Afda MFA feature film wins big at Uganda Film Festival 2025

Afda is proud to announce that the Master of Fine Arts (MFA) film When the Gospel Speaks, directed by Motheo Madisa and Vincent Moloi, and produced by Abbey Kgetse, has won the Best International Feature Film award at the 12ᵗʰ Uganda Film Festival (UFF) 2025, held from 26 May-6 June in Kampala, Uganda.

This prestigious win places Afda and its postgraduate programme firmly on the map of African cinematic excellence. The UFF, hosted annually by the Uganda Communications Commission, is one of East Africa’s most respected film festivals, celebrating both local and international storytelling talent. This year’s edition featured over 100 films and 27 award categories, drawing entries from across Africa, Asia, Europe, and the Middle East.

“What a terrific accolade for Abbey Kgetse, a first-year MFA and first-time producer on a fiction film! Ten MFA students, nine from Cape Town and one from Johannesburg, collaborated on this ambitious 74-minute feature, a thrilling narrative rooted in Nietzsche’s philosophical exploration of the male psyche. The film premiered in January 2025 in Cape Town, and on June 6th, it won Best International Feature at the Uganda Film Festival against strong competition from films representing France, Iran, China, and Zambia. This is a major achievement, especially considering the film’s entertainment value, its embodiment of MFA research in practice, and its complex interdisciplinary, inter-campus collaboration,” says David Max Brown, Senior Producing Lecturer & Industry Liaison at Afda.

This award underscores Afda’s growing reputation on the African film festival circuit and the increasing global recognition of its postgraduate projects. The institution has a longstanding tradition of making award-winning student films, and its MFA features continue to gain momentum, with frequent selections, screenings, and accolades at international festivals.

Director Vincent Moloi, speaking earlier this year at the Afda Cape Town MFA screening series, said:
“This is a celebration of the hard work, creativity, and commitment that our Master of Fine Arts students have poured into their final projects.”

When the Gospel Speaks is a reflection of Afda’s creative ethos and the strength of Africa’s storytelling voice. The film’s win at UFF 2025 shines a spotlight on emerging talent and cross-campus collaboration, demonstrating the power of well-crafted, research-driven narrative cinema.