Last year, following the #OscarsSoWhite backlash, the Academy, in a bid to diversify its members, invited 928 new people from 59 countries – 49% being women and 38% being people of colour — including two Nigerians, Omotola Jalade-Ekeinde and Femi Odugemi.
This year, 842 new members have been invited to join the Academy — 50% being women and 29% being people of colour. This raises the percentage of women in the Academy from 31% to 32%, while the percentage of people of colour remains at 16% from last year.
(Photo: AMPAS)
Among the new 842 members invited to become Oscar voters, three of them are of Nigerian descent — including the iconic Tunde Kelani for directing, the talented Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje for acting and the fast-rising Chinonye Chukwu for writing.
Tunde Kelani
Tunde Kelani is one of Nigeria’s most acclaimed directors, known for classics like Thunderbolt: Magun, Saworoide, Agogo Eewo, and Dazzling Mirage. He’s currently working on the film adaptation of Wole Soyinka’s award-winning novel, The Lion and the Jewel.
Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje
British-Nigerian actor, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje has been on a steady rise, standing out in films and TV shows like The Bourne Identity, Thor: The Dark World, Suicide Squad and Game of Thrones. Last year, he made his directorial debut at TIFF with the auto-biographical Farming.
Chinonye Chukwu
This year, Nigerian-American filmmaker, Chinonye Chukwu, became the first black woman to win the Sundance Film Festival’s biggest prize for her movie, Clemency. She’s also set to direct the film adaptation of former Black Panther Party chairwoman, Elaine Brown’s memoir, A Taste of Power.
Source: Konbini
Congrats people!