Winners for the 2015 AfricaMagic Viewers’ Choice Awards (AMVCA) are still celebrating their awards. Announced at a ceremony filled with glamour in Lagos penultimate Saturday, winners include Kunle Afolayan, Rita Dominic, Tunde Babalola, Femi Jacobs, O.C. Ukeje, Kehinde Bankole, Linda Ejiofor and a host of others.
The third annual AMVCA ceremony presented 33 gold statuettes in 30 categories, tabulated and verified by auditing firm, SizweNtsalubaGobodo, and were telecast live to 50 African countries watching on DStv and GOtv on all Africa Magic channels.
The event saw outstanding achievements in African film and TV recognised, with awards also presented to CJ Obasi as the TrailBlazer of the Year, while the late renowned filmmaker, Amaka Igwe, was honoured with the Industry Merit award. The winner of the trailblazer award walked away with a luxurious diamond studded watch, courtesy Chris Aire. The coveted New Era award was given to Ayo Makun (AY) for exceptional talent.
However, the night’s biggest winner was undoubtedly the Nigerian psychological thriller, October 1, which scooped nine awards including Best Movie and Best Director for Kunle Afolayan and Best Actress (Drama) award for Kehinde Bankole.
Other notable winners included Nollywood romantic drama, The Meeting, which grabbed five awards, including Best Movie (Comedy), awards for Rita Dominic and Mildred Okwo, Best Actress (Comedy) for Rita Dominic and a Best Actor (Comedy) award for Femi Jacobs.
The choice of the night’s winners fell to respected judges drawn from the African film and television industry. The winners of the closely contested categories included The Meeting for Best Movie (Comedy), A Place in the Stars for Best Movie (Drama), Femi Jacobs for Best Actor in a Comedy (Movie/TV Series), a Best Actor in a Drama (Movie/TV Series) award for O.C. Ukeje in Confusion Na Wa, while Rita Dominic walked away with the Best Actress in a Comedy (Movie/TV Series). Kehinde Bankole took home the Best Actress in a Drama (Movie/TV Series) award, while Blossom Chukwujekwu walked away with the Best Supporting Actor (Movie/TV Series) and Linda Ejiofor won the Best Supporting Actress (Movie/TV Series) award.
During the event, viewers were wowed by performances by Osas Ighodaro, the Mavins Crew, 2face Idibia and Lola Rae, Diamond Platinumz, and P-Square who closed off the event with an electrifying performance that made the night unforgettable. The star-studded ceremony also included Africa’s finest. Some of Africa’s film and television stars, who took to the red carpet, include Genevieve Nnaji, Uti Nwachukwu, Linda Ejiofor and a host of others.
M-Net West Africa Regional Director, Wangi Mba-Uzoukwu, paid tribute to both the winners and the nominees, saying: “Each year we have hosted this event, it has become more evident that Africa has truly carved its own mark and identity in the global film and TV industry. Tonight’s event recognised all the talented individuals who continue to grow this industry. We’re very honoured that we could reward them for their exceptional work. A special thank you to our partners, MultiChoice Africa and Amstel, for their continued support in making sure that African talent is well and truly recognised in style.”
MultiChoice Africa CEO, Nico Meyer, added his congratulations to the winners and nominees of the 2015 AMVCAs, saying: “It’s been an honour for us at MultiChoice Africa to be part of this event that celebrates the best in African film and television. The amount of talent and exciting productions we’ve witnessed tonight keeps inspiring and motivating us to continue to deliver quality programming to our DStv and GOtv subscribers on the Africa Magic channels.
“MultiChoice will continue to invest in promoting local film and television while collaborating and supporting television and film producers to further build this vibrant and exciting industry. A big thank you to our subscribers who continue to show their dedication and participation in these awards.”