The road to African Movie Academy Awards (AMAA) 2019 - Everything that happened

On the Sunday of 27th October 2019, the 15th edition of the African Movie Academy Awards (AMAA 2019) was held at Landmark Event Centre, Oniru, Lagos, Nigeria.

For those who may not be aware, the AMAA is the African equivalent of the Oscars. It was instituted by Peace Anyiam-Osigwe in 2005  through the African Film Academy.

The AMAA recognises excellence in filmmaking by professionals working in the industry. The organisers aim to unite Africans through films, as well as to develop the African film industry among other laudable objectives.

AMAA the story of resilience and consistency#AMAA2019 pic.twitter.com/Peb4UbVKdC

— Babajide Fadoju (@BabajideFadoju) July 21, 2019

So every year these 15 years, they bring together the best the continent have to offer, for the year under consideration, in fulfilment of its mission to promote African culture and professionalism in the industry. This way, African filmmakers and professionals in the industry are offered an opportunity to network and to form relationships.

This year’s AMAAis no different. It started back on 23 May 2019 with a gala and workshop held in the Coal City, Enugu. The workshop addressed as its subject the paradigm shift in the African film industry, with participants attention drawn to areas of focus to boost professionalism and increase investment in the industry. It was attended by over 500 professionals, according to reports.

There is always space for improvement, no matter how long you’ve been in the business. #RoadToAMAA2019 #AMAA2019 pic.twitter.com/QvysGShHDY

— AMAA (@AMAAWARDS) June 13, 2019

Get Set, Learn!
The Africa Film Academy Workshop was lit in every single way. Amazing discuss, wonderful people all in one place. #RoadToAMAA2019 #AMAA2019

? @scem_ope pic.twitter.com/cRglYRFjw8

— AMAA (@AMAAWARDS) May 29, 2019

Since AMAA is pan-African, it was only natural to involve other African countries in the buildup to the event. And that was exactly what organisers did with a soiree that was held in Ghana.

This July, the African Movie Academy Awards Gala heads to Ghana. The city of the black stars, the nation of the Golden coast; the nation of legends. Come with us as we celebrate the stars.

Akwaabaa #RoadToAMAA2019 #RoadToAMAA #AMAASoireeGhana #Ghana pic.twitter.com/2X5wzq6bw9

— AMAA (@AMAAWARDS) June 19, 2019

However, the soiree did not hold in July as was advertised but was postponed to 9-13 August 2019, for reasons not made public.

When you hear ‘Ghana’ what’s the first thing that comes to your mind?
For us at AMAA, it’s their beautiful culture, Gollywood and much more… #AMAAInGhana #RoadToAMAA2019 pic.twitter.com/qVlKAFVZRc

— AMAA (@AMAAWARDS) July 30, 2019

Meanwhile, organisers call for nominations elicited a tremendous response from filmmakers from all over the continent. According to AMAA founder, Peace Anyiam-Osigwe, over 700 films were submitted to the Academy for consideration for this year’s award – the 15th AMAA award.

The nominees for the award were broadcast live on Startime on 9th September. Of the 26 categories, four categories were reserved for African filmmakers in the diaspora. The categories include Best Film by an African-born Director Living Abroad, Best Diaspora Short Film, Best Diaspora Documentary and Best Diaspora Narrative Feature.  The National Film and Video Censors Board (NFVCB) endowed Best Nigerian Film exclusively for Nollywood films. The rest of the film categories are open to qualifying African films. Also, for the first in the history of the African Movie Academy Awards, the jury could not nominate any film for the Tony Elumelu Award for the Best Comedy category, citing poor quality films for the films submitted for consideration.

Leading the nominations were two Nollywood films, The Delivery Boy (13 nominations) and King of Boy (8 nominations). The two films were among the contenders for the Best Film award category alongside Rafiki (Kenya) Mercy of the Jungle (Rwanda), Ellen, The Ellen Parkies Story (S. A), Sew the Winter to My Skin(S. A), Redemption (Mozambique) and Urgent (Morocco).

You can find the complete list of nominees here.

And of course, getting nominated is the hardest hurdle to cross to win. And every nominee has an equal chance of clinching the title. Hence, tweets like the one below make every sense. And that’s because not even AMAA organisers know who is going to emerge the winner and has to wait like everyone else until the big reveal, which is taking place as we write this piece.

Wishing our nominees all the best today at #TheAMAAs#knockoutblessing pic.twitter.com/vAakDPM8mO

— Femi D. Ogunsanwo (@FemiOgunsanw0) October 27, 2019

On 25th October 2019, it was announced that actress and filmmaker Lala Akindoju will be the host of the 15th AMAA. Lala was herself nominated for the most promising actress for the 2015 Africa Movie Academy Awards. She will be hosting alongside radio presenter Lorenzo Menakaya and comedian Funny Bone.

We look forward to an amazing and exciting experience to seeing @iAmFunnyBone @lalaakindoju and @LorenzoMenakaya host the 15th edition of @AMAAWARDS. Aren’t you super excited? #AMAA2019 #TheAMAAs. Kindly retweet, @lydiaforson @ameyaw112 @yawazobiafm @DENRELE_EDUN pic.twitter.com/uCqtIQxDul

— Ken Christian Aniche (@Kendesigners) October 26, 2019

So that was a summary of what went down in the buildup to the AMAA 2019. We hope you enjoyed reading about it. Don’t forget to share your thoughts with us in the comment section.

Meanwhile, click here to find out who won what at the 2019 African Movie Academy Awards.