The 21st edition of the prestigious awards, which celebrate excellence in African cinema and the diaspora, was unveiled during a virtual ceremony on Saturday, hosted by Nigerian screen stars Lilian Aluko, Emeka Ossai, Charles Inojie, and Adaora Anyanwu.
Burkina Faso’s Katanga: Dance of the Scorpions led the pack with ten nominations, followed closely by Lisabi: The Uprising with seven. The epic historical drama, directed by Niyi Akinmolayan, revisits the legendary story of Yoruba warrior Lisabi, his rebellion against colonial forces, and the spirit of collective resistance that defined the era.
3 Cold Dishes, directed by Asurf Oluseyi, also earned multiple nominations, including Best Film, Best Director, and Best Cinematography. The pan-African thriller, which features Osas Ighodaro, Fat Toure, and Maud Guerard, explores themes of vengeance, sisterhood, and redemption across three continents — a bold narrative that underscores the growing sophistication of Nigerian and African filmmaking.
Other Nigerian titles that earned recognition include Freedom Way, Amanayanbo, Red Circle, and The Serpent Gift, all of which received nods in various technical and performance categories.
Among the individual nominees, Lateef Adedimeji was shortlisted for Best Actor in a Leading Role for his powerful portrayal in Lisabi: The Uprising, while veteran actress Tina Mba earned a Best Supporting Actress nomination for The Serpent Gift. Rising star Ruby Akubueze also secured a Best Young/Promising Actor nomination for her standout performance in 3 Cold Dishes.
Other African films competing in the top categories include Ethiopia’s For Love, For Land, For Power, South Africa’s The Heart is a Muscle, Ghana’s Last Stop, Uganda’s Small Gods, and Algeria’s Algiers.
The Best Director category is one of the most competitive in recent AMAA history, with Akinmolayan (Lisabi), Oluseyi (3 Cold Dishes), Dany Kouyaté (Katanga), and Theodros Teshome (For Love, For Land, For Power) all vying for the top prize.
Since its founding in 2005, the Africa Movie Academy Awards has been regarded as the continent’s most prestigious film honour — a platform that not only celebrates artistic excellence but also showcases Africa’s storytelling power to global audiences.
With its strong presence across the nominations list, Nigeria once again reaffirms its position as a creative powerhouse in African cinema, driven by bold narratives, technical mastery, and an ever-expanding global audience.
- The Missing Piece – Kenya
- Vandals – Mozambique
- Echoes From The Past- Nigeria/UK
- Abu Judy -Egypt
- Chikha-Queen – Morocco
- MIA – Burkina Faso
- Stigma – Tunisia
- Lee’s Waxul – Senegal
- The last Harvest – Cape Verde
Jibril Malafia Award for Best Animation
- Dawn – Cameroun
- My Brother, My Brother- Egypt/France/Germany
- The Travails of Ajadi – Nigeria
- Nkizzi’s First Day – Uganda
- Amara and the Spirit of Nyamagunda – Uganda
- Monologue – Nigeria/UK
Best Documentary
- The Journey East – DRC
- Double Minority – Nigeria
- The Empty Grave – Tanzania/UK
- Khartoum – Sudan/UK
- Ancestral Visions of the Future -Lesotho/France/Germany
Ousmane Sembene Award for Best Film in an African Language
- Katanga: Dance of The Scorpions -B/Faso
- Small Gods – Uganda/UK
- Lukas – Namibia
- Lobola Man – South Africa
- Lisabi: The Uprising – Nigeria
- The Heart is a Muscle – South Africa
Michael Anyiam Odigwe Award for Best Film by an African Living Abroad
- Lemohang Jeremiah – ‘Ancestral Visions of the Future’ -Lesotho/France/Germany
- ‘Katanga: Dance of The Scorpions’ – (B/Faso)
- Khartoum – Ibrahim Snoopy – Sudan
Best Diaspora Short
- Cartes – USA
- Superman Doesn’t steal – USA
- Harvest – USA
Best Diaspora Documentary
- The Billy Preston Story – USA
- Carnival: ‘They Cant Steal Our Joy – Canada
- Missing Rio Doce – Brazil/France
- Rediscovering Fenon – USA/Algeria/Martinique
Best Diaspora Narrative Feature
- Sisters Maid – Brazil
- Romeo N Juliet 4EVA – Jamaica
- The Model, The Mannequin and Me – USA
Award for Achievement in Production Design
- Katanga: Dance of The Scorpions
- The Heart is a Muscle
- 3 Cold Dishes
- Last Stop
- Red Circle
Achievement In Costume Design
- Katanga: Dance of The Scorpions
- The Lost Days
- The Masked King
- The Serpent Gift
- Hunting Jessica Brok
Award for Achievement In Make-up
- Spelonk
- Lisabi: The Uprising
- Amanayanbo
- The Masked King
- The Heart is a Muscle
Award for Achievement In Soundtrack
- Recall
- Freedom Way
- Old Righteous Blues
- Kites
- Le Point- The Bridge
Award for Achievement In Visual Effect
- For Land, For Love, For Power
- Lisabi
- Spelonk
- Hunting Jessica Brok
- Amanayanbo: The Eagle King
Award for Achievement In Sound
- Algiers
- Old Righteous Blues
- Le Point – The Bridge
- Hunting Jessica Brok
- Katanga: Dance of The Scorpions -B/Faso
Award for Achievement In Cinematography
- 3 cold dishes
- Old Righteous Blues
- Spelonk
- Small gods
- For love, for land, for power
- The Heart is a muscle
- Katanga: Dance of The Scorpions -B/Faso
Award for Achievement In Editing
- For Love, For Land, For power
- Spelonk
- The Heart is a Muscle
- 3 Cold Dishes
- Algiers
Award for Achievement In Screenplay
- Old Righteous Blues
- Le Point – The Bridge
- For Love, For Land, For Power
- Small Gods
- Red circle
- Katanga: Dance of The Scorpions -B/Faso
NFVCB Award for Best Nigerian Film
- Lisabi: The Uprising
- Recall
- Freedom Way
- The Serpent Gift
- Amanayanbo
- 3 Cold Dishes
- Red Circle
- The Masked King
Award for Best Young/ Promising Actor
- Alejandro Cooper- Lukas
- Turinayo Jatham – Small gods
- Tiwalola Adebola-Walter – Freedom Way
- Kisi Ogborueche – Kill Boro
- Ruby Akubueze – 3 Cold Dishes
Award For Best Actor in a Supporting Role
- Kojo Boakye – Two of a Kind
- Femi Jacobs – Freedom Way
- Clemento Ashietey – Last Stop
- Abdulai Saidu Kamara – Code of Honor
Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role
- Zohra Chetioui – Le Point- The Bridge
- Tina Mba – The Serpent Gift
- Fadela Brown – Old Righteous Blues
- Bukky Wright – Red Circle
Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role
- Keenan Arrison – The Heart is a Muscle
- Debebe Eshetu – For love, for land, for power
- Adjetey Anang – Last Stop
- Lateef Adedimeji – Lisabi: The Uprising
- Ayden Croy- Old Righteous Blues
- Bizimana Hussain – Small Gods
- Mahamadi Nana – Katanga: Dance of The Scorpions -B/Faso
- Nabil Asli – Algiers
Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role
- Linda Ejiofor-Suleiman – The Serpent Gift
- Analisa Munyana – Mucoma: The Battle of the Couple
- Shaffy Bello – The Masked King
- Danica De La Ray Jones- Hunting Jessica Brok
- Getahun Hailu – For Love, For Land, For Power
- Florence Mariserena – Small gods
- Meriem Medjkane – Algiers
- Osas Ighodaro, Fat Toure and Maud Guerard – 3 Cold Dishes
Award for Best Debut Feature Film by a Director
- The Lost Days – Wingonia Ikpi
- Small Gods- Asher Rosen
- Algiers- Chakib Taleb-Bendiab
- Kill Boro- Obayuwana Courage
- The Heart is a Muscle – Imran Hamdulay
- Freedom Way – Afolabi Olalekan
Award for Best Director
- Niyi Akinmolayan- Lisabi: The Uprising (Nigeria)
- The Heart is a Muscle – Imran Hamdulay (South Africa)
- Asurf Oluseyi – 3 Cold Dishes (Nigeria)
- Asher Rosen- Small Gods – (Uganda)
- Theodros Teshome -For Love, For Land, For Power (Ethiopia)
- Dany Kouyate – Katanga: Dance of The Scorpions -B/Faso
- Kwabena Gwansah – Last Stop (Ghana)
- Chakib Taleb-Bendiab – Algiers (Algeria)
Award for Best Film
- Algiers – Algeria
- 3 Cold Dishes – Nigeria
- The Heart is a Muscle – South Africa
- Small Gods – Uganda
- For Love, For Land, For Power -Ethiopia
- Katanga: Dance of The Scorpions -B/Faso
- Last Stop – Ghana
- Lisabi: The Uprising (Nigeria)”