This week on Nollywood Distilled, FilmOne unveiled part of its 2027 cinema slate, Clarissa picked up four Gotham nominations, and MultiChoice announced changes to its pay-TV packages. Elsewhere, Agbara Nla: The Return crossed a major milestone, Smids Animation celebrated another LIFANIMA win, and AFRIFF kicked off a packed November of creative industry events in Lagos.
FilmOne Unveils 2027 Cinema Slate With Toolz, Falz, Muyiwa Ademola and More
FilmOne has unveiled part of its 2027 theatrical slate at its year-end exhibitors’ showcase, announcing new projects and production partnerships involving Eniola Ajao, Kayode Kasum, Odunlade Adekola, Falz, Layi Wasabi and Muyiwa Ademola. Among the second-quarter releases are Altar, directed by Daniel Etim-Effiong and Ife Fayankin in collaboration with Inkblot, and Alapadupe, a new version of an earlier Muyiwa Ademola film.
Media personality Toolz Oniru Demuren will make her feature directorial debut in May, a project developed from an initial short-film concept, with CJ Obasi involved as consulting director. The fourth quarter includes Obi Agu, executive produced by Stan Nze, and an untitled Timini Egbuson project in which the actor also serves as producer.
‘Clarissa’ Leads Gotham Nominations as Esiri Brothers Receive Critics Choice Recognition
Arie and Chuko Esiri‘s Clarissa has received four nominations at the 2026 Gotham Film Awards, tying for the highest nomination count alongside four other films. The Nigerian-set adaptation of Virginia Woolf’s “Mrs Dalloway” is nominated for Best Feature, Best Adapted Screenplay for Chuko Esiri, Outstanding Lead Performance for Sophie Okonedo and Breakthrough Performer for India Amarteifio.
The nominations follow the announcement that the Nigerian filmmaking brothers will receive the Breakthrough Director Award at the Critics Choice Association’s ninth annual Celebration of Black Cinema & Television. Having premiered at Cannes Directors’ Fortnight earlier this year, Clarissa now enters the American awards season with a strong start ahead of its December 11 US theatrical release through NEON. Nigerian release details remain unknown.
MultiChoice Restructures DStv and GOtv Packages Across Africa
MultiChoice has announced a major overhaul of its DStv and GOtv subscription packages, with new pricing, channel arrangements and subscription tiers taking effect from November 5 across several African markets. In Nigeria, DStv will offer four main packages: Starter (6,000 naira), Select (11,000 naira), Sports (21,000 naira) and Premium (44,500) per month. GOtv will also introduce Easy, Starter, Select and Sports options.
The changes include a reorganisation of movie channels and broader adjustments to entertainment and sports programming, with existing customers automatically migrated to the new packages. Introduced following Canal+’s acquisition of MultiChoice, the restructuring is part of announced plans by the company earlier in the year.
‘Agbara Nla: The Return’ Becomes First October Release to Gross 400 Million
Agbara Nla: The Return has crossed 400 million naira at the Nigerian box office, becoming the first film released in October to reach the milestone. The Mount Zion production has now grossed 408.3 million naira from 68,225 admissions, according to Fusion Intelligence’s tracking, after holding the top spot for a fourth consecutive weekend.
The film had already overtaken Venom: The Last Dance to become the highest-grossing October release of all time in Nigeria, having previously broken the record for a Nollywood title released in the month. Its continued theatrical performance adds another milestone to the revival of the Agbara Nla property, more than three decades after the original film.
Smids Animation Wins Second Consecutive LIFANIMA Award With ‘Kainji’
Nigerian studio Smids Animation has won Best 2D Animation at the 2026 Lagos International Festival of Animation (LIFANIMA) for Kainji, directed by Kaydina Esor and Damilola Solesi. The win marks the studio’s second consecutive victory in the category, following Solesi’s Hadu in 2025.
The tenth edition of LIFANIMA, held from October 20–22 in Lagos, also recognised The Lion of Gwoza, which won Best Stop Motion Animation and the 10 million naira grand prize at the inaugural National Orientation Agency Animation Awards. Other winners included Uniquely Me for Best 3D Animation.
AFRIFF Kicks Off Busy November for Lagos Creative Industry
The 15th Africa International Film Festival (AFRIFF) opens on November 1, beginning several weeks of overlapping film, arts and entertainment events in Lagos. Running until November 7, AFRIFF will feature film screenings, masterclasses, industry discussions and its second Film & Content Market. It will overlap with Lagos Fringe (November 3–8), which brings together theatre, film, music and multidisciplinary performances, and CANEX WKND (November 5–8), Afreximbank’s gathering for African creative industries.
The calendar continues with the Africa Movie Academy Awards on November 15 and Entertainment Week Africa from November 17–22, featuring film and television sessions alongside programming across music, animation, fashion and other creative sectors. Outside Lagos, the fifth edition of Ibadan Indie Film Awards will take place from November 27-29.
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