A documentary by Daniel Itegboje, a 500-level medical student of the University of Benin titled On Your Own, has been selected to screen at the Durban International Film Festival which could qualify him for an Oscars nomination.
The Durban International Film Festival is widely regarded as a leading film festival in Africa.
Founded in 1979 by Teddy and Ros Sarkin, it is the oldest and largest film festival in Southern Africa, presenting over 100 screenings, most of which are premiered in this region.
The festival has a competition where the winners of the Best Documentary and Best Short Films categories automatically qualify for the Oscars Shorts and Documentary nominations.
Itegboje took to his official X page to announce the selection of his film, saying in the post that he has always been passionate about filmmaking since his teenage years.
His documentaries have been officially selected to screen in other local and international film festivals and earned him over eight nominations and two awards.
O.Y.O (On Your Own) is the only Nigerian film competing in the Oscar-qualifying shorts category at the film festival and was also sponsored by the French embassy to have a screening in Paris. It also took part in the Sony Future Filmmaker Awards in Los Angeles.