Committee calls for Ugandan movie submissions for prestigious Oscars awards

The Uganda Oscars Committee, also known as The Uganda Academy Selection Committee (UASC), a body that oversees and selects local movies to represent Uganda at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Awards on August 10, 2022 officially called for the submission of movies to the committee.

The call is open from August 10 to 31, 2022.

The Oscars are the oldest and most prestigious awards in the world held in the US every year since 1929. They are aimed at recognising films in the world.

The selection of the best movie, that will represent Uganda at the 95th Academy Awards ceremony in March 2023, in the category of Best International Feature Film, will be done after two weeks from the last submission day.

During a press conference at the Uganda Communications Commission House in Bugolobi in Kampala on August 10, Meddy Kaggwa, the acting director of industry affairs and content development at the Uganda Communications Commission (UCC), said the commission is ready to offer support to enable Uganda make her first submission to the academy.

“The awards are viewed by over a billion people, so it’s a big platform and having a selection from Uganda is an achievement. It tells our ability to compete internationally because once the movie is submitted, it represents the country. The publicity that comes with it, too, sells Uganda. The UCC, together with the committee and other partners, are here to ensure that the film that represents us meets the criteria,” Kaggwa said.

Criteria

According to the academy rules, the film must have a predominantly local language (non-English) dialogue track. It must have had at least a seven-day consecutive theatrical run in its countries of origin between January 1, 2022 and November 30, 2022.

“A film has to have screened at the cinema for at least seven consecutive days, which is the reason the committee is partnering with both UCC and Century Cinemax,” Polly Kamukama, one of the committee members, explained.

How to submit

Ugandan filmmakers whose films meet the Oscars selection criteria are encouraged to physically submit three copies of their films (preferably on flash drives) at the UASC offices at the National Theatre in Kampala.

A filmmaker will fill out a brief form as confirmation of their submission.

The movie reviews will be done in line with Academy rules and the selected movie will be announced on September 15, 2022.