Tunisia has claimed the only African nomination for the 2026 Academy Awards, as Kaouther Ben Hania’s documentary “The Voice of Hind Rajab” was shortlisted for Best International Feature Film, Oscar organizers announced this week.
The film will represent the continent at the 98th Oscars ceremony on March 15 at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, standing as the sole African entry among the final five nominees. It will compete against submissions from Brazil, France, Norway, and Spain.
Seven other African countries had submitted films for consideration, including Egypt, Madagascar, Morocco, Senegal, South Africa, and Uganda, though none advanced to the final shortlist.
“The Voice of Hind Rajab” has garnered significant international praise since its world premiere in the main competition of the 2025 Venice International Film Festival, where it won the Grand Jury Prize and six parallel awards. The film also set a festival record with a 23-minute, 50-second standing ovation, breaking the previous record held by “Pan’s Labyrinth.”
For director Kaouther Ben Hania, this marks her third Oscar nomination. She was previously nominated for “The Man Who Sold His Skin” (2020) in the International Feature category and “Four Daughters” (2023) for Best Documentary Feature, making her the only Tunisian filmmaker to achieve multiple Academy Award nominations.
The nomination underscores the growing prominence of Tunisian cinema on the global stage, coming nearly three decades after the country’s first Oscar submission in 1995. Tunisia has now earned three Oscar nominations in recent years, signaling its rising influence in international filmmaking.
TunisianMonitorOnline (NejiMed)
