African Film Press (AFP) — the cross-regional alliance of founding publications Akoroko, Sinema Focus, and What Kept Me Up — joins Locarno's Open Doors as an award partner for the 2026 edition and will present the AFP Critics Prize to one of the selected projects. The prize includes a USD 500 cash award, a certificate, and ongoing editorial coverage of the recipient and their future work across AFP networks.
AFP first presented the prize on 5 December 2025 at the 5th edition of the S16 Film Festival in Lagos, where the inaugural award went to Nigerian filmmaker Dika Ofoma for his short film "Obi Is a Boy." Ofoma himself was a year-one Open Doors Africa participant: his feature project "Kachifo (Till the Morning Comes)" was selected for the 2025 Open Doors Projects line-up and won three awards at that edition.
The 2026 edition is the second year of Open Doors' four-edition cycle dedicated to 42 African countries, with eligibility set under the guidelines of the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation. The program runs from 5 to 10 August during the Locarno Film Festival and its industry arm, Locarno Pro, with training, mentoring, and networking alongside public screenings.
Projects in Development
Six projects in development were selected from ten countries:
- "Too Much Music" (Ghana) — directed and produced by Aseye Fiagbe. A documentary on keyboardist Kiki Gyan.
- "Chapa 100" (Mozambique–South Africa) — directed by Ique Langa, whose previous feature "O Profeta" played the Tiger Competition at IFFR this year, and produced by Lara Sousa (Kulunga Filmes). A surrealist love story.
- "I Live in V.I" (Nigeria) — directed by Ugochukwu Azuya, produced by Olubunmi Ogunsola. A satire on urban space and gentrification.
- "Accept My Plea For Burial" (Baryo Aas Iga Gudoon) (Somalia–Djibouti) — directed by Mohammed Sheikh, produced by Kadir Harbi Hassan. A fiction project on the tensions between tradition and justice in a rural community.
- "The Ones With The Tempered Flowers" (Tanzania–Kenya) — directed by Neema Ngelime, produced by Ivy Kiru (AQ Pictures, LBx Africa), who was in the 2026 La Fabrique Cinéma at Cannes with "Strong Wind." An experimental documentary.
- "A Vineyard for A Lobster" (Uganda) — directed by Talemwa Pius, produced by Gashumba Emmanuel (Gripmagic Uganda Limited). A fiction project using a snow-covered landscape as a colonial allegory.
Open Doors Producers
The Open Doors Producers program selected six participants from six countries:
- Mamounata Nikiema — Burkina Faso (Pilumpiku Production); a veteran of the industry, knighted at FESPACO 2021.
- Natasha Craveiro — Cabo Verde (Korikaxoru Films); produced "Omi Nobu," which screened in the Open Doors Screenings at Locarno 2025.
- Adja Mariam Mahre Soro — Ivory Coast; founder of the Abidjan animation studio Studio Kä.
- David Ikeata — Nigeria (Vox Cinematic Films); co-produced the Kazakh-Nigerian film "Adam Bol" (2024) and is developing a project with an Egyptian director.
- Rua Osman — Sudan (Helomur Picture); credits include "You Will Die at Twenty" (Venice 2019) and "Goodbye Julia" (Cannes 2023).
- Tapiwa Chipfupa — Zimbabwe (Ambidextrous Pictures); an EAVE alumna who launched the training program AVEL.
Open Doors Directors
Five directors join the Open Doors Directors program:
- Fagamou Fama Ndiaye — Senegal
- Rediet Haddis Yalew — Ethiopia
- Pocas Pascoal — Angola
- Judith Nini Kibinge — Kenya
- Ariel Añez — Mozambique
Their short films will screen as part of the Open Doors Screenings, the full lineup of which will be announced on 1 July 2026.
Programme Leadership
Head of Open Doors Zsuzsi Bánkuti said the future of cinema "depends on who gets to make it, and how," and named gender parity — more female voices behind the camera and in the producer's chair — as a priority for the edition. Head of Studies Yanis Gaye called African film ecosystems "a chance for the industry… to globally redesign" its co-production practices, its audience strategies, and the economics of cinema.
Awards
AFP is one of two partners added to the awards roster this year, alongside an EAVE and Luxembourg Film Fund scholarship worth EUR 4,000 for the EAVE Marketing Workshop. A jury will award the prizes on 10 August. The established awards include the Open Doors Grant of CHF 50,000 from visions sud est and the City of Bellinzona, the CNC Development Prize of EUR 8,000, and the Arte Kino International Prize of EUR 6,000, with further awards from IFFR Pro, the International Culture Center Tabakalera and San Sebastián Film Festival, the Internationale Kurzfilmtage Winterthur, the Organisation Internationale de la Francophonie, and Sørfond.
For year two of the Africa Cycle, coverage will be shared across African Film Press (AFP), with partners Jennifer Ochieng (Sinema Focus) and Ikeade Oriade (What Kept Me Up).