For six years, a familiar silence lingered over one of Lagos’ most beloved cultural institutions. Lights, Camera, Africa! (LCA!), the festival that had once become a gathering point for filmmakers, artists, writers, students, thinkers and curious audiences, disappeared from the city’s cultural calendar, leaving many to wonder whether it would ever return.
This year, that silence finally breaks.
With “Convivium: In Gathering,” Ugoma Ebilah is bringing LCA! back to life, not merely as a film festival, but as a declaration that meaningful cultural encounters still matter in an age increasingly dominated by algorithms, commercial imperatives and digital isolation.
The three-day gathering begins on Thursday, October 1 at 4pm, continues on Friday morning and ends on Saturday, October 3 at the Muson Centre, Onikan, Lagos.
The return of LCA! matters because of what the festival has always represented. Founded in 2011, LCA! emerged as a platform dedicated to African and diasporic cinema, championing films that might otherwise struggle to find audiences in commercial spaces. The festival created a home for independent filmmaking, artistic experimentation and cultural conversations at a time when such spaces were rare in Nigeria.
Speaking at a media briefing held at Mbari Kola, her new cultural arts space, Ugoma Ebilah reflected on the philosophy that has guided LCA! from the beginning. She described the festival as a deeply interdisciplinary project, one built on the belief that film, literature, music, visual art, dance and food are interconnected expressions of the same cultural impulse. Rather than treating cinema as an isolated medium, she sees it as part of a larger ecosystem of creativity, conversation and community.
This philosophy is central to understanding the meaning of Convivium: In Gathering. The word “convivium” evokes fellowship and communal gathering. It suggests people coming together not merely to consume cultural products, but to share experiences, exchange ideas and build relationships.
According to the festival’s organisers, the 2026 edition is designed around the concept of cinema as an encounter: an opportunity for collective reflection, attention and dialogue.
In many ways, the festival’s return is also a response to the profound changes that have transformed both Nigerian cinema and the wider cultural landscape during the six years of its absence. During that period, streaming platforms expanded, audience habits shifted and the economics of filmmaking evolved dramatically. Yet Ebilah remains committed to a conviction that independent cinema must retain spaces outside commercial distribution systems. In her view, authentic stories possess value beyond box-office returns, subscriber metrics or algorithmic recommendations. They deserve audiences because they contribute to the cultural record and enrich society’s understanding of itself.
Her argument is rooted in experience. When LCA! began in 2011, opportunities to screen independent films in Nigeria were limited. The festival became a refuge for filmmakers whose works existed outside mainstream commercial circuits. Long before streaming services became influential cultural gatekeepers, LCA! was dedicated to ensuring that unconventional, artistically ambitious and socially important films found audiences. According to Ebilah, that mission remains unchanged despite developments in distribution technology. The platform still seeks to protect artistic freedom and create environments where stories can be experienced with care, seriousness and dignity.
One of the most striking themes that emerged from Ebilah’s briefing was her insistence on restoring what she described as the “nobility” of filmmaking. She recalled praise from veteran photographer Tam Fiofori, who once described LCA! as a platform that returned dignity to the filmmaker. For Ebilah, this remains a guiding principle. Films are not merely entertainment commodities. They are works of labour, courage and imagination deserving of thoughtful presentation and genuine audience engagement.
This emphasis on respect extends beyond filmmakers to audiences themselves. Ebilah repeatedly stressed the importance of gathering physically to experience films together. The communal act of watching, discussing and reflecting is fundamental to the festival’s identity. This explains why LCA! chose not to embrace a virtual format during the COVID-19 pandemic. If gathering was impossible, she reasoned, then the essence of the festival was lost. Rather than compromise its purpose, the organisation waited until it could return in a manner consistent with its values.
The hiatus was also shaped by financial realities. LCA! has always maintained free admission, reflecting its commitment to accessibility and public engagement. Yet sustaining a high-quality film festival without a commercial model is an enormous challenge. Sponsorship became increasingly difficult after the pandemic, as cultural organisations competed for limited resources. Ebilah spoke candidly about these difficulties, describing years of financial uncertainty and the challenge of balancing cultural ideals with practical sustainability.
The eventual return of the festival was made possible through support from organisations including the Open Society Foundations and MTN. Their involvement allowed the organisers to preserve the event’s commitment to free public access while delivering the level of quality audiences have come to expect from LCA!.
Behind the return story lies another deeply personal narrative. Ebilah revealed that her father passed away shortly before the festival’s launch preparations were completed. She spoke openly about the effects of grief and admitted that, left to her own instincts during that difficult period, she might have cancelled the event altogether. Instead, a dedicated team carried the responsibility forward, ensuring that the festival’s comeback would become reality. Her remarks transformed the press conference from a routine announcement into a moving reflection on resilience, community and collective effort.
The programme itself reflects the festival’s longstanding commitment to excellence. Among the headline screenings are Shine Your Eyes by Matias Mariani, selected for the Panorama section of the Berlin International Film Festival; When Nigeria Happens by Ema Edosio; Lizard by Akinola Davies Jr., winner of Sundance’s Short Film Grand Jury Prize; and Birdie by Praise Odigie Paige, which premiered at Sundance in 2026. These works join a broader selection of films from Nigeria, Africa and the diaspora that explore migration, memory, homecoming, identity and belonging.
Yet, as Ebilah repeatedly emphasised, the films are only part of the experience. LCA! has always been as much about conversation as it is about screening. Public discussions, filmmaker Q&As, musical performances and informal interactions remain at the heart of the festival experience. The closing performance by Senegalese musician Obree Daman reinforces this commitment to artistic exchange across disciplines.
The decision to host the media briefing at Mbari Kola was itself symbolic. More than a venue, the new arts space represents Ebilah’s broader vision for cultural life in Lagos. She described it as a home for the creative, the curious and those seeking refuge from the pressures of everyday life. Through screenings, workshops, talks, exhibitions, readings and artistic collaborations, the space aims to function as an ongoing centre for cultural engagement beyond the festival calendar.
This ambition points toward a significant evolution in the future of LCA!. Rather than operating only as a biennial event, the organisation intends to create year-round programming through screenings, pop-ups, conversations and artistic gatherings. The festival will become one expression of a much broader cultural ecosystem designed to keep artistic dialogue active between major editions.
Perhaps the most compelling aspect of Ebilah’s vision is her refusal to define success solely in commercial terms. Throughout the briefing, she resisted the language of market dominance, industry disruption or audience scale. Instead, she focused on impact at a human level: inspiring artists, nurturing communities, encouraging thoughtful engagement and helping people connect more deeply with stories and with one another. In a world obsessed with growth metrics, her perspective feels refreshingly radical.
The return of LCA! therefore represents something larger than the revival of a film festival. It is a reminder that culture still needs physical spaces, shared experiences and intentional communities. At a moment when attention is fragmented and social interaction often mediated through screens, Convivium: In Gathering offers an alternative vision: people sitting together in a room, watching stories unfold, asking questions, challenging assumptions and discovering common ground.
For Ebilah, the mission remains remarkably simple. It is not about changing the entire film industry. It is about serving the storytellers and audiences who believe in the transformative power of art. It is about making space for courage, creativity and connection. Most importantly, it is about ensuring that the room remains open. And after six years of waiting, that room is opening again.