As we mark this year’s City to City: Lagos programme, we welcome director Kunle Afolayan and superstar actor-singer Genevieve Nnaji for a conversation about Nigeria’s vibrant film industry and the international rise of Nollywood.

This onstage conversation will explore Genevieve Nnaji and Kunle Afolayan’s inspiring stories, illuminating the complex dynamics behind Nollywood’s rise to prominence at home and all over the world.

Following in the footsteps of his father, the beloved actor-producer-director Ade Love, Afolayan garnered accolades out of the gate with his directorial debut, The Figurine (2009), and continues to innovate as a cinematic storyteller and industry heavyweight. Afolayan has elevated the standards and ambitions of Nigerian cinema over the past decade; from shooting on 35mm instead of digital cameras, to devising elaborate release strategies for his films, including his most recent venture, The CEO (2016), which took place on an Air France flight from Lagos to Paris.

Celebrated as the leading lady of Nollywood and the face of African cinema, Nnaji began her career as a child on the popular soap opera Ripples and has since received multiple awards for her work in films such as Ijé: The Journey (2010), Half of a Yellow Sun (2013) and Road to Yesterday (2015). A producer and media entrepreneur, Nnaji is also a singer and released her first album, One Logologo Line, in 2004.