Nominees for Afro Hollywood Awards 2011 emerge

The African Voice Newspaper UK has released its shortlist of nominees for the 2011 African Film Awards a.k.a Afro Hollywood Awards. The winners in each awards category, who will be attending the prestigious annual awards in London, will be announced at a special ceremony on Sunday, October 9, in Osogbo, Osun State.The African Actor of the Year will be contested byone of South Africa's leading actors, Presley Chweneyagae (famed for his lead role in Tsotsi), who will slug it out with Saheed Balogun of Nigeria andMajid Michaelof Ghana. The keenly contested list of award nominees features heavyweights such as Tonto Dike, Halima Abubakar, Toyin Aimaku,Jamila Umar Nagudu,Funke Adesiyan, Lekan Oladiipo and Peter Edochie contesting in various other categories.The award has helped to make Nollywood popular and opened an array of opportunities for past recipients.The 16Afro Hollywood Awards has the theme 'Tourism in Africa & the film industry.'Commenting on the theme of the award this year, Prince Mike Abiola, publisher of African Voice newspaper, UK, said: 'Our aim is to create a synergy between filmmakers and government tourism boards; to ensure films are used to promote investment in tourism.'Osogbo has been chosen as the special place to announce the winners of this year's awards because the state is blessed with natural scenery ideal for film making. There is no reason why the government should not designate the state as a film-friendly state with incentives for filmmakers.'A distinguished and independent panel of film critics, respected for their expertise in the film industry, will decide the eventual winners of each award.The year's awards, celebrating excellence in African film and tourism, will be an opportunity to highlight the tourism development plans of African states, as the event coincides with the World Tourism Market, theleading global event for the tourism industry. The awards ceremony willbe held onSunday 6Novemberat the historic Stratford Town Hall, 29 Broadway, Stratford, London.The annual event is supported by the Nigeria High Commission, London.Arik Airis the Headline sponsor for this year's African Film Awards.
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