Nigerian filmmaker Dika Ofoma's movie 'Till The Morning Comes' clinches top honors at Locarno's Open Doors competition
At the 23rd edition of the Locarno Film Festival, the Open Doors initiative took a significant step forward, launching a four-year focus on African cinema. This move marks the first time Open Doors has dedicated such a prolonged period to a single continent, with the aim of supporting and nurturing local filmmaking talent.
Six African projects were selected for the Projects Hub, including the highly acclaimed debut feature Till The Morning Comes by Nigerian director Dika Ofoma. Produced by Blessing Uzzi, this reincarnation romance film placed second and is a strong contender among Nollywood's creative voices. Till The Morning Comes won CHF 20,000 (€21,421), the ARTEKino International Award, and the Sørfond Award, allowing it to participate in a Norwegian pitching event.
Another standout project is Black Snake, directed by Zimbabwean Naishe Nyamubaya and produced by Sue-Ellen Chitunya. This project received the highest cash prize from the Open Doors Grant, CHF 25,000, and is an integral part of the African focus at the festival. Black Snake previously won the Red Sea Lodge jury prize in 2023.
Azata Soro's feature-length documentary Diary Of A Goat Woman, produced by Soro herself, was awarded CHF 5,000 under the same grant scheme.
Beyond these three prize-winning projects, two other notable winners include Mado, an action thriller by Rwandan filmmaker Yannick Mizero Kabano. Yannick won two prizes: the Tabakalera–San Sebastian Film Festival Residency Award plus a €2,500 development grant from the Open Doors–OIF–ACP–EU initiative. June Wairegi of Giza Visuals became the first recipient of the newly created MECAS Award, enabling her to take part in the next edition of the International Market for Almost-Finished Films (MECAS) in Gran Canaria in April 2026.
The Open Doors Grants totaled CHF 50,000 and were sponsored by visions sud est with support from the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation and the City of Bellinzona. The 2025 edition also featured six creative producers and short-film directors in additional career-building and screening sections, aimed at supporting African talents and industry structures.
Notably, Kamy Lara, producer-director from Luanda-based Ulka Filmes, received the Rotterdam Lab Award to attend the next edition of the Rotterdam Lab. Rwanda's Mizero Kabano Yannick, of Imitana productions, received the Open Doors-OIF-ACP-EU Award's €2,500 development grant and the Tabakalera-San Sebastian Film Festival Residency Award.
The four-year focus on Africa will run until 2028, providing ample opportunity for African filmmakers to thrive and showcase their talents on the global stage.
[1] Locarno Film Festival Official Website [2] Open Doors Official Website [3] visions sud est Official Website [4] MECAS Official Website [5] Sørfond Official Website
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