For more than 20 years, Joy Odiete has travelled the world, attending film festivals from Cannes to Toronto. Each trip, she says, came at a cost (flights, hotels, screening fees) and too often, she returned to Lagos with little to show in terms of actual business.
That frustration is what pushed the Blue Pictures CEO to launch SIRA – The African Hub, which made its debut this September at the 50th Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF50). SIRA will host screenings, networking events, and an industry session aimed squarely at one thing: turning the global visibility of African content into measurable trade.
“SIRA is not for summits. It is for trade,” Joy Odiete told Nollywire in an exclusive interview. “Our producers must sit across from studios like MGM, Apple, and Netflix and sell. Not just attend panels, not just showcase. Sell.”
SIRA’s TIFF50 programme includes six films: ‘3 Cold Dishes’, ‘Mama Nike: Queen of Adire’, ‘Safari’, ‘Stitches’, ‘Black Pepper’, ‘Made By Design’, and ‘The Serpent’s Gift’, carefully selected for their potential appeal to international buyers.
The timing is critical. TIFF is preparing to expand into a full film market in 2026, a shift that will put distribution, acquisitions, and co-productions at the centre of its operations. For Odiete, this represents a rare opportunity for African filmmakers to position themselves ahead of the curve.
“For years, Nollywood films have premiered at international festivals, even at TIFF, but the question is, did those screenings translate into distribution or sales? Too often, no,” she said. “What SIRA does is ensure that this time, the screenings are for buyers. There must be a financial commitment attached to the content.”
At the heart of Joy Odiete’s vision is a belief that African filmmakers must better understand and leverage their rights.
She warns against one-off sales that give away long-term value, pointing instead to theatrical, TV, streaming, and transactional video-on-demand rights as multiple layers of potential revenue.
“Producers need to understand their content is new currency. It is real estate; it appreciates. You can monetise it for a lifetime. But only if you package it properly and avoid bad deals,” she said.
That’s why SIRA is not positioned as another festival booth or talking shop. It is a vehicle for structured trade, distribution, and market access.
The launch of SIRA coincides with Joy Odiete’s 20th year in the film business, a milestone she calls both daunting and humbling. The year also marks another first: ‘Stitches’, a film based on her story and directed by Ghana’s Shirley Frimpong-Manso, has been officially selected for TIFF50.
“It’s one of the high points of my 20 years. You can dream, and you can actually see that dream come true,” she said. “But I don’t see it as the end; it’s the beginning of the next phase.”
That next phase, Odiete insists, must be built by Africans themselves.
“Nobody is going to save us. In Nollywood, we are our own saviours. We have to be the ones knocking on doors, creating pathways, and driving distribution,” she said.
SIRA is designed to go beyond TIFF50. Odiete says the hub will appear at other major festivals and markets, from Berlin to Cannes and AFM, amplifying African voices and facilitating real deals across borders.
As TIFF celebrates its 50th anniversary, Odiete is urging Nollywood to rethink its global presence: less about premieres and photo calls, more about contracts signed and markets penetrated.
With SIRA, Joy Odiete is betting on trade as the future of African cinema’s global story.
