The judges, drawn from Morrocco, Kenya, Ghana, Gabon,
Burkina Faso and Nigeria, are meeting over 10 days in Lagos to decide entries
that will be nominated by the AMAA international board of jurors for this
year’s edition of the AMAA billed to hold in October.
Chairman of the AMAA Selection Committee, Dr. Shaibu
Husseini, confirmed that the judges have, since their arrival on Monday, been
reviewing the work done at the various stages of selection.
“We commenced the evaluation of 389 entries from over 45
countries shortly after close of entries and we are at the fifth stage, which
will lead to the sixth stage before nominations are announced by the Board of
International Jury,” Shaibu said, adding that the board of jurors will
eventually determine the films that will lift the AMAA diadem across the 26
award categories.
AMAA had previously announced the call for entries on
December 1, 2022, with a late call for entries ending on August 7, 2023. The
nomination event is scheduled for August 31, 2023.
Before her passing in January, the late founder of AMAA,
Peace Anyiam-Osigwe, had disclosed that the award ceremony would take place in
Lagos on October 29.
Shaibu further explained, “The Board of AFA intends for us
to work with that timeline. So, we are working with the Board to ensure that we
meet the date that PMO had fixed for the selection process and the main award
event.”