Mildred Okwo, a filmmaker, and Shaibu Husseini, a journalist, have resigned from the Nigerian Official Selection Committee (NOSC) for the Academy of Motion Pictures, Arts, and Sciences (AMPAS).
The task of the committee is to enter a Nigerian movie in the International Feature Film (IFF) Oscar category.
On Thursday, Okwo tweeted her resignation from the Chineze Anyaene-led committee.
La Femme Anjola’s producer announced that she was leaving to work in other capacities in the film industry.
On Sunday, Husseini declared his resignation, claiming to have told Anyaene of his choice.
The mass communication lecturer and culture critic wished the other committee members luck in their efforts to support the film industry in a tweet.
The committee announced in September that no Nigerian films would be eligible for submission to the Oscars in 2023.
Nigeria has failed to submit a film for the IFF category of the Oscars for the past two years.
The Milkmaid was the committee’s most recent submission in 2020.
It was discovered that the committee members disagreed on the decision to forego submitting a film for the 2023 Oscars.
Glamsquad recalls that The Nigerian Oscars Selection Committee (NOSC) had picked Genevieve Nnaji’s ‘Lionheart’ as the country’s entry for the International Feature Film category at the 2020 Oscars.
Following statutory vetting and subsequent voting of submissions received from Nigerian filmmakers at home and abroad, the group announced the selection on Wednesday, 2nd October 2020.
Lionheart, the first Netflix original movie made in Nigeria, had its world premiere at the 2018 Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF). It was produced by Chinny Onwugbenu, Chichi Nwoko, and Genevieve Nnaji, and it was also directed by Genevieve Nnaji.
Pete Edochie, Genevieve Nnaji, Nkem Owoh, Onyeka Onwenu, and Kanayo are the movie’s stars.
Peter Okoye (P-Square), Ngozi Ezeonu, Chika Okpala, Kalu Ikeagwu, Sanni Mu’azu, Yakubu Mohammed, and Chibuzor Azubuike (Phyno).
The movie “Lionheart,” directed by Genevieve Nnaji, was released internationally on January 4 after having a theatrical run in Nigeria in December 2018. It tells the tale of a young woman named Adaeze Obiagu (Nnaji), who is forced to manage her sick father’s business under the oppressive guidance of an uncle, who is played by Nkem Owoh. Adaeze’s conflicting business and family obligations serve as the impetus for a radical transformation that not everyone is prepared to accept.
Nigeria has not previously advanced a film to the Oscars since the NOSC was established in 2014 because earlier submissions didn’t adhere to the committee’s basic requirements.
The NOSC stated that it chose “Lionheart” from among the films submitted this year because of its numerous attempts to break the rules.
The 12-man team boasts prominent international actors from Nigeria’s film industry.
The team is led by Chineze Anyaene, producer and director of “Ije,” with Mr. Mahmood Ali-Balogun serving as vice chairman. Anyaene is Nollywood’s top earner at the box office and chairman of the country’s Audio-Visual Rights Society (AVRS).
Bruce Ayonote, CEO of Legend Box Office, Mildred Okwo, a filmmaker and talent manager, Shaibu Husseini, Charles Novia, an award-winning filmmaker, CJ Obasi, top actor Ramsey Nouah, Adetokunbo “DJ Tee” Odubawo, a versatile director and cinematographer, Ngozi Okafor, founder of AFRIFF Chioma Ude, and Abba Makama, the director