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Welcome to Global Breakouts, Deadline’s fortnightly strand in which we shine a spotlight on the TV shows and films killing it in their local territories. The industry is as globalized as it’s ever been, but breakout hits are emerging in pockets of the world all the time and it can be hard to keep track. That’s why we’re doing the hard work for you.

This week, we have a film from Nigeria that was shown in Cannes. Set against the backdrop of a huge cultural festival called Festac that took place in Lagos in 1976, it’s a period piece and follows on from a successful earlier movie that hit festivals and ultimately landed on Netflix. It’s exciting times for Nigerian cinema, with films at big festivals like Cannes and the government putting money behind an effort to boost the sector.

Name: ’77: The Festac...

The world premiere of Ritesh Batra’s adaptation of the Julian Barnes novel starring Jim Broadbent and Charlotte Rampling will kick off proceedings at the 28th annual Palm Springs International Film Festival on January 5.

The Sense Of An Ending (pictured) is Batra’s second film after The Lunchbox and will open through CBS films on March 10.

Taylor Hackford’s The Comedian starring Robert De Niro will close the event (Spc opens the film on January 13) as festival brass unveiled the full roster of Premieres, New Voices/New Visions, Modern Masters, True Stories and After Dark.

World premieres include Colin Hanks’s Eagles Of Death Metal: Nos Amis (Our Friends) (Us-France); Andrew Wagner’s Breakable You (Us) starring Holly Hunter, Tony Shalhoub and Alfred Molina; Catalina Aguilar Mastretta’s Everybody Loves Somebody (Mexico); and Simon Aboud’s The Beautiful Fantastic (UK-us).

Rounding out the world premieres are: The Concessionaires Must Die! (Us) by [link...

In a few months, the long gestated Izu Ojukwu movie, “76,” would be hitting cinemas across Nigeria, after its Tiff world premiere this month. The movie about the life a military officer during the 1976 coup as a backdrop, would… Continue Reading →...

It appears my first foray into Nollywood (Nigerian cinema) was well selected being the latest from director Izu Ojukwu, one of the nation’s most ambitious artists. Add some heavy hitters in Ramsey Nouah, Rita Dominic, and Chidi Mokeme and ’76 delivers a wonderful sampler platter of the best talent this region has to offer. But don’t look at the genre and think Bollywood song and dance because Ojukwu’s film is a straightforward drama with historical significance and emotional gravitas. While it’s first and foremost a love story bridging a racial divide between expectant Suzy (Dominic) and her husband Captain Dewa (Nouah) — who’s already been disavowed by his in-laws — at its back exists a real life assassination plot on Communist General Murtala Mohammed that threatens to rip them apart.

Nigeria is only six years removed from Civil War: a fight pitting Suzy’s father and brother against...

Exclusive: Nigerian war drama features Nollywood stars Ramsey Nouah, Rita Dominic and Chidi Mokeme.

La-based Shoreline Entertainment is at Toronto International Film Festival (Sept 8-18) launching world sales excluding Africa on Izu Ojukwu’s Nigerian Tiff selection ’76 ahead of its world premiere this weekend.’76 will premiere in City To City on Sunday and features Nollywood superstars Ramsey Nouah, Rita Dominic and Chidi Mokeme.

The film takes place against the backdrop of Nigeria’s Civil War in the 1970s as an army officer and expectant father in an intercultural marriage gets caught up in a coup to assassinate military General Murtala Mohammed. Lonzo Nzekwe of Toronto-based streaming platform IronFlix brokered the deal between Shoreline Entertainment, Adonis Production and Princewill Trust.

Nigerian metropolis Lagos is the focus of the eighth City To City showcase at the Toronto International Film Festival (Tiff) as top brass anoint two international Rising Stars.

Tiff’s latest line-up announcement also featured extra selections in Galas and Special Presentations, among them Walter Hill’s (Re)Assignment, Philippe Falardeau’s The Bleeder, David Leveaux’ The Exception (pictured), Ken Loach’s Palme d’Or winner I, Daniel Blake and Terry George’s drama The Promise.

A vibrant crop of Contemporary World Cinema entries includes Kleber Mendonça Filho’s Aquarius, Danis Tanović’s Death In Sarajevo, Marie Noëlle’s Marie Curie, The Courage Of Knowledge and Akin Omotoso’s Vaya.

Hirokazu Kore-eda brings After The Storm to the Masters showcase, alongside Marco Bellocchio’s Sweet Dreams, Pedro Almodóvar’s Julieta, Cristian Mungiu’s Graduation, Gianfranco Rosi’s Berlin Golden Bear winner Fire At Sea and Adoor Gopalakrishnan’s Once Again.

Rounding out the...

Nigerian capital Lagos is the focus of the eighth City To City showcase at the Toronto International Film Festival (Tiff) as top brass anoint two international Rising Stars.

Tiff’s latest line-up announcement also featured extra selections in Galas and Special Presentations, among them Walter Hill’s (Re)Assignment, Philippe Falardeau’s The Bleeder, David Leveaux’ The Exception (pictured), Ken Loach’s Palme d’Or winner I, Daniel Blake and Terry George’s drama The Promise.

A vibrant crop of Contemporary World Cinema entries includes Kleber Mendonça Filho’s Aquarius, Danis Tanović’s Death In Sarajevo, Marie Noëlle’s Marie Curie, The Courage Of Knowledge and Akin Omotoso’s Vaya.

Hirokazu Kore-eda brings After The Storm to the Masters showcase, alongside Marco Bellocchio’s Sweet Dreams, Pedro Almodóvar’s Julieta, Cristian Mungiu’s Graduation, Gianfranco Rosi’s Berlin Golden Bear winner Fire At Sea and Adoor Gopalakrishnan’s Once Again.

Rounding out the...

The Toronto International Film Festival is mere weeks from kicking off, yet the annual fall fest is showing zero sign of slowing down when it comes to announcing the titles that will round out this year’s event. Today’s announcement brings with it a number of Cannes favorites, including Ken Loach’s Palme d’Or-winning “I, Daniel Blake,” Olivier Assayas’ divisive Kristen Stewart-starring “Personal Shopper” and Pedro Almodovar’s “Julieta.”

Read More: Tiff Reveals First Slate of 2016 Titles, Including ‘Magnificent Seven,’ ‘American Honey,’ ‘La La Land’ and ‘Birth of A Nation’

The slate will also play home to the Dardenne Brothers’ latest, “The Unknown Girl,” which has reportedly been through an edit since it debuted at Cannes earlier this year. Other standouts from Cannes include Kleber Mendonça Filho’s “Aquarius,” Boo Junfeng’s “Apprentice,” Cristian Mungiu’s “Graduation,” Brillante Ma Mendoza’s “Ma’ Rosa” and Cristi Puiu’s “Sieranevada.

"'76," previously titled "Lions of '76," is an upcoming Nigerian historical fiction drama film produced by Adonaija Owiriwa and Izu Ojukwu, and directed by Izu Ojukwu. It stars some of the more internationally-recognized actors in Nigerian cinema, like Ramsey Nouah and Rita Dominic, as well as Chidi Mokeme, Ibinabo Fiberesima, Memry Savanhu, Adonijah Owuruwa, Daniel K. Daniel, Nelly Ekwereogu and Shuaibu Ebenehi Adams. The story goes... Six years after the Nigerian civil war (also known as the Biafran War, 1967 - 1970, which was fought to counter the secession of Biafra from Nigeria), a young officer from the middle belt gets entangled in a romantic...

121 films later… another installment of the Pan African Film Festival (Paff) in Los Angeles, CA, came to a close on Wednesday, the 23rd, with the announcement of its filmmaker awards.

Prizes were handed out for the following categories: Best Narrative Feature, Best First Feature Film, Best Narrative Short, Best Documentary Feature, Best Documentary Short, and Audience Favorite awards.

I was extremely pleased to see João Daniel Tikhomiroff’s Besouro win the Best Narrative Feature prize. It’s a film we’ve touted on this blog for the last 2 years, since initially hearing about it. The film is still without North American distribution, as far as I know, and it needs all the press and push it can get. I hope it’s eventually picked up – even if it’s a straight-to-dvd release.

Ava DuVernay’s I Will Follow received the well-deserved Best First Feature Film award.

And the Jamie Foxx-executive produced Thunder Soul,...

On October 1st, Nigeria will celebrate its 50th year of independence from Britain. During the month, and through the autumn, there will be a sseries of events to mark Nigerian culture, the first being Nollywood Now!

Despite the prolificacy of nollywood, the festival will screen a total of just six films, to be shown one a day from Wednesday 6th to Tuesday 12th October.

For long-term nollywood fans, there’s be nothing new to see but the festival will be a chance for them to get together and celebrate Nigerian film in a public space. For those not so versed in nollywood, the festival will introduce the joy and excitement of Nigerian film to new audiences.

The schedule is as follows:

Wed 6: Nollywood Babylon (Dir: Ben Addelman and Samir Mallal, Canada 2008. 75 minutes)

A documentary feature which captures the Nigerian film industry in its social and political context.

Thu 7:...

“Nigerians prefer their own films to the Hollywood imports” we’re told. This explains the amazingly rapid growth of the fledgling Nigerian film industry, which is essentially a grass roots business funded by the people involved. Director Jamie Meltzer gives us a fascinating look at the inner workings of this underdog industry, which is referred to as ‘Guerilla filmmaking’.

Based in Lagos Nigeria, the “Nollywood” movie business didn’t even exist in 1990, yet it has quickly grown into the 3rd largest film industry in the world. In the first 10 years of its existence, movies made in Nigeria netted the equivalent of 400 million Us dollars. The projects are financed by the filmmakers themselves or by donations. No big studio backing or government funding. The creators take all the risks themselves.

The way the industry works there is in amazing contrast to Hollywood. Nollywood films are not released to cinemas. (Nigerian theaters show only imported films.