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Paul Ugbede’s “Cancelled,” directed by Offiong Edet Anthony, at the BEETA Festival in Abuja, was a highly interactive psychological thriller about a top influencer, “Boss Boy,” who faces false rape accusations that threaten his success.
The play masterfully led the audience down a path of suspicion until the shocking final line revealed that Boss Boy had Penile Agenesis, he was born without a sex organ.
Ugbede’s statement in the drama piece is a powerful commentary on the masks created to achieve fame, the dangers of popularity, and the price of preserving an image over the truth
Williams Obasi’s stage interpretation of Ibukun Fasunhan’s “Beertanglement,” presented the entangled lives of three individuals, stripping away their masks to expose their core issues, ultimately birthing empathy and leading to a good resolution.
“Room 7,” directed by Olarotimi Fakunke, provided an uncomfortable, though sugarcoated, look into the plight of victims of ritualists, where a naive young girl is tricked and captured, only to be saved by the armed forces. The play served as a powerful commentary on the need to abolish ritualism, while also hinting at the desperation caused by a poor economy and lack of opportunity.
The experimental piece “Jolly Ride,” written by Olarotimi Fakunle and directed by Abiodun Kassim, takes place on a bus with five youth corpers and a driver; a moving commentary on the state of the country today. It touches on religion, the anxieties of insecurity (one corper receives a call about an attack on another bus), and exchanges perspectives between the youth and the elder citizens (the ‘drivers’ of the country).
These plays, performed concurrently with the film screenings at the Festival, were a nod to the theatre origins of BEETA.
In 2015, BEETA Universal Arts Foundation (BUAF), spearheaded by Bikiya Graham-Douglas, the award-winning Actress and Producer, started a playwriting competition, calling for entries from young writers aged 18-40. The idea was to bolster the quality of story-telling in Nigerian drama, which also feeds into the country’s burgeoning motion picture industry. Contestants handed in manuscripts. The winning work was guaranteed a publishing deal as well as stage productions around the country. Paul Ugbede’s Our Son The Mnister, a satirical take on how Nigerians of all shades see Ministerial appointments of a Family member as a path to wealth, won the inaugural prize in February 2016. Six years after inaugurating the contest, Graham -Douglas and her cohort set up the BEETA Arts Festival (BAF). The Playwright Competition and the Festival are run separately.
For the Fifth edition, which held from December 5th to 7th, 2025, BEETA Arts Festival (BAF) moved its opening ceremony to the Library of the National Assembly in Abuja, a symbolic gesture that spoke to holding a culture advocacy ceremony on the hallowed grounds of legislation making.
This year’s party was a comprehensive celebration of art, culture, and filmmaking, designed to immerse leaders and practitioners from the creative industry in a rich tapestry of discussions, workshops, and performances. It brought together powerful voices for bonding and strategic conversations surrounding the future of the art sphere, featuring panel sessions, literary events, workshops, pitch sessions, stage plays, film screenings, and a bustling festival market located in the Coconut Garden of the Abuja Continental Hotel.
The second panel, “Technology as a tool for preventing and reporting GBV,” explored how digital innovation and creative technology could support prevention, reporting, and survivor-centered responses. Panelists, including representatives from TECHHer NG and Gender Mobile Initiative, highlighted the urgent need for adequate data to help governing bodies and advocacy organizations gain a deeper understanding of GBV, which would inform better laws and targeted intervention efforts. Bukky Shonibare from Invictus Africa mentioned that “behind every number is a human story,” which led to the creation of Fuskanta, a safe, sensitive, and supportive digital space for survivors of conflict-related GBV. Through tools like this, she explained, it becomes easier to identify the data surrounding GBV and create protective policies. The discussion veered into how narratives shape the psychological development of our youth, citing dangerous content creators and examples of digital harassment among students. The panelists were quick to highlight government efforts, such as the new law that increases the prison sentence for perpetrators of sexual harassment in schools to 15 years, urging youths to report and call out their abusers, knowing that systems are being created to protect them. The conversation also touched upon the dual nature of technology, from AI deepfakes used to harass women, to protective tech solutions like bracelets with sensors. A critical question was raised about the need to balance the focus of advocacy work to also support young boys. Conny Kealeboga-Nkanga (Mrs.), Deputy High Commissioner for Botswana to Nigeria, a notable speaker present at the festival’s cocktail reception, gave a powerful speech emphasizing that girls must be taught their inherent value, giving them the ability to say “no” to predators who try to exploit their financial circumstances or self-image. Kealeboga-Nkanga stressed the importance of providing resources for advocates to reach remote communities to sensitize them to GBV and educate them on their rights.
The festival hosted other deeply engaging conversations, including the panel on “Equitable Gender Storytelling” presented by the Creative Economy Practice by CC-Hub and featuring Gender Champion Biodun Stephens. Speaking from a filmmaker’s perspective, Mrs. Stephens called for a fundamental change in how women are portrayed in traditional storytelling. She pointed out that African productions often recycle the same tired archetypes, failing to reflect the powerful, intelligent, and influential roles women are increasingly taking in modern society, a reality seen in films like King of Boys and Shanty Town. She advocated for using cinema to sensitize people to gender inequality and to provide young girls with narratives that boost their confidence and self-perception. In answering a query about the risk of being “put in a box” when focusing on female empowerment themes, Stephens maintained that quality storytelling is key. If the films are story-centric, portraying the message through the lens of reality, the message becomes easy to digest and transcends simple advocacy. She assured filmmakers that the support for quality work is growing and will ultimately overwhelm online negativity.
In a forward-looking session, “AI as a Creative Collaborator,” led by Malik Afegbua, CEO of Slickcity Studios, the possibilities and future of Artificial Intelligence in the creative sphere were thoroughly discussed. Afegbua, a leading AI creative, showcased his celebrated works, such as “The Elder Series,” which used AI to reimagine older people as fashion models, a concept that took him to fashion shows globally, including one in Barcelona. He explained how he utilizes AI to automate his fashion brand’s design process, generating months of concepts in a fraction of the time it would take to hand-draw them. More profoundly, he introduced the African Language Learning Model (ALLM) V1, an AI model designed to capture Nigeria’s rich linguistic diversity. This model, he explained, is crucial not only for preserving words but also for documenting the cultural contexts and traditional knowledge embedded within the languages, ensuring this linguistic heritage remains accessible while paving the way for modern cultural expression. Addressing the pervasive fear of job displacement, Afegbua assured the audience that AI would create more specialized jobs and is nowhere near the level where it can surpass traditional storytelling. He cautioned against the proliferation of “AI Slop”, unimaginative content circulating on social media and stressed that the essence of AI collaboration lies in the human capacity to generate original ideas and bring them to life.
Among the several the festival’s several film screenings were works from the MultiChoice Talent Factory (MTF) programme, and a variety of international films (from countries like France, Kenya, Cameroon, and Malawi) and Nigerian productions touching on the topic of GBV.
The Festival Market, which saw over 15 vendors set up shop at the Coconut Garden, was a pleasantly chaotic hub of creativity and commerce. Among the vendors was Mr. Victor Prince Dickson, founder of the Civic Intelligence Hub and a psychologist, who showcased his innovative card and board games. His board game, National Cake, takes players through the entire history of Nigeria from before its conception to the present day, covering crises, historical events, and perceptions around different races and tribes, serving as an in-depth look into the country’s identity. The card game Kommon Sense uses debate, thinking, and speaking as a core mechanic, challenging players to connect one card (e.g., “Wisdom”) to the last card played (e.g., “Divorce”) in 60 seconds. His self-help card game, Vivify, is specifically designed to help people converse and think for themselves in a world overrun by social media misinformation, a powerful tool geared toward the development of the mind and essential cognitive functions like critical thinking.
Also present was D’bua, a fashion brand founded in July, which produces African fashion designs and accessories. The brand focuses on blending African fabrics with other materials to create pieces that are decent, comfortable, and elegant, presenting African textiles with dignity. They offer design, styling, and accessorizing services for their clients. Lastly, Book Bliss, a two-year-old company primarily operating as an online platform, showcased a wide selection of fiction and nonfiction books, catering to book lovers across Africa.
The BEETA Arts Festival 2025 successfully fused serious intellectual dialogue with exuberant artistic expression, cementing its place as an essential platform for creative development and social commentary in Nigeria.
