Africa Magic, the continent’s biggest distributor of local entertainment content, has announced the appointment of Victor Okhai, a Nigerian filmmaker, as Head Judge of the eighth Africa Magic Viewers’ Choice Awards (AMVCAs), which will take place in Lagos, Nigeria later this year.
Victor Okhai has extensive experience as a producer, screenwriter, cinematographer, director, and film consultant.
He is the current President of the Directors’ Guild of Nigeria (DGN), the creator and Director of IN-Short Film Festival, Sub-Saharan Africa’s largest short film festival, and a member of the Nigerian Oscar Selection Committee (NOSC).
He has served on and directed juries for a number of local and international film festivals, including The Audio Visual Awards (2009–2012), Cairo International Film Festival (2009), shnit Worldwide Shortfilmfestival (2012), and The Pan-African Film Festival.
Speaking on Mr. Okhai’s appointment, Executive Head, Content and West Africa Channels, MultiChoice Nigeria, Dr. Busola Tejumola said, “We are delighted to have Mr. Okhai head the nomination and judging process for the eighth edition of the AMVCAs. He brings decades worth of knowledge and experience in the local and international film and TV industry to this critical role. We are certain his involvement in this edition will further reaffirm the AMVCAs’ commitment to professionalism in recognizing and showcasing exceptional works on the continent”.
In 2013, Victor Okhai was nominated as Africa’s foremost film promoter by Tanzania based Africa Film Development Association. He is a board member of the African Film Consortium (AFC) and the Mokolo project, an Africa film database supported by the German foreign Ministry and a member of the National Advisory Committee on film development in Nigeria to the Nigeria Film Corporation.
Commenting on his appointment as Head Judge, Mr. Okhai said: “I am delighted to be appointed Head Judge of the AMVCA for 2022. It is in my view, the most credible and the most glamorous award ceremony on the continent today. You, the viewers, will have a voice in the judging process, experienced industry practitioners will be on the jury and above all, Deloitte will verify and audit the process to guarantee the integrity of the awards. Winning the AMVCA is the ultimate badge of honour and recognition for excellence and hard work.”
Submissions for the eighth edition closed Friday, 28 January 2022 and nominees will be announced on a special broadcast on Africa Magic channels in March.
For this edition, Africa Magic announced a new category for Best Online Social Content Creator and the return of the Best Africa Magic Original Drama Series and Best Africa Magic Original Comedy Series bringing the total number of categories to 33, with 12 open to viewers’ vote and 21 decided by the AMVCA panel of judges. Some of the other categories include Best Movie in Southern, East and West Africa, Best Director and Best Cinematographer.
The eighth edition of the Africa Magic Viewers’ Choice Awards is brought to you by Africa Magic in association with MultiChoice and is proudly sponsored by Amstel Malta.
