistic narratives.
He famous {that a} documentary ought to obtain greater than introducing viewers to an unfamiliar place or lifestyle; it ought to deepen their understanding of the folks and circumstances behind the story.
The appointment of the Advisory Board brings collectively professionals with intensive expertise in filmmaking, journalism, broadcasting, inventive schooling and media management.
Odugbemi, the founder and Chief Executive Officer of Zuri24 Media, is a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and co-founder of the iREP International Documentary Film Festival.
He additionally served because the pioneer Academy Director of the MultiChoice Talent Factory in West Africa, the place he contributed to coaching rising filmmakers.
Ahmed, who’s the Executive Director of Daria Media and Managing Director of Radio Now 95.3 FM, beforehand labored as a Senior Producer on the BBC and Editor of NEXT newspaper.
Her expertise spans print journalism, radio and tv broadcasting, public-interest reporting and editorial management. She has additionally performed interviews and moderated presidential debates.
Benson, an award-winning documentary filmmaker, is recognised for his work exploring human experiences via documentary and immersive storytelling.
His digital actuality documentary, Daughters of Chibok, received the Venice Lion for Best Immersive Story on the 2019 Venice International Film Festival.
He additionally co-directed Madu, which received the Outstanding Arts and Culture Documentary award on the 2025 News & Documentary Emmy Awards.
His appointment is predicted to convey further experience in documentary manufacturing, rising storytelling codecs and the presentation of Nigerian tales to worldwide audiences.
The submission portal for the 2027 competitors will open on February 1, 2027, with entries closing at 11:59 p.m. West African Time on April 30, 2027.
Eligible documentaries will need to have been produced between January 2026 and April 2027 and should not exceed 20 minutes in operating time.
Submissions are to be made via the FilmFreeway platform, whereas detailed data on eligibility standards, movie specs and different necessities is offered on the Nigeria Prize web site.
The Nigeria Prize for Creative Arts recognises Nigerian filmmaking expertise and the position of documentary movies in preserving the nation’s tales and bringing them to wider audiences.
The prize varieties a part of NLNG’s broader dedication to recognising and rewarding excellence within the arts and sciences, alongside The Nigeria Prize for Literature and The Nigeria Prize for Science and Innovation.
