Kingdom creatives from across the country gathered in a spirit of inspiration and collaboration as the maiden edition of the Africa International Christian Film Festival launched with an opening ceremony at Silverbird Cinemas, Abuja. The festival’s debut featured renowned filmmakers and creatives such as Evangelist Mike Bamiloye, the Kendrick Brothers, Philip Telfer, Paul Sirmons, and Tim Shields, drawing together actors, producers, storytellers, and content creators from the Christian creative community.
Spanning four days, the event provides a vibrant platform for sharing faith-driven narratives, fostering meaningful connections, and celebrating excellence in Christian film. In true film festival tradition, attendees can look forward to workshops, film screenings, masterclasses, and panel discussions, with the festival culminating in a media parley and an award ceremony to honor outstanding achievements.
In his keynote address, themed around the festival’s focus on “God’s Creative Army,” Dr. Felix Oisamoje, Regional Director of the Christian Broadcasting Network, emphasized that storytelling is not merely a form of entertainment, but a powerful tool for influence and transformation. He acknowledged the many platforms now available for Christian creatives to share their stories but the subject of cultural impact still remains a concern. His address spotlighted the need to be a change agent in the Christian community rather than criticise from the sidelines, and there is also a problem of identity crisis as creatives do not know who they are, which indirectly makes their vision lack the required substance.
Delivering a talk on the topic “Identity and Kingdom Storytelling”, founder of the Mount Zion Film Ministries, Evangelist Mike Bamiloye, urged Christian filmmakers across Africa to prioritise storytelling that reflects God’s kingdom values, warning against allowing trends and “wrong mindsets” to shape faith-based productions. He also told participants that creative work must be rooted in spiritual identity, stressing that filmmakers should first understand who they are in Christ before attempting to communicate Christian messages through film.
One of the special guests at this film festival is Jennifer Keltner, founder of Rescue-Party-Give, a Texas-based nonprofit organisation dedicated to fighting human trafficking. Rather than a traditional approach, her organisation hosts creative events—such as movie screenings, art demonstrations, fashion shows, and panel discussions—to bring corporations, law enforcement, and churches together to fight modern-day slavery. Her speech was focused on understanding prayer and how to pray, even as a Christian creative.
The founder, Bright Wonder Obasi, says this mandate was given to him by God 10 years ago. He emphasised that AICFF is here to reclaim the mantle of storytelling in the Christian community. He encouraged participants to step out of themselves, learn and relearn everything needed during the festival.
