Five African Shorts Selected for the Open Doors AFP Critics Prize 

The Locarno Film Festival’s Open Doors Screenings program has selected five short films from across Africa to compete for the African Film Press (AFP) Critics Prize. The selected films represent filmmakers from Senegal, Kenya, Ethiopia, Mozambique, and Angola, and will compete during the festival’s 79th edition from August 5 to 10, 2026. 

This selection marks a historic milestone for the AFP alliance, as it is the first time the award will be presented outside of the African continent. In addition to a $500 cash prize and official certification, the winning filmmaker will receive ongoing, cross-regional editorial support to amplify their cinematic voice.

Concrete Moves, Fagamou Fama Ndiaye

Concrete Moves is a 12-minute short documentary film by the Senegalese director Fagamou Fama Ndiaye, that explores urban transformation, personal rhythm, and the aggressive urban expansion and environmental transformation sweeping across the West African coastline in Dakar, Senegal. The narrative is anchored in the director’s vivid childhood memory of the fear triggered by a snake during a school field trip to the Mamelles lighthouse. The film comments on how concrete is erasing Dakar’s nature, history, and collective memory. 

Time to Change, Pocas Pascoal

Time to Change is a short film by Angola’s acclaimed filmmaker, Pocas Pascoal, known for her deeply personal historical narratives and previous festival successes like All Is Well. Time to Change is a poignant short that handles themes of transition, memory, and shifting societal identities. It is a 5-minute experimental short documentary directed by Pocas Pascoal that explores the effects of colonialism and capitalism in relation to environmental destruction in Angola. Using archival footage, the film argues that historical exploitation, such as land theft and slavery, is directly linked to modern environmental collapse and structural inequalities.

 Goat, Judy Kibinge

The lineup features Kenya’s Judy Kibinge with her latest work, Goat. As an established pioneer in Kenya’s independent film landscape and a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, Kibinge’s inclusion brings a sharp, experienced narrative voice to the competition. Goat is a supernatural folk-thriller short film that follows city lovebirds Suki and Benjamin on a trip to an isolated livestock farm, where their adventure unravels. 

 sKINs_ADDIS, Rediet Haddis Yalew

Judy Kibinge is joined by Ethiopian filmmaker Rediet Haddis Yalew, whose film sKINs_ADDIS ABEBA offers a visually striking and textured examination of contemporary identity and urban youth culture in Ethiopia’s bustling capital city. 

Submergido, Ariel Añez

Directed by Mozambican director, Ariel Añez, Submergido is a compelling 14-minute short film that explores the relationship of personal and collective trauma through a family torn apart by war. It focuses on Sergio, who travels home to deliver the tragic news that his brother, Amarildo, has vanished during the ongoing armed conflict in Cabo Delgado, Mozambique. Marking the debut of Ariel Anez, the film made its world premiere at the international FIlm Festival Rotterdam (IFFR). 

All five directors will compete for the inaugural international AFP Critics Prize, and the filmmakers themselves will simultaneously participate in the professional Open Doors Directors hub, an intensive mentorship program designed to offer long-term international industry networking and career development. 

These five shorts are part of a larger, curated lineup. In total, the Open Doors Screenings section presents 13 films representing 12 African countries. This expansive lineup highlights the festival’s ongoing four-year focus on the African continent, aiming to amplify distinct creative voices from regions with limited filmmaking infrastructure.