Nigerian documentary filmmaker, Joel Kachi Benson, has made history after his Disney original documentary, Madu, won Outstanding Arts and Culture Documentary at the 2025 News & Documentary Emmy Awards held in New York.
This is the first Emmy Award ever attained by a Nigerian documentary film, and this puts Benson in the league of Africa’s most award-winning storytellers globally.
Madu, co-directed with Oscar-nominated director Matt Ogens, is the inspiring tale of Lagos-born ballet dancer Anthony Madu, whose dancing barefoot in the rain set the world’s hearts aflutter after his viral video reached millions. The film takes Anthony from the moment he went viral to when he received a scholarship to Elmhurst Ballet School in the UK, tracing the making of dreams, art, and identity on continents.
“This Emmy is a win for Nigeria, for storytellers everywhere, and for anyone who dares to dream,” Benson said after receiving the award. “Madu is proof that our stories matter.”
Benson doubled his delight as his new work, Mothers of Chibok, was also awarded Best African Feature Documentary at the internationally acclaimed Encounters South African International Documentary Festival — Africa’s highest documentary film festival.
Mothers of Chibok follows Benson’s previous much-praised virtual reality movie, Daughters of Chibok, the winner of the 2019 Venice Lion in Best VR Story — an African first. The new movie brings back the female victims of the 2014 Chibok schoolgirl kidnappings but this time of how resilient they remain and continue to be and fight for justice and closure.
“Stories like Madu and Mothers of Chibok reinforce my belief that documentaries can truly change lives,” Benson added.
With an Emmy and a continental festival crown in hand, Benson is cementing his role as a global force in impact storytelling.
