The presentation ceremony which holds during the opening of the festival on May 6 at Silverbird Galleria, Abuja, is a vital component of the event. The Olowu of Owu kingdom, Abeokuta, Ogun State, Oba Adegboyega Dosunmu, scholar Jonathan Haynes and Mane Cisneros Manrique will all be recognized at the event
Oba Dosunmu, one of Nigeria’s leading TV and movie directors, will be honored for his notable contributions to filmmaking while Haynes, a professor, will be recognized for his scholarly contributions to the growth of the Nigerian motion picture industry. Manrique will receive the Lifetime Achievement Award for organizing film festivals dedicated to the projection of the works of African filmmakers on the continent and in the Diaspora
The UK-trained Oba Dosunmu was producer, writer and director of ‘Village Headmaster’ for many years. He also directed the feature film, ‘Dinner with the Devil’. After honing his skills with the Dennis Duerden Theatre Agency in London, Oba Dosunmu joined the Nigeria Broadcasting Service (NBS) and was responsible for the establishment of drama, art and cultural productions for Television in Nigeria. The king later established Starline Film Limited which facilitated the release of some movies.
Haynes, a professor of English at the Brooklyn Campus of Long Island University in New York also has affiliations with three major Nigerian universities. He is a Fulbright Senior Scholar at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka; Ahmadu Bello University and the University of Ibadan. He is co-author of ‘Cinema and Social Change in West Africa’ and the editor of ‘Nigerian Video Films’ published by the Nigerian Film Corporation.
The academic is also the author of two books on English Renaissance literature and has scholarly articles on Nigerian and Ghanaian films in various journals.
Manrique is the founder and director of the African Film Festival of Tarifa (FCAT), the only Spanish competition on film productions from Africa and the Diaspora. She is also founder and president of Al Tarab, a non-governmental organization dedicated to the promotion of African arts as an educational tool and instrument for international cultural cooperation and development. Manrique has served on many international juries including the International Film Festival of Guadalajara (Mexico), Sevilla European Film Festival and Nairobi International Film Festival amongst others.
