With Nigeria missing out on the Best International Feature Film category of the 98th Academy Awards, famously known as the Oscars, Tunisia has emerged as Africa’s sole standard-bearer as ‘The Voice of Hind Rajab’ secures a nomination, placing the continent firmly on the global cinematic map.
The Best International Feature Film, formerly known as Best Foreign Language Film, is awarded to a feature-length motion picture produced outside the United States with a predominantly non-English dialogue track.
Nigeria’s no-submission decision
In August 2025, the Nigerian Official Selection Committee (NOSC), the sole body recognised by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) to select Nigeria’s official entry for the Best International Feature Film, opened submissions for Nigeria’s entry for the category.
A few weeks later, the committee, citing a lack of creative and technical intentionality, announced it would not submit a film for consideration at the 2026 Oscars.
The Committee, which the filmmaker Stephanie Linus chairs, received six submissions. However, during its deliberations on 26 September 2025, a majority voted in favour of “No Submission”.
With Nigeria withdrawing from the race, Tunisia’s ‘The Voice of Hind Rajab’ will represent Africa at the global awards.
The movie will be competing against other titles such as ‘The Secret Agent’ (Brazil), ‘It Was Just an Accident’ (France), ‘Sentimental Value’ (Norway), and ‘Sirāt’ (Spain).
If it wins, ‘The Voice of Hind Rajab’ will be the fourth Oscar winner from the continent, joining Algeria’s ‘Z’ (1969), Ivory Coast’s ‘Black and White in Colour’ (1976), and South Africa’s ‘Tsotsi’ (2005).
‘The Voice of Hind Rajab’
A 2025 docudrama film about the ongoing conflict in Gaza, ‘The Voice of Hind Rajab,’ is written and directed by Kaouther Ben Hania.
It centres on the response of the humanitarian movement, the Red Crescent, to the killing of Hind Rajab, a five-year-old Palestinian girl, by the Israel Defence Forces during the Israeli invasion of the Gaza Strip.
On January 29, 2024, Red Crescent volunteers received an emergency call. A 6-year-old Hind Rajab is trapped in a car under fire in Gaza, pleading for rescue.
While trying to keep her on the line, they do everything they can to get an ambulance to her.
The movie stars Saja Kilani, Motaz Malhees, Amer Hlehel, and Clara Khoury and is a co-production between Tunisia and France.
Oscar 2026
On Thursday, the organisers of the 98th Academy Awards announced the first set of nominations for the 2026 Oscars.
Actors Lewis Pullman and Danielle Brooks unveiled the list.
The ceremony will be held on March 15, 2026, with Conan O’Brien returning as host.
Complete list of categories and nominees:
Best Picture
Bugonia
F1: The Movie
Frankenstein
Hamnet
Marty Supreme
One Battle After Another
The Secret Agent
Sentimental Value
Sinners
Train Dreams
Best Actor
Timothée Chalamet, Marty Supreme
Leonardo DiCaprio, One Battle After Another
Ethan Hawke, Blue Moon
Michael B. Jordan, Sinners
Wagner Moura, The Secret Agent
Best Actress
Jessie Buckley, Hamnet
Rose Byrne, If I Had Legs I’d Kick You
Kate Hudson, Song Sung Blue
Renate Reinsve, Sentimental Value
Emma Stone, Bugonia
Best Supporting Actor
Benicio del Toro, One Battle After Another
Jacob Elordi, Frankenstein
Delroy Lindo, Sinners
Sean Penn, One Battle After Another
Stellan Skarsgård, Sentimental Value
Best Supporting Actress
Elle Fanning, Sentimental Value
Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas, Sentimental Value
Amy Madigan, Weapons
Wunmi Mosaku, Sinners
Teyana Taylor, One Battle After Another
Best Director
Chloé Zhao, Hamnet
Josh Safdie, Marty Supreme
Paul Thomas Anderson, One Battle After Another
Joachim Trier, Sentimental Value
Ryan Coogler, Sinners
Original Screenplay
Robert Kaplow, Blue Moon
Jafar Panahi, It Was Just an Accident
Ronald Bronstein & Josh Safdie, Marty Supreme
Eskil Vogt & Joachim Trier, Sentimental Value
Ryan Coogler, Sinners
Adapted Screenplay
Will Tracy, Bugonia
Guillermo del Toro, Frankenstein
Chloé Zhao & Maggie O’Farrell, Hamnet
Paul Thomas Anderson, One Battle After Another
Clint Bentley & Greg Kwedar, Train Dreams
Animated Feature
Arco
Elio
KPop Demon Hunters
Little Amélie or the Character of Rain
Zootopia 2
Documentary Feature
The Alabama Solution
Come See Me in the Good Light
Cutting Through Rocks
Mr Nobody Against Putin
The Perfect Neighbour
International Feature
The Secret Agent, Brazil
It Was Just an Accident, France
Sentimental Value, Norway
Sirāt, Spain
The Voice of Hind Rajab, Tunisia
Editing
Stephen Mirrione, F1: The Movie
Ronald Bronstein & Josh Safdie, Marty Supreme
Andy Jurgensen, One Battle After Another
Olivier Bugge Coutté, Sentimental Value
Michael P. Shawver, Sinners
Cinematography
Dan Laustsen, Frankenstein
Darius Khondji, Marty Supreme
Michael Bauman, One Battle After Another
Autumn Durald Arkapaw, Sinners
Adolpho Veloso, Train Dreams
Original Score
Jerskin Fendrix, Bugonia
Alexandre Desplat, Frankenstein
Max Richter, Hamnet
Jonny Greenwood, One Battle After Another
Ludwig Goransson, Sinners
Casting
Hamnet
Marty Supreme
One Battle After Another
The Secret Agent
Sinners
Production Design
Frankenstein
Hamnet
Marty Supreme
One Battle After Another
Sinners
Costume Design
Avatar: Fire and Ash
Frankenstein
Hamnet
Marty Supreme
Sinners
Visual Effects
Avatar: Fire and Ash
F1: The Movie
Jurassic World Rebirth
The Lost Bus
Sinners
Sound
F1: The Movie
Frankenstein
One Battle After Another
Sinners
Sirât
Makeup and Hairstyling
Frankenstein
Kokuho
Sinners
The Smashing Machine
The Ugly Stepsister
Original Song
‘Dear Me’ from Diane Warren: Relentless; Music and Lyric by Diane Warren
‘Golden’ from KPop Demon Hunters; Music and Lyric by EJAE, Mark Sonnenblick, Joong Gyu Kwak, Yu Han Lee, Hee Dong Nam, Jeong Hoon Seon, and Teddy Park
‘I Lied to You’ from Sinners; Music and Lyric by Raphael Saadiq and Ludwig Goransson
‘Sweet Dreams of Joy’ from Viva Verdi!; Music and Lyric by Nicholas Pike
‘Train Dreams’ from Train Dreams; Music by Nick Cave and Bryce Dessner; Lyric by Nick Cave
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Live-Action Short
Butcher’s Stain
A Friend of Dorothy
Jane Austen’s Period Drama
The Singers
Two People Exchanging Saliva
Documentary Short
All the Empty Rooms
Armed Only With a Camera: The Life and Death of Brent Renaud
Children No More: “Were and Are Gone”
The Devil Is Busy
Perfectly A Strangeness
Animated Short
Butterfly
Forevergreen
The Girl Who Cried Pearls
Retirement Plan
The Three Sisters
