Your Guide to Nigeria’s 2025 Film Festivals and Where to Find Them

The final quarter of 2025 promises a celebration of African cinema, with eight major festivals scheduled between October and December.

From Lagos to Abuja, Enugu to Ibadan, these festivals represent more than mere entertainment; they are also platforms for cultural exchange, industry development, talent discovery, and the celebration of storytelling that reflects the African experience. 

So, whether you're a filmmaker seeking distribution, an industry professional looking to network, or simply a cinema enthusiast eager to discover the next generation of African filmmakers, this comprehensive guide will help you navigate Nigeria's packed film festival season.

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The Africa International Film Festival (AFRIFF) is an annual film festival that takes place in Nigeria. It was founded in 2010 with its Inaugural edition in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, Nigeria.

AFRIFF was founded by Chioma Ude, a passionate film buff and entrepreneur. What began as a bold vision to create Africa's premier film showcase has evolved into the continent's most vibrant and influential cinematic gathering.

AFRIFF is an international film showcase that presents an immersion into the world of filmmaking, with participation from all over Africa and the diaspora. 

The festival's core mission extends beyond simple film screenings; it aims to position African cinema on the global stage, create meaningful connections between African filmmakers and international markets, and celebrate the diversity and richness of African storytelling.

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The festival champions films that authentically represent African narratives, challenge stereotypes, and push creative boundaries.

It serves as a critical bridge between African content creators and global audiences, distributors, and investors who might otherwise have limited access to the continent's cinematic output.

AFRIFF has successfully launched the careers of numerous African filmmakers, many of whom have gone on to achieve international recognition at Cannes, Toronto, Berlin, and other prestigious festivals. Films like Freedom Way by Blessing Uzzi, The Man Died by Awam Amkpa have been screened in some of these festivals.

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Abuja International Film Festival (AIFF)

October 26-31, 2025 Abuja

The Abuja International Film Festival (AIFF) has grown to become one of Africa's most enduring and influential film festivals. 

Held annually in Nigeria's capital city, Abuja, AIFF serves as a dynamic platform for filmmakers worldwide to showcase the excellence of the cinematic art form.

Ran for 22 years (since 2004), AIFF is one of Nigeria's longest-running and most established film festivals. 

The Founder of the Abuja International Film Festival (AIFF), Fidelis Duker, established the festival with the vision of creating a world-class cinematic platform in Nigeria's administrative capital, ensuring that Abuja, which is often overlooked in favour of Lagos's commercial dominance, would have its own significant cultural identity.

While Lagos-based festivals often attract more commercial attention, AIFF has cultivated a reputation for serious cinematic discourse and artistic merit. 

The festival's location in Abuja provides unique access to government officials, policy makers, and diplomatic corps, making it particularly valuable for discussions around film policy, censorship, and industry regulation.

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The Annual Film Mischief

October 16-19, 2025 Lagos, Abuja

The AnnuaL Film Mischief represents a newer, more experimental approach to film festivals in Nigeria. 

True to its name, the festival embraces a spirit of creative disruption and playful irreverence that sets it apart from more traditional festival formats.

Film Mischief positions itself as the festival for filmmakers who don't quite fit the mainstream mould. It champions experimental narratives, unconventional storytelling techniques, and films that challenge audience expectations. 

The festival's programming deliberately seeks out work that might be considered too risky, too avant-garde, or too politically provocative for more conservative festival circuits.

The festival has become particularly popular among film school graduates, independent filmmakers working outside the commercial Nollywood system, and international directors interested in pushing African cinema's creative boundaries.

Lagos Fringe Festival

November 18-23, 2025 Lagos

The Lagos Fringe Festival occupies a unique space in Nigeria's cultural calendar as a multidisciplinary arts festival where film represents one component of a broader celebration of performance, visual arts, and experimental creativity.

Born from the global Fringe festival movement, which began in Edinburgh and has since spawned iterations worldwide, the Lagos Fringe brings that spirit of open-access, egalitarian, and boundary-pushing art to West Africa. 

Unlike curated festivals, where selection committees determine programming, Fringe festivals traditionally operate on an open-access model where any artist can participate.

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While theatre remains the festival's core focus, film programming at Lagos Fringe has grown significantly in recent years. The festival particularly champions:

• Video art and film installations

• Documentary shorts addressing social issues

• Hybrid works combining live performance with film

• Works by artists who move fluidly between discipline

For filmmakers, Lagos Fringe offers an opportunity to present work to audiences who value experimentation and are hungry for narratives that challenge conventions. It's particularly valuable for directors whose work doesn't fit neatly into commercial or traditional arthouse categories.

Eastern Nigeria International Film Festival (ENIFF)

November 26-29, 2025 | Enugu

The Eastern Nigeria International Film Festival represents a crucial decentralisation of Nigeria's film festival circuit, bringing world-class cinematic programming to Enugu, a city with deep roots in Nigeria's film history.

ENIFF aims to showcase films from and about Eastern Nigeria, provide a platform for Igbo-language cinema, connect Eastern Nigerian filmmakers with international markets, celebrate the region's unique cultural narratives, and address social issues specific to the South-East through cinema

This festival typically features special focus on Igbo folklore and mythology, documentaries addressing Eastern Nigeria's complex history, contemporary narratives reflecting modern Igbo identity, and retrospectives of classic films shot in the region.

Ibadan Indie Film Awards

November 28-29, 2025 Ibadan

The Ibadan Indie Film Awards brings festival programming to Nigeria's third-largest city, celebrating independent filmmakers who work outside the commercial mainstream with limited budgets but unlimited creativity.

"Indie" in the Nigerian context refers to filmmakers working without major studio backing, creating narratives that prioritise artistic vision over commercial considerations.

These are the directors shooting on weekends with borrowed equipment, the producers crowdfunding budgets, the actors working for passion rather than paychecks.

The Ibadan Indie Film Awards exists to recognise excellence in low-budget filmmaking, provide distribution opportunities for independent films, connect indie filmmakers with resources and mentorship, and demonstrate that compelling stories don't require massive budgets, challenge the perception that quality Nigerian cinema requires commercial backing

Just like most film festivals, the Ibadan Indie Film Awards focuses specifically on the craft and creativity achieved despite budget limitations. 

Categories celebrate innovative problem-solving, creative cinematography with minimal equipment, and narratives that reflect Nigerian realities without glossy production values.

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S16 Film Festival

December 1-5, 2025 Lagos

Founded and organised by the Surreal16 collective, which includes prominent Nigerian filmmakers like CJ Obasi, Abba Makama, and Michael Omonua, the S16 Film Festival represents one of Nigeria's most distinctive cinematic celebrations, a festival dedicated to Super 16mm film, celebrating analogue filmmaking in an increasingly digital world. 

Globally, there's been a resurgence of interest in film as opposed to digital cinematography, with directors like Christopher Nolan, Quentin Tarantino, and others championing the aesthetic and tactile qualities of shooting on actual film stock. 

S16 brings this conversation to Nigeria, celebrating the specific look and feel of Super 16mm format.

S16 Film Festival champions the unique aesthetic qualities of film versus digital, craftsmanship and intentionality in cinematography, film preservation and archival practices, training new generations in film-based techniques, and connecting Nigerian cinema to global analogue movements

Beyond screenings, S16 offers workshops on shooting with film cameras, working with limited takes (film stock is expensive), film developing and processing, transferring film to digital for distributio,n and the history and future of film-based cinematography

Today, where people have rapidly embraced digital technology (partly for cost reasons), S16 serves as both a preservation effort and a creative challenge.

It reminds filmmakers that technological choices are aesthetic choices, and that understanding film's history makes for better digital cinematographers.

Zuma Film Festival

December 1-5, 2025 Abuja

The Zuma Film Festival represents Abuja's growing cultural confidence, adding another significant film event to the capital city's calendar. 

Named after Zuma Rock, Abuja's most iconic natural landmark, the festival aims to establish its own identity in Nigeria's crowded festival landscape.

Given Abuja's status as Nigeria's administrative centre, Zuma Film Festival has carved out a niche focusing on socially conscious cinema, documentaries exposing injustice, narratives addressing corruption, films exploring democratic processes, and stories amplifying marginalised voices.

The festival benefits from proximity to government ministries, regulatory bodies, and international organisations headquartered in Abuja. 

This unique positioning allows for programming that directly engages policymakers and potentially influences how the government supports and regulates the film industry.

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So, Which Festival is Worth Attending

With eight major festivals packed into less than three months, strategic planning is essential:

For Filmmakers Seeking Distribution:

• AFRIFF and AIFF offer the most extensive industry networking

• Submit to multiple festivals but attend those where your film's themes align with the festival's focus

For Emerging Directors:

• Film Mischief and the Ibadan Indie Film Awards welcome experimental work

• ENIFF offers opportunities if your narratives connect to Eastern Nigeria

For Technical Development:

• S16 Film Festival provides hands-on learning opportunities

• AIFF's workshops cover comprehensive production topics

For Social Impact:

• Zuma Film Festival targets policy-focused cinema

• Lagos Fringe engages audiences hungry for socially conscious work

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