Kano: The 2025 edition of the Kano Indigenous Languages of Africa Film Market and Festival (KILAF) has received a record 616 film submissions from 77 countries. The festival, scheduled to take place from November 6 to November 8, 2025, will explore the theme ‘Crossing Storytelling Boundaries: Strategies for Multilingual Success in African Filmmaking’.
According to News Agency of Nigeria, KILAF Founder Abdulkareem Mohammed announced the milestone in Kano, emphasizing the festival’s growing recognition both within Africa and globally. Mohammed noted that 85 films from 30 countries have been selected across different categories including short, feature, documentary, and animation films.
The leading countries contributing to the festival include Egypt with 17 films, Nigeria with 14 films, followed by Morocco with 8 films, and Tunisia with 4 films. The festival will feature 18 award categories, with nominees from 14 countries, including co-productions from the UK, US, Israel, and Italy.
Mohammed highlighted KILAF’s commitment to academic research, capacity building, and the promotion of indigenous storytelling. The festival’s activities will include an international conference at Bayero University Kano, film screenings, workshops, and panel discussions.
Additional events at the festival will feature the 2nd Entrepreneurship Summit for Women in Media Business and the KILAF-SUG Carnival, which will showcase African heritage.