Founder and festival Director of Eko International Film Festival (EKOIFF), Hope Obioma Opara, has announced that the 13th edition of the Film Festival will now hold from April 23 to April 29, 2023. The festival was earlier scheduled to hold from March 6, 2023.

Opara explained that the shift in date and month of the festival was due to the forthcoming 2023 Gubernatorial and National Assembly election, which falls in between EKOIFF festival week.

“The governorship election is on March 9, and the week leading to the election will all be about electioneering and, so we don’t want our guest and filmmakers to be caught in between preparation for what appears to be an election that will be keenly contested. This is why we decided on a shift in date,” Opara said, adding that the shift in date of the festival was also to allow filmmakers that have requested for more time to submit their films to do so.

“We have had request from filmmakers to be given up until February ending to send in entries. So, we have decided to extend the call for entries as they have requested,’’ Opara who is also founder of the Universal Movie Awards (UNIMA) said.

Opara also hinted that the festival has received over 50 entries, including Echezona from Nigeria, The Scar that Scare Me from Sweden, The Black Uniform from USA, Verlossing from Netherland and a documentary feature from Germany, Life To Me.

The 12th edition of the festival held in March last year and Paul Apel Papel’s Eagle Wing was awarded the festival’s highest honour—best feature film award. Information on the festival can be sourced at www.ekoiff.org