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By Damiete Braide
In a significant stride for Nigeria’s creative sector, the Nigeria Prize for Creative Arts has officially been launched by the Nigeria LNG Limited (NLNG), adding a powerful new dimension to the company’s long-standing commitment to fostering excellence in literature and science.
The Prize, which focuses on documentary filmmaking for its inaugural edition, marks a historic moment, not just for Nigeria’s filmmaking industry, but for the evolving story of how the nation sees itself through the eyes of its young creatives.
Unveiled during a press conference last Friday in Lagos, the Prize was introduced by Professor Akachi Adimora-Ezeigbo, Chairman of the Advisory Board of The Nigeria Prize for Literature and The Nigeria Prize for Creative Arts. She was joined by her esteemed colleagues, Emeritus Professor Olu Obafemi and Professor Ahmed Yerima.
Together, they highlighted the significance of this new addition to the Nigeria Prizes, already a well-established institution with over two decades of impact.
In her remarks, Professor Adimora-Ezeigbo underscored that the Nigeria Prize for Creative Arts stands as a reaffirmation that excellence can be written, spoken, or filmed. This year, the medium of focus is documentary film, a unique art form that challenges young Nigerian filmmakers to interrogate experience, explore memory, and translate reality into meaning. Guided by the same principles of integrity and excellence that have defined its sister prizes, the Prize seeks to promote authentic narratives that reflect the Nigerian reality with depth and artistic insight. In a move that reinforces the Prize’s credibility and ambitious standards, the Advisory Board announced the appointment of celebrated Nigerian filmmaker, Mr. Joel Kachi Benson, as the Technical Adviser. Benson, whose pioneering work in virtual reality has gained global recognition, achieved historic acclaim with Daughters of Chibok, the first VR film to win the prestigious Venice Lion for Best VR Story in 2019. He followed this with another milestone in 2025 when his Disney-produced documentary, Madu, won the Emmy Award for Outstanding Arts & Culture Documentary, another first for Nigeria. With a career spanning screenings at major international platforms including Berlin, Cannes XR, and the British Film Institute, Benson’s involvement signals a serious step towards building an internationally respected platform for Nigerian documentary filmmakers.
Speaking after the Advisory Board, Dr. Sophia Horsfall, NLNG’s General Manager for External Relations and Sustainable Development, delivered a moving welcome. With a philosophical lens, she told the audience that storytelling lies at the heart of civilisation. It is more than art, she emphasized; storytelling is how humanity preserves culture, history, love, and resilience. For NLNG, she reiterated, this new Prize embodies the company’s core principle of “providing energy to improve lives sustainably,” by empowering young Nigerians to harness the power of story to create social impact.
Dr. Horsfall stressed that this Prize is a response to a generational call, a call for young Nigerians to reclaim the national narrative. The Prize not only rewards excellence in documentary filmmaking but also acts as a bridge between culture and nation-building. With its value of $20,000, it aims to support young filmmakers between the ages of 18 and 35, giving them the opportunity to create, compete, and contribute to shaping the Nigerian identity on the world stage.
The theme for the inaugural edition is “IDENTITY,” inviting filmmakers to explore what defines them as individuals, communities, or cultures. The Prize welcomes works that examine how identity is constructed, challenged, celebrated, or reinvented, whether through language, heritage, memory, or social change. This wide-open canvas gives space for interpretations that are personal or collective, intimate or expansive.
Joel Benson, in presenting the technical details of the Prize, explained that the prize cycle officially kicks off in February 2026, with a three-month call for entries from February to April 2026. Eligible entries must be short documentaries not exceeding 20 minutes, completed between April 2024 and April 2026. The entries must be original, non-fiction works by Nigerians aged 18 to 35. Benson also announced an impressive judging panel chaired by Dr. Sam Dede, actor, director, and lecturer at the University of Port Harcourt. Joining him are Nigerian documentary filmmaker and UNESCO award-winner Adeola Aderonke, and international film producer George Ugwuja.
The judging process, Benson noted, would include longlisting, shortlisting, public engagement, and background checks, culminating in the selection and announcement of the winner in October 2026 at NLNG’s Grand Award Night. Each entry will be assessed by globally benchmarked standards, with metrics for storytelling, originality, production quality, creativity, and impact.
This launch of The Nigeria Prize for Creative Arts is more than an award; it’s an invitation. A call to Nigerian creatives to step into their power and tell stories that affirm who they are. It is also an opportunity to transform national perception, reshape cultural memory, and strengthen global respect for Nigeria’s creative ecosystem. NLNG’s introduction of this Prize reflects a deep investment in the future of not just the arts, but the nation itself.
In a world where stories shape perception and narratives build nations, the Prize affirms that Nigeria’s story deserves to be told by bold, ingenious Nigerians, armed with the camera, truth, and an unbreakable imagination.
