Lagos skyline in 2015. Archival city photograph. Photo: Clara Sanchiz / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0.
Lights, Camera, Africa is returning to Lagos for its tenth edition, bringing independent films and public conversations back to the MUSON Centre from 1 to 3 October.
The 2026 theme, Convivium: In Gathering, puts shared cultural space at the centre of the programme. The festival was founded in 2011 as a film programme of The Life House Lagos, with Ugoma Ebilah as its founder.
A return after the 2019 edition
The festival’s ninth edition took place in 2019. Reporting by What Kept Me Up describes the disruption caused by the pandemic and the later challenge of funding its return.
That report also sets out a change in structure: a biennial festival accompanied by smaller cultural gatherings between editions. The proposal creates room for film screenings, music, art and conversation beyond a single annual event.
For independent filmmakers, a festival can provide something a release listing cannot: an audience in the room and a chance to discuss the work afterwards. For viewers, it offers a route into films that may be harder to encounter through mainstream distribution.
Films across three days
The published programme schedules Matias Mariani’s Shine Your Eyes for opening night. Friday includes Birdie, Lizard and Madu, while Saturday’s listings include Breastmilk and When Nigeria Happens.
Screenings sit alongside filmmaker questions and answers, informal networking and performance. The programme treats watching and talking as connected parts of the festival experience.
Building an audience for independent cinema
The return raises a wider question about the spaces needed to sustain African cinema. Production is only one stage in a film’s life; exhibition, discussion and audience relationships help determine what follows.
Lagos provides the setting for that work this week. The festival’s new model makes the relationship between editions an important part of its next chapter.
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Sources: Lights, Camera, Africa · Festival programme · What Kept Me Up