“The Milkmaid” is Nigeria’s official submission for the 93rd Academy Awards in the International Feature Film (IFF) category of the Oscars.

The Nigerian Official Selection Committee (NOSC) announced the selection on Tuesday.

The NOSC said it received several entries, out which six films – “Sanitation Day”, “Voiceless”, “Oloture”, “Ibi” (The Birth), “The Milkmaid” and “Eyimofe” – sailed through the first vetting exercise.

At the final stage, “The Milkmaid” scored overwhelming majority votes.

Written, produced and directed by Desmond Ovbiagele, “The Milkmaid” is a Hausa language-based thriller on insurgency, especially as it affects women and children in Sub-Saharan Africa. Inspired by the image on Nigeria’s 10 Naira note, the film tells the story of a Fulani milkmaid who confronts religious extremists in a rural African community, in a quest to locate her missing sister, and how efforts to recapture her disrupted past prove complicated.

The film was selected by the 12-man NOSC, having followed the prescribed procedures by the Academy, subject to further determination by the IFF Executive Committee.

“The Milkmaid” was voted by seven of nine voting-NOSC members. NOSC states that three members were considered ineligible, due to their affiliation with some of the films in competition, in line with the Academy’s rules. It describes the process of selection as intense, democratic, and a worthy development for the Nigerian film industry.

Shot on location in Taraba State, North-East Nigeria, “The Milkmaid” stars popular northern Nigerian actress, Maryam Booth, alongside Ibrahim Jammal, Anthonieta Kalunta, and Gambo Usman Kona among others. The film owes its other credits to New Jersey-based surgeon, Oluseun Sowemimo as Executive Producer, Yinka Edward for Cinematography, Chuka Ejorh for Editing, Pat Nebo for Production Design, and Hakeem Onilogbo for Special Effects.

Screened in cinemas in Nigeria, Cameroon, and Zimbabwe, “The Milkmaid” is an authentic and riveting Nigerian story with global relevance. It commands beautiful acting, ace directing, and great cinematography. The film is Ovbiagele’s sophomore, having written, produced and directed the award-winning “Render to Caesar” in 2014.

The 12-man NOSC is headed by, filmmaker and education administrator, Chineze Anyaene-Abonyi. Other members include filmmaker and Chairman of Audio-Visual Rights Society (AVRS) of Nigeria, Mahmood Ali-Balogun; Filmmaker/Talent Manager, Mildred Okwo; Filmmaker/Author, Charles Novia; veteran actress turned filmmaker, Ego Boyo; notable Director and Cinematographer, Adetokunbo ‘DJ Tee’ Odubawo; Theatre Practitioner and Head of Production for M-NET West Africa, Yibo Koko; Group Executive Director of Filmhouse Cinemas and Managing Director of FilmOne Entertainment, Moses Babatope; CEO of Legend Box Office, Bruce Ayonote; Filmmaker and Founder, In-Short Film Festival, Victor Okhai; notable actress and producer, Omoli Oboli and Journalist/Film Critic, Shaibu Husseini.

According to Anyaene-Abonyi, there is a significant improvement in the quality of films received this year. “The Academy’s approved parameters had to be diligently followed to select the country’s entry without prejudice. And I must say that the Nigerian film industry is awakened to the internationally acceptable requirements for film production, though there would always be room for improvement in order to increase our competitive outlook every year,” she said.

The 93rd edition of the Academy Awards is scheduled to hold on April 25th. Last year, Nigeria’s official submission, “Lionheart”, was disqualified for not meeting the non-English dialogue criteria, leading to the controversy on whether or not Nigerian pidgin should not be considered a local language.

Although that rule has been reviewed, giving approval for dialogues in pidgin, “The Milkmaid”, shot with Hausa, Fulfulde and Arabic dialogues appears to have been made with the original Academy rules in mind and had not left anything to chance. (Channels TV)

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