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Cameroon has picked director Eystein Young’s The Planter’s Plantation as its submission to the best international feature category at the 2023 Oscars.

The dramatic musical is produced by Extrafix Media, Bgc Melody Story and Inn Amore Pictures. The Planters Plantation, shot in Cameroon, is set in 1960s west Africa and portrays a young woman battling family and society to preserve her late father’s legacy — a colonial plantation left to him at independence — amid disagreements, betrayal and secrets.

Eystein Young wrote and directed the film and also shares the producer credits with co-star Irene Nangi. Don Julio Bats and another co-star, Quinny Ijang, are executive producers.

The Planters Plantation has an ensemble cast that includes Nimo Loveline as Enanga, Loic Sumfor, Stephanie Tum, Nkem Owoh and Syriette Che.

The Cameroon film recently won three awards at the Ecran Noir Festival, including the Ecran D’or.

Updated with Academy statement: The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Science’s decision to disqualify Nigeria’s first International Feature Film submission, Genevieve Nnaji’s Lionheart, has been met with criticism since the news first broke. But the Academy said in a statement Tuesday that the film simply didn’t meet eligibility requirements.

The pic, which Netflix acquired ahead of its debut at the 2018 Toronto Film Festival, was one of 93 films officially submitted to the Oscars this year, in the newly named International Feature Film category.

But on Monday, news broke that the Academy said Lionheart did not meet eligibility requirements of a submitted film being predominately in a foreign language. Most of the film is in English, with a small portion of the 95-minute run time in the Igbo language.

“In April 2019, we announced that the name of the Foreign Language Film category changed to International Feature Film.

Exclusive: Following online criticism over the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Science’s decision to disqualify Nigeria’s first International Feature Film submission, Genevieve Nnaji’s Lionheart, co-chair of the International Feature Film executive committee Larry Karaszewski has responded, calling the situation “less of a controversy, and more of a misunderstanding.”

Academy rules for the category stipulate that “the recording of the original dialogue track as well as the completed picture must be predominantly in a language or languages other than English.” Lionheart’s 95-minute running time is understood to contain a little more than 11 minutes which are not in English.

Nevertheless, when word began to spread that the film had been deemed ineligible, names including Ava DuVernay took to Twitter to question the ruling. DuVernay commented, “English is the official language of Nigeria. Are you barring the country from ever competing for an Oscar in its official language?...

The 17th Marrakech International Film Festival (Nov 30 – Dec 08) has set a jury comprising Suspiria star Dakota Johnson, Indian actress Ileana D’Cruz (Barfi!), Lebanese filmmaker and visual artist Joana Hadjithomas (I Want To See), Brit director Lynne Ramsay (We Need To Talk About Kevin), Moroccan director Tala Hadid (House In The Fields), French director Laurent Cantet (The Class), German actor Daniel Brühl (Rush) and Mexican director Michel Franco (April’s Daughter). As previously revealed, director James Gray will serve as jury president.

A total of 80 films will unspool at the festival, with Julian Schnabel’s Van Gogh biopic At Eternity’s Gate among gala screenings and also the festival’s opener. Other galas include Roma, Green Book and Capernaum while special screenings include Wildlife, Her Smell and Birds Of Passage. The official competition, galas and special screenings are listed below.

The festival will also feature tributes to Robert DeNiro, Robin Wright,...

Netflix has bought worldwide rights to Genevieve Nnaji’s comedy “Lionheart” on the eve of its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival.

Netflix announced the deal Friday. The film will premiere at Tiff on Saturday. “Lionheart” marks the first Netflix original film from Nigeria.

Nnaji stars with Nkem Owoh, Pete Edochie, and Onyeka Onwenu. The story follows a daughter who’s forced to work with her feckless uncle in order to save her father’s ailing bus company. Nnaji plays Adaeze, a level-headed executive in her father’s bus company, Lionheart Transport. When her father (played by Edochie) falls ill, both she and her rival (Kalu Egbui Ikeagwu) are passed over in favor of the uncle, played by Owoh.

Complications arise when they discover that the family business is in dire financial straits — leading to absurd results as they try to save the company. The film also touches...

Netflix has acquired world rights to Lionheart, prior to its Toronto premiere tomorrow. The film marks Netflix’s first film from Nigeria, and it marks the directorial debut of Genevieve Nnaji who stars with Nkem Owoh, Pete Edochie and Onyeka Onwenu.

Running a company can be challenging, especially if you are a female in a male-dominated industry. Looking to prove her worth, Adaeze steps up to the challenge when her father, Chief Ernest Obiagu is forced to take a step back due to health issues. Ironically, he appoints his crude and eccentric brother, Godswill, instead to run the company with his young daughter. Complications arise when they discover that the family business is in dire financial straits and both Adaeze and Godswill try to save the company in their own way to crazy and often hilarious results.

Script was written by Chinny Onwugbenu, Genevieve Nnaji, Ishaya Bako, Emil Garuba, and C.

Netflix has acquired its first movie from Nigeria.

The streaming giant Friday said it has picked up the world rights to Lionheart, the directorial debut of Genevieve Nnaji, set to have a world premiere at the Toronto Film Festival.

The film, which stars Nnaji, Nkem Owoh, Pete Edochie and Onyeka Onwenu, follows a young woman who has to prove her worth as she steps up to run her family's company when her father is sidelined by health issues.

Lionheart, which has its first screening in Toronto on Saturday, is based on a screenplay by Chinny Onwugbenu, Nnaji, Ishaya Bako,...

Netflix has acquired its first movie from Nigeria.

The streaming giant Friday said it has picked up the world rights to Lionheart, the directorial debut of Genevieve Nnaji, set to have a world premiere at the Toronto Film Festival.

The film, which stars Nnaji, Nkem Owoh, Pete Edochie and Onyeka Onwenu, follows a young woman who has to prove her worth as she steps up to run her family's company when her father is sidelined by health issues.

Lionheart, which has its first screening in Toronto on Saturday, is based on a screenplay by Chinny Onwugbenu, Nnaji, Ishaya Bako,...

Genevieve Nnaji makes directorial debut.

Netflix has acquired worldwide rights to Tiff selection Lionheart, its first Netflix Original film from Nigeria, which premiered in Discovery on Friday.

Nollywood star Genevieve Nnaji makes her directorial debut on the story about a woman in a male-dominated industry who steps up to run her father’s company when he falls sick and must work alongside her incompetent uncle.

Nnaji stars with Nkem Owoh, Pete Edochie, and Onyeka Onwenu. Chinny Onwugbenu wrote the screenplay with Nnaji, Ishaya Bako, Emil Garuba, and C.J. Obasi.

T.E.N. – The Entertainment Network produced Lionheart, which received its world premiere on Friday,...