Directors’ Week 2026 Opens in Lagos as Nollywood Filmmakers Gather for DGN Awards
By Cynthia Okere, Lagos
Nigerian film directors, producers, and other creative industry professionals are gathering in Lagos for Directors’ Week 2026, a four-day programme organised by the Directors Guild of Nigeria (DGN) to celebrate filmmaking and advance conversations on the growth and future of Nollywood.
The programme, which runs from August 18 to 21, will culminate in the DGN Awards Night on Friday, August 21, where directors will be recognised across nine competitive categories.
Directors’ Week goes beyond the awards ceremony, featuring the Guild’s Annual General Meeting, masterclasses, fireside conversations, industry panels, and networking sessions focused on directing and the wider Nigerian creative industry.
The event also serves as a key platform for filmmakers to engage on pressing issues affecting the profession, including industry standards, funding, distribution, and the continued expansion of Nigeria’s film sector across cinema, television, streaming platforms, and digital media.
Ahead of the awards, the Directors Guild of Nigeria unveiled nominees spanning feature films, comedy, documentaries, television series, short films, student productions, first-time directors, diaspora productions, and socially themed films.
Among the productions competing in the Best Feature Film category are The Masked King, directed by Patrick Uduak-Obong; To Adaego With Love, directed by Nwamaka Chikezie; 3 Cold Dishes, directed by Asurf Amuwa Oluseyi; and Njem, directed by Uche Chukwu.
Others in the category include Idia, directed by Ese Ariremu and Jide Oyegbile, and Original Sin, directed by Frederick Leonard.
The Best First-Time Director category features Chikezie for To Adaego With Love and Ariremu and Oyegbile for Idia.
Seven productions are also competing in the Best Documentary category, including Not Addressing This Anymore, One Voice, Many Echoes, Beyond Olympic Glory, Re-Activate, No Let Dem Die, Gba Esin Wa, and Iron Condemn.
The short film category includes The Noise Around Her Black, Hold Me, Let Me Go, Nneoma, On The Move, Sanctuary, and Visiting Hour, while seven productions were nominated in the Best Student Film category.
According to the Guild, the spread of nominees across established and emerging filmmakers reflects the diversity of directing talent within Nigeria’s screen industry.
The inclusion of student filmmakers and first-time directors is also expected to provide younger creatives with greater visibility alongside more established industry practitioners.
Beyond recognising individual productions, Directors’ Week comes at a time of continued transformation within Nollywood, as filmmakers adapt to shifting cinema audiences, global streaming platforms, emerging production technologies, and evolving distribution models.
The industry sessions therefore provide an opportunity for directors and stakeholders to address structural and professional challenges in Nigerian filmmaking while exploring strategies to strengthen standards, funding access, and career opportunities.
The DGN Awards Night is expected to bring together directors, actors, producers, and other stakeholders in Nigeria’s film and creative industries as the Guild honours outstanding achievements in directing.