Together with Brie Larson, Natalie Portman, Priyanka Chopra, Olivia Wild among others, Nollywood actress Genevieve Nnaji will serve as ambassador for the 2020 Toronto International Film Festival.
Set to run from September 10 – 19, TIFF, one of the biggest film festivals in the world will hit the virtual order of doing things for the very first as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. The 50 selected ambassadors will engage with audiences through interactive digital experiences and events.
“In a time of disruption, professionals from around the world still look for occasions to come together, share innovative ideas, buy and sell content, and find creative ways to collectively forge ahead towards a safer, healthier, and inclusive future. This year, delegates can expect to find community, connection, inspiration, and talent, the foundation that will serve as the way forward,” disclosed Geoff Macnaughton, Senior Director of Industry & Theatrical, TIFF.
Despite the lack of physical engagement this year, the film festival is fully loaded with big budget Hollywood pictures such as, ‘Nomadland’ starring Oscar winner Frances McDomand, Halle Berry’s directed film ‘Bruised’, Regina King’s directorial debut film ‘One Night in Miami’ and the Kate Winslet opposite Saoirse Ronan starred in feature ‘Ammonite’.
The TIFF platform has been home for Genevieve ever since her cinema fame transitioned from the Nigerian film market to the global landscape. In 2018, her widely-acclaimed family drama film acquired by Netflix ‘Lionheart’ was premiered at the festival.
Two years before that (2016), she was a panelist alongside film director Kunle Afolayan on a conversation that highlighted the Nollywood industry and its international rise.
Prior to the TIFF big announcement over the weekend, Genevieve’s 2020 profile has leaned towards major moves including her appointment as a voting member of the Academy Awards. She also formed part of the selected creatives across the African continent featured in the Netflix ‘Made by Africans: Watched by the World’ thriller that raises the curtain on the readiness of African filmmakers to tell their own stories as its supposed to be told.
