Cosmos Abasi Wins Aforevo Nollywood Screenwriting Contest

Mary Nnah 

Cosmos Abasi has emerged the overall winner of the Aforevo Nollywood screenwriting contest organised by the filmmaking company. He was subsequently rewarded with N1 million.

The 1st runner-up, Abundance Effiong got N500,000 while the 2nd runner-up, Dolly Nwaduba was rewarded with N300,000.

Managing Director of Aforevo, Mr. Lawrence Onuzulike during the presentation of the reward in Lagos, said screenwriters, who were the bedrock of film production were not usually reckoned with in the society.

Onuzulike said the maiden edition of the contest was held to ensure the attention of the public was drawn to the remarkable work of screenwriters in Nigeria.

 “I have been in this industry for over 24 years as an actor, screenwriter, and movie producer and I know the plight of every Nigerian screenwriter. So, the essence of this is to ensure they are reckoned with.

“It is interesting to note that we have so many creative writers in the country, this contest got over 1,000 script submissions, out of which we picked 600.

“The contest has come to stay and we are looking at holding it twice a year to further encourage screenwriters to continue doing better,” he said.

Abasi, the overall winner of the contest, expressed enthusiasm over his prize win while he commended the organisers for rewarding screenwriters handsomely for their contribution to the success of the movie industry in Nigeria.  

 “It was such a great work to have come up with the script that won me N1 million, I can remember, there were days I didn’t change my clothes but here I am, I’m excited and I will be doing more,” he said.

Renowned actor, Segun Arinze, head of the judges during the contest, explained that some of the aspects assessed in the scripts were writing skill, setting, flair, engagement, characters, and more.