AMAA 2026: ‘To Adaego With Love’, ‘The Herd’, ‘Colours Of Fire’ Lead Nigeria’s Charge for African Film Glory
Nigerian productions are making a strong statement at the 22nd Africa Movie Academy Awards (AMAA), with To Adaego With Love, The Herd and Colours of Fire emerging as the country’s leading contenders for continental honours.
The three films secured 11, 10 and nine nominations respectively, underlining Nigeria’s strong presence on the continent’s biggest celebrations of cinematic excellence.
The nomination list was announced on Saturday, ahead of the awards ceremony scheduled for November 15, 2026, at the Lagos Marriott Hotel.
Directed by Nwamaka Chikezie, To Adaego With Love leads Nigeria’s entries with 11 nominations, followed by Daniel Etim-Effiong’s The Herd with 10, while Colours of Fire earned nine nominations.
The films feature prominently across major categories, including Best Film, acting, directing and technical achievements, placing Nigeria firmly in contention for some of the night’s biggest prizes.
However, Uganda’s Slum Bomber and Kenya’s One Woman, One Bra lead the overall nominations with 14 each. South Africa’s Theen Made It and Côte d’Ivoire’s Colours of Exile secured 10 nominations apiece.
AMAA Chief Executive Officer, Raymond Anyiam-Osigwe, said the nominated productions reflected Africa’s cultural diversity, shared experiences and growing creative excellence.
“The films nominated this year remind us that African stories are global stories, possessing the power to captivate, challenge, and inspire audiences anywhere in the world,” he said.
He added that the filmmakers had continued to raise the standard of African cinema.
Representing the jury, Executive Director of the National Film and Video Censors Board, Dr Shaibu Husseini, also commended the awards and expressed confidence in the judging process.
Nollywood Stars Battle for Acting Honours
Several leading Nollywood stars earned nominations in the acting categories.
Toyin Abraham was nominated for Best Actress in a Leading Role for Oversabi Aunty, alongside Osas Ighodaro for Colours of Fire and Faithia Balogun for Efunroye (The Unicorn). Chisom Agoawuike also earned recognition for To Adaego With Love.
Other contenders include Sarah Karel for One Woman, One Bra, Deborah Kabongo for Rusambo, Jackline Nafula for Slum Bomber and Naku Sy Savane for Colours of Exile.
In the Best Actor in a Leading Role category, Etim-Effiong received a nomination for The Herd, alongside Wale Ojo for Light Out and Uzor Arukwe for Colours of Fire.
Other nominees include Maurice Carpede for The Trek, Ricky Adelayitar for The Fisherman, Marcus Mabusela for Theen Made It, Abdoulaziz Sall for Colours of Exile and Kang Quintus for Mabanda.
Nigeria also recorded a strong showing in the supporting acting categories, with Linda Ejiofor nominated for The Herd, Mercy Aigbe for Colours of Fire, Omowunmi Dada for Evi and veteran actress Patience Ozokwo for Onobiren.
Dele Odule earned a Best Supporting Actor nomination for Iwe Ala, while Femi Branch was recognised for Colours of Fire, Bucci Franklin for The Creek and Bob-Manuel Udokwu for To Adaego With Love.
Nigerian Films Target Best Film Award
Nigeria’s hopes for the Best Film prize rest partly on To Adaego With Love and The Herd, which will compete against seven other African productions.
The category also features South Africa’s The Trek and Theen Made It, Ghana’s The Fisherman, Côte d’Ivoire’s Colours of Exile, Uganda’s Slum Bomber, Kenya’s One Woman, One Bra and Cameroon’s Mabanda.
In the Best Director category, Chikezie earned recognition for To Adaego With Love, while Etim-Effiong was nominated for The Herd. They will face competition from filmmakers including Meekaaeel Adam for The Trek, Maureen Nankya for Slum Bomber and Zoey Martinson for The Fisherman.
Both Nigerian filmmakers also received nominations for Best Debut Feature Film by a Director.
The National Film and Video Censors Board Award for Best Nigerian Film features nine local productions: Iwe Ala, To Adaego With Love, Colours of Fire, Suky, Efunroye (The Unicorn), The Herd, Cordelia, The Creek and Oversabi Aunty.
Meanwhile, Nigeria’s Iwe Ala and Efunroye (The Unicorn) will compete in the Ousmane Sembène Award for Best Film in an African Language against productions from other parts of the continent.
Strong Showing in Technical and Documentary Categories
Beyond acting and directing, Nigerian productions have also secured nominations across technical categories, including cinematography, editing, production design, costume design, make-up, soundtrack, sound, visual effects and screenplay.
To Adaego With Love is among the productions recognised for achievements in production design, costume design, soundtrack, sound and screenplay.
Nigeria’s documentary entries include Asaba Massacre and The Rhythm of Ancestors, competing alongside productions from Kenya, South Africa, Burkina Faso and Uganda.
Other Nigerian entries appear in the short film and animation categories, including Hurriyah, The Spectacular Death of Prisca, A Night With The Queen, The Plot and The Lion of Gwoza.
Additional Nigerian productions recognised across various categories include Evi, Idia, Suky, Cordelia, The Creek and Oversabi Aunty.
The awards also feature diaspora categories covering narrative features, documentaries and short films, reflecting the expanding reach of African storytelling beyond the continent.
The 22nd AMAA ceremony on November 15 is expected to bring together filmmakers, actors and other industry stakeholders to celebrate outstanding achievements in African cinema.
Organised by the Africa Film Academy, the Africa Movie Academy Awards recognise excellence in filmmaking by Africans and people of African descent.
