NLNG opens $20,000 documentary prize for filmmakers

Good news for young Nigerian filmmakers. There is a new $20,000 prize to win if you can tell a powerful Nigerian story with documentary film.

Nigeria LNG Limited (NLNG) has announced its new Nigeria Prize for Creative Arts, and for the first edition the focus is documentary filmmaking. The prize money is $20,000 (about N30 million). This was confirmed at the unveiling in Lagos on October 31, 2025, and reported by multiple outlets including Premium Times, BusinessDay and Newsmart Nigeria.

In the first edition, the prize ended up shared by two filmmakers. According to QED.NG in "How four winners emerged for the 2026 Nigeria Prizes sponsored by NLNG" on Oct 9, 2026, filmmakers Peter Oghenetega Oke with "Beyond Tarkwa Bay" and Feranmi Abiola with "Mara Mania" shared the $20,000 prize. The awards were given at the Grand Award Night at Eko Hotel and Suites, Victoria Island, Lagos on October 9, 2026.

What the prize is for

NLNG already has big prizes for Literature and Science. Now it added Creative Arts to celebrate film. For 2026, the theme is "Identity". That means NLNG wants films that answer: What does it mean to be Nigerian? It can be about language, heritage, culture, memory, community, or social change.

Only short documentaries of 20 minutes maximum, completed between April 2024 and April 2026, were accepted. Judges scored on storytelling, originality, production quality, creativity and impact. The judging panel was chaired by veteran actor Dr. Sam Dede of UniPort, with technical adviser Joel Kachi Benson, Emmy-winning documentary filmmaker. Chair of the Advisory Board is Prof. Akachi Adimora-Ezeigbo.

The call opened February 2026 and closed April 2026. BusinessDay reported 98 entries came in.

Who can benefit from it

The prize is for young Nigerian filmmakers aged 18 to 35, anywhere in the world. If you are in that age and you make documentaries, you can enter. It is open to both men and women, student filmmakers, YouTube documentary creators, indie filmmakers.

You do not need big cinema. Even phone-shot documentary with strong story can qualify if sound and story are good. Other finalists in 2026 were _No Food for Lazy Man_ by Ummi Bukar and _Women of Salt_ by Jessica Chinyere - showing women also made the top list.

Why documentary film support matters

Nollywood is known for drama, but documentary is where we tell our real stories to the world - the struggle of fishermen in Tarkwa Bay, the resilience of salt-making women in Ebonyi.

$20,000 is big for a young creator. It can buy camera, editing laptop, sound gear, or fund your next film. It also puts your film on global stage, because NLNG's Nigeria Prizes are benchmarked to international festival standards.