EWA Turns 5: Celebrating Africa’s Creative Powerhouse with a Bold New Pan-African Edition
Under the theme “Closing the Gap,” EWA 2026 welcomes delegations from 18+ African countries and hosts the world premiere of University of Side Hustle, the first scripted feature from Livespot Studios, as the platform evolves from cultural gathering into the marketplace where Africa’s creative economy does business.
● EWA has convened 67,800+ cumulative attendees across its first four editions, including 28,683 pass-holders in 2025, driving 5M+ online engagements and 800M+ digital reach and impressions last year.
● The anniversary edition brings programming and delegations from Kenya, Rwanda, Ghana, Senegal, Uganda, Tanzania, South Africa, and more, targeting 18+ African countries, with 30–40% of delegates travelling from outside Nigeria.
● The platform premieres its own IP: EWA 2026 will host the world premiere of University of Side Hustle, the first scripted feature film from Livespot Studios.
● Seven tracks: Art & Animation joins Film & TV, Music, Fashion & Beauty, AI & Tech, Live Events & Production and Creative Enterprise.
● The 2025 EWA Deal Room drew 178+ entries, advanced 9 companies to its accelerator, and saw 4 attract live investor interest in the room.
Entertainment Week Africa (EWA) will return to Lagos from 17 to 22 November 2026 for its fifth anniversary edition, marking half a decade with an expanded pan-African edition built around deal flow, capital access, talent development, intellectual property and continental market access across Africa’s creative economy.
The anniversary edition runs under the theme “Closing the Gap,” reflecting
EWA’s mission to convert African creative visibility into long-term value, ownership and opportunity. Five years in, EWA is evolving from a major cultural gathering into a structured creative-economy platform; the marketplace where talent, founders, investors, commissioners, buyers, policymakers, platforms, brands and institutions meet to do business across a $59 billion creative economy.
What began as a Lagos creative-industry event has grown into a pan-African platform connecting culture, capital, technology and global opportunity. Across its first four editions,
EWA has become an institution of 67,800+ cumulative attendees. The 2025 edition alone drew 28,683 pass-holders from 8+ countries and 50+ industries across 61 sessions, 93 film screenings, 20 music showcases and 9 fashion showcases, generating 5M+ online engagements and 800M+ digital reach and impressions across Africa, Asia, North America and Europe.
A centrepiece of the 2026 edition will be the world premiere of University of Side Hustle, the first scripted feature film from Livespot Studios. The Lagos-set feature is written by Dami Elebe, and executive produced by Deola Art Alade, a statement of EWA’s evolution from convening the industry to producing the IP the industry exports.
EWA 2026 will cover seven core tracks Film & TV; Music; Fashion & Beauty; AI & Tech; Art & Animation; Live Events & Production; and Creative Enterprise. Each track is designed not only as a content programme but as a platform for practical outcomes: pitch opportunities, closed-door industry sessions, talent development, market access and post-event follow-through.
The 2026 programme places a stronger emphasis on structured commercial formats, anchored by the EWA Deal Room, its Content and Music Markets, the EWA Capital Desk, the Creators Hub, and LABSPOT, the platform’s skills and enterprise development engine, connecting sellers in film and music to buyers, distributors and investors, and pairing skilled creatives with real opportunities.
The 2025 edition demonstrated the demand for a platform of this scale. The EWA Deal Room received 178+ entries, with 9 companies advancing to the accelerator programme and four companies, Aktivate, FriendnPal, Growwr and Sports Reels, attracting live investor interest in the room. Investors and ecosystem partners connected to the Deal Room and Hackathon included Future Africa, Catalyst Fund, Consonance Invest and Askya Investment Partners. For 2026, EWA will design more intentional pathways between creatives, founders, investors, commissioners, buyers, distributors, platforms and institutions.
EWA’s international momentum has grown through EWA Creative Connect, the exclusive convening series extending the platform beyond Lagos. EWA Creative Connect launched earlier this year in Los Angeles during Grammy Week 2026 before continuing in London during the Nigeria-UK state visit. The series has convened senior executives from Warner Records,
Adobe, Amazon, Dramabox, Afrexim, Unilever, the British Film Institute, Diageo, NBO Capital, Ministry of Trade and Investment, and many more global brands, bringing senior diplomatic figures into direct engagement with Africa’s creative economy.
“As we mark five years of EWA, this moment is deeply significant,” said Deola Art Alade, Convener of Entertainment Week Africa and Group CEO of Livespot. “EWA started with a simple but urgent belief: African creativity deserves stronger platforms, better access and greater value. Today, the work is no longer just about convening the industry; it is about building the systems that help talent meet capital, ideas meet opportunity, and culture become long-term economic power. EWA 2026 is our boldest expression of that mission.”
“Entertainment Week Africa has always sat at the intersection of creativity, culture and opportunity,” said Darey Art Alade, Co-Founder and Chief Creative Officer of Livespot. “As EWA enters its fifth year, we are focused on creating an experience that is not only inspiring, but useful. The next generation of African creative talent needs access, learning, platforms, community and real pathways into work and enterprise. EWA 2026 is about building those bridges with intention.”
Registration and speaker submissions for EWA 2026 are now open. For programming updates and registration, visit ewafrica.com.
LINK TO VISUAL ASSETS HERE
Media contacts: petrina@folapr.com | pr@livespot360.com Social: @ewafrica_ | @livespot360
About Entertainment Week Africa
Entertainment Week Africa is a pan-African creative-economy platform and market, convening talent, capital, platforms, policy, enterprise, brands, institutions and audiences across content, music, film, television, fashion, beauty, AI, technology, live events production, creative enterprise, art and animation. An initiative of Livespot Foundation and produced by Livespot, EWA has grown into a continental platform built to help African creatives and creative businesses access funding, distribution, partnerships, training, work and global opportunity. Its annual Lagos edition combines sessions, screenings, showcases, labs, markets, workshops, masterclasses, pitch rooms and investor-facing programmes, while EWA Creative Connect extends the platform internationally through senior convenings in creative capitals including Los Angeles and London.
About Livespot360
Livespot is an integrated creative company building content, venues, experiences, scenic production and talent pipelines across Africa. Founded by Deola Art Alade and Darey Art Alade, Livespot operates across five connected verticals: Livespot Studios, Livespot Scenic, Livespot Spaces, Livespot Experiences and Livespot Icons. Its work spans film, television, music and branded content; set, stage and immersive design; creative venues and hospitality infrastructure; festivals and cultural IP; and talent partnerships with brands, productions and platforms. Livespot is home to Entertainment Week Africa, Livespot X Festival, Detty December Fest and Love Like A Movie, among other cultural properties.