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FULL LIST: Uganda Film Festival turns leaf at 12th anniversary of awards

Irene Kulabako gives Baby Passion Kisakye her Rising Star Award as other guest look on, June 6, 2025. She acted as Nkinzi in Nkinzi. PHOTO/ANDREW KAGGWA

By  Andrew Kaggwa

What you need to know:

  • Considering that nominees of the day were not the regular winners, even the subject matters were a bit different. 


The Uganda Film Festival, organised by the Uganda Communication Commission (UCC), held the 12th edition of the annual festival with a gala closing on Friday evening.

For the years the festival has been held, it has been a muse of many things still wrong with the industry. From the poor marketing, low turn-up at the cinema for most of the screenings and a generally disgruntled group of filmmakers.

This year, the festival came at a low point for the film industry, since MultiChoice cut down the number of films they commission, meaning the rate at which local films are being made fell by close to 50 percent and so did the quality.

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What also happened was that almost all local A-list producers did not have a film submitted for the festival. And they were not boycotting. Most filmmakers simply do not have the budgets to make films independently.

This gave room for fresh producers to sneak in their films, which probably could have faced stiff competition from directors such as Nisha Kalema, Matthew Nabwiso, Matt Bish, Nana Kagga, Usama Mukwaya, and Richard Mulindwa, among others.

In fact among the nominees for Best Feature Film, only one of the producers with films nominated had been nominated before and only one had won the award before. That was Hassan Mageye.

The rest were first time nominees for this particular category. Rehema Nanfuka, for instance, the eventual Best Feature Film winner for Nkinzi is previously known for directing and winning Best Director for the film Veronica's Wish, but this was her first stint as a producer.

The rest of the nominees for Best Feature Film were new faces, some of whom were there for their debut projects.

Like all festivals, celebration of the art most of the times takes place in the cinema.

Over the years, the screening of films that are part of the festival takes place in more than five locations, with movie theaters and at times community centres.

Often, the screenings are empty or the turn-up is worryingly low. Yet, for the first, with films made by unpopular producers, Uganda Film Festival, also known to many as UFF experienced one of their most successful editions in a long time.

From films such as Two Paths, Speak, and Nkinzi, there was a surge in attendance with most of the films in the festival selling out more than two days to the screenings, a milestone the festival was yet to enjoy in the past 10 years.

Thus, for the first time, the winner of the Viewers Choice Award, At the Edge, was a film most people in the audience were aware of.

Considering that nominees of the day were not the regular winners, even the subject matters were a bit different.

For instance, Kimote, one of the big winners of the night was a film about a backcloth maker struggling to keep the craft alive, then Nkinzi was about two street children trying to help a lost girl find her parents.

Maurice Kirya hands over Best Supporting actor award to Rogers Masaba on June 6, 2025 during the Uganda Film Festival, for his role in Kimote. PHOTO/ANDREW KAGGWA

The festival seemed to turn a new leaf from both the story point of view and also pivot in a new era of filmmakers.

But generally, the evening of the UFF gala started earlier than usual with a marathon of awards given out. These were awards such as cinematography, screenplay, supporting actor and actress, costume and make-up artists.

Other awards were then given out during the main event which was also punctuated with two musical guests; Elijah Kitaka and Maddox Ssematimba.

ANNUAL

The Uganda Film Festival (UFF) is an initiative established by the Uganda Communications Commission in 2013 to promote the local film industry, generate a market for local content to international markets, and facilitate international trade and investment in the film industry in Uganda.

A comprehensive bold, artistic, progressive, and creative fourteen-day Festival for filmmakers, storytellers, film lovers, enthusiasts, distributors, and audiences with workshops, forums, masterclasses, film screenings in cinemas, regional outreaches, voting for viewers’ choice films and the award gala night ceremony where outstanding films are awarded cash and non-cash prizes from around the globe.

Uganda Film Festival Awards 2025 – Winners

  1. BEST FEATURE FILM

Winner: Nkinzi – Aidah Nalubowa & Rehema Nanfuka

  1. BEST COSTUME DESIGN

 Winner: Kimote – Nabakiibi Joan Jojo & Elgon Label

  1. BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY

Winner: Kimote – Eric Wamasebu

  1. BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN

Winner: Kimote – Joseph Mumpi Sserubiri

  1. BEST SOUND DESIGN

Winner: Battle for Earth – Norman Dhikusooka

  1. BEST MAKE-UP DESIGN

Winner: Kimote – Kebirungi Rose Lily

  1. BEST POST-PRODUCTION / EDITING

Winner: Nkinzi – Zaed Matovu & Jemba Jonathan

  1. BEST DIRECTOR IN A FEATURE FILM

Winner: Nkinzi – Rehema Nanfuka

  1. BEST FILM IN AN INDIGENOUS LANGUAGE

Winner: Kimote – Hassan Mageye

  1. BEST SCREENPLAY

Winner: Nkinzi – Esther Nampewo & Rehema Nanfuka

  1. BEST ACTRESS IN A FEATURE FILM

Winner: Nakafeero Suzan Shamirah – Lama

  1. BEST ACTOR IN A FEATURE FILM

Winner: Mendez Kintu – Kimote

  1. BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A FEATURE FILM

Winner: Debie Kagisha – Fatal

  1. BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A FEATURE FILM

Winner: Masaba Roger Magona – Kimote

  1. BEST ACTRESS IN A TV DRAMA/SERIES

Winner: Agaba Joan – What If

  1. BEST ACTOR IN A TV DRAMA/SERIES

Winner: Derrick Baka – Beloved

  1. BEST TV DRAMA/SERIES

Winner: Damalie – Doreen Mirembe

  1. BEST EAST AFRICAN FILM

Winner: Wamaitha – Kang’ethe Mungai (Kenya)

  1. BEST SHORT FILM

Winner: Boundary Mwisho – Hakim Zziwa

  1. BEST DOCUMENTARY FILM

Winner: Masaka to Toronto – Walta Gabriel Busulwa & Akello Isabella

  1. BEST SOUNDTRACK

Winner: Fatal – Byaruhanga Douglas

  1. BEST ANIMATION FILM

Winner: Lia and Origa – Dominic Dipio

  1. BEST STUDENT FILM

Winner: Dinner for Three – Brian Adrine Kabogozza

  1. BEST REGIONAL FILM

Winner: Jimbi – Tusabe Ivan

  1. BEST INTERNATIONAL FEATURE FILM

Winner: When the Gospel Speaks – Motheo Madisa & Vincent Moloi (South Africa)

  1. RISING STAR AWARD

Winner: Kisakye Passion

  1. VIEWER’S CHOICE AWARD
    • Winner: At the Edge
  2. LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD
    • Winner- Sister Dipio Dominic
  3. UFF- Champion

Winner- Eng. Godfrey Mutabazi

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