FWIFT’s Lagos convention connects women across film, radio and digital media

A filmmaker, a radio producer and a digital creator may work with different equipment, but their next useful collaborator could be sitting in the same room. That is the practical appeal of the Forum of Women in Film and Television Nigeria’s 2026 national convention, scheduled for 29 October at Glover Memorial Hall in Lagos.

The organisers’ announcement, carried by media partner BellaNaija, lists an 11am–4pm programme at 4 Customs Street. Admission is free, with online registration required. Its theme, “One Industry, Many Voices: We Build Together”, explicitly brings film and television into conversation with radio, advertising and digital media.

The advertised format includes panels, breakout sessions, speed networking and a fireside conversation about careers beyond borders. It is a programme built around contact between disciplines, with the possibility that a relationship begun during a short meeting can continue after the hall empties.

A programme with several kinds of experience

Sandra Mbanefo Obiago is announced as keynote speaker. The listed contributors also include Kadaria Ahmed, Biodun Stephens, Gbemi Olateru-Olagbegi, Rosemary Egabor-Afolahan and Esosa Osagiede. The African Women’s Development Fund is named as a supporter.

The Guardian’s 25 October preview carries the same organiser statement and registration link. That agreement supports the published event details, although two versions of the statement do not amount to two independent accounts of an event that has yet to take place.

The value of the mix is easy to imagine in practical terms. A journalist developing an audio story may need help translating it for the screen. A filmmaker may need a stronger route to a public conversation about a release. A creator with an established online audience may be looking for production collaborators who can help a format grow.

Those examples are possibilities rather than promised convention projects. They explain why a gathering spanning several media can offer something different from a room filled only with people doing the same job.

Arrive with one clear introduction

Speed networking rewards clarity. An introduction that identifies a craft, a recent piece of work and a specific interest gives another person something to respond to. “I edit short documentaries and want to meet producers developing longer films” is more useful than a broad declaration of being available for everything.

A small work sample can help, provided it is easy to open. One accessible link with a brief explanation of the contributor’s role is more useful in a short conversation than a long presentation that needs several minutes of setup. Where a project is still being developed, a concise description can establish the kind of collaboration being sought without requiring a stranger to evaluate the whole idea immediately.

For an experienced attendee, the corresponding opportunity is to be precise about what they can offer: feedback on a pitch, an introduction, a possible future conversation or information about a commissioning process. Specific offers are easier to follow up than general encouragement.

The venue gives the gathering another layer

Glover Memorial Hall has a documented place in Nigeria’s screen history. In its 2022 account of the venue’s management handover, Lufodo Group records that the hall hosted Nigeria’s first public film screening in 1903, at Herbert Macaulay’s invitation. The account also describes its long association with theatre and public gatherings.

That history makes the venue more than a convenient backdrop. A convention connecting established screen professions with newer digital work occupies a space that has hosted earlier changes in how audiences encounter stories. The connection is a useful reminder that technology changes while the work of assembling an audience and sustaining a creative practice continues.

The most useful result may arrive afterwards

A convention can introduce people; a collaboration needs a next step. After a promising conversation, a short follow-up that recalls the shared subject and proposes a realistic action can preserve momentum. That action might be exchanging a sample, scheduling a brief discussion or identifying someone else whose expertise fits the project.

Neither a photograph together nor a contact saved on a phone establishes a working relationship. The more useful outcome is mutual understanding: what each person makes, where their interests overlap and whether there is a manageable piece of work they could explore together.

For those planning to attend, the registration form linked in the announcement is the published route. The scheduled gathering on 29 October offers five hours in which to begin those conversations. Its longer-term value will depend on what participants choose to build from them.