At the 98th Academy Awards (aka the Oscars), Norwegian film, ‘Sentimental Value’, won the Best International Feature Film, while ‘KPop Demon Hunters’ took home the Best Animation Award.
The win by ‘Sentimental Value’ is close to the heart of many Nigerians, as it comes three weeks after its special screening in Abuja, making it the first Oscar-nominated and Academy Award-winning film to be screened in Nigeria, as well as the first Oscar-winning film to screen at the Kaduna International Film Festival from August 25 to 29, 2026.
‘Sentimental Value’ beat out Brazil’s ‘The Secret Agent’, France’s ‘It Was Just An Accident’, Spain’s ‘Spirat’, and Tunisia’s ‘The Voice of Hind Rajab’.
The 2 hours 13 minutes tragic-dramedy tells the story of writer and film director Gustav Borg, whose tragic and traumatic past led to a strained relationship with his two daughters, Nora and Agnes.
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Meantime, ‘KPop Demon Hunters’ took home the Best Animation Film Award at the 2026 Oscars.
Written by Maggie Kang and directed by Chris Appelhans, the animation pivots around Korean contemporary music culture, K-pop, to craft a story of identity and morality. The animation, which went on to become the most-watched animated film in Netflix history with over 236 million views, beat Ugo Bienvenue’s seven-time award-winning animation ‘Arco’, and Disney’s highest-grossing animated film of all time and biggest global animated opening film, ‘Zootopia II’.
The animation further received the Best Original Song for ‘Golden’ written by EJae, Mark Sonnenblick, and performed by EJae, Audrey Nuna, and Rei Ami.
Notably, the Oscars, for the first time, recognised the importance of casting and casting directors in films via its Best Casting Award. The award went to ‘One Battle After Another’s Cassandra Kulukundis – a film that won the most awards for the night – including Best Picture, Best Director for Paul Thomas Anderson, and Best Adapted Screenplay.
Kulukundis beat Jennifer Venditti of ‘Marty Supreme’, ‘Sinners’ Francine Maisler, and ‘The Secret Agent’s’ Gabriel Domingues to win the Best Casting Award.