Tony Okuyeme 
The Nigerian Film Corporation (NFC) has once again reaffirmed its commitment to safeguarding Nigeria’s cinematic and cultural heritage through the strengthening of its human resource capabilities, with the successful hosting of a transformative intensive training workshop that ended on Friday in Jos, Plateau State.
Titled “Preservation of Audiovisual Materials and Archival Practices”, the workshop was held at the National Film, Video and Sound Archive (NFVSA), Jos, from April 1–11, 2025.
It equipped participants with cutting-edge skills in film handling, scanning, digitisation, archive management, and cataloguing, with an emphasis on the deployment of global best practices in the restoration and preservation of fragile audiovisual materials.
Speaking after an assessment visit on the imperatives of the workshop, the Managing Director/Chief Executive of NFC, Ali Nuhu, stressed that Nigeria cannot afford to lose any of her vintage audiovisual records currently being secured at the NFVSA in Jos.
He emphasized that the NFC “remains fully committed not only to preserving but also to protecting the nation’s heritage.”
Nuhu commended Arsenal Institute for Film and Video Arts (Berlin, Germany), Deutsche Filminstitut and Filmmuseum (Frankfurt, Germany), Goethe University, Frankfurt, and DAAD (Deutscher Akademischer Austauschdienst) for organizing the workshop series and for their sustained partnership with the NFC in its transformative journey to elevate Nigeria’s status as a global cinematic powerhouse.
“The Federal Government remains resolute in empowering the NFVSA as the foremost repository of Nigeria’s audiovisual heritage,” Nuhu said.
He charged the trainees who were drawn from the NFVSA, Master’s degree Students of the Film Culture & Archiving Studies programme, lecturers from the National Film Institute Jos, staff and students of the University of Jos, as well as practicing film archiving stakeholders to apply their newfound expertise in revitalizing, safeguarding, and protecting the nation’s rich audiovisual heritage.
Nuhu was represented by Edmund Peters, NFC’s Director of Film Industry Support & Production Services, at the closing and certificate presentation ceremony.
Alo Paistik of Goethe University, along with Markus Ruff and Lisabona Rahman of the Arsenal Institute for Film and Video Arts who were the lead facilitators of the 11-day workshop commended the NFC for its proactive approach to archival practice.
“Engaging with NFC’s dedicated staff and other trainees has been immensely rewarding. We are confident that the skills shared will catalyze transformative progress in Nigeria’s film restoration and archival management,” they jointly said.
The University of Jos, through Husseni Tsaku and Nancy King the present and immediate past Heads of the Department of Theatre & Film Arts applauded the NFC and its partners for not only using the workshop series to prioritize archival practice and promote excellence but also for strengthening the Master’s Degree Programme in Film Culture and Archiving Studies, to which the University of Jos is a partner.
At the closing ceremony and certificate presentation held on Friday, April 11, 2025, participants expressed their readiness to advance Nigeria’s archival preservation capabilities.
They also expressed profound gratitude for the opportunity to participate, pledging to apply their new skills, upscale their competencies, and drive the restoration, digitisation, and management of Nigeria’s audiovisual treasures.
“This training workshop has further sharpened our approach to archiving practices and management.
“We are now better equipped to protect audiovisual materials that tell Nigeria’s story,” an attendee, Idi Jimpy, said.
The Preservation of Audiovisual Materials and Archival Practices training workshop, the fifth in the series continues to shape the NFC’s professional training, skills development, and capacity-building initiatives geared towards harnessing and empowering archivists.
