CREATIVE INDUSTRY
The Future Is Africa:
Here’s How To Make It
African!
By Nerima Wanyama
O
ver the past decade, there has been
a surge in culture, the creative arts,
technology and innovation across
the world, with Africans at the forefront.
2018 was a bumper harvest year for the
African Narrative. Volkswagen opened its
first car assembly plant in Rwanda. In the
same year, Kenya’s very own Rafiki film,
written and directed by Wanuri Kahiu,
was the first Kenyan film to be screened at
the Cannes Film Festival.
Even the movie giant Marvel released a
film - Black Panther - that was written by
Ryan Coogler, set in a fictional African
country Wakanda and based on African
culture, featuring a 90% African cast and
crew (in both lead and minor roles) in
2018. Brian Gitta, a Makerere University
student was crowned winner of the Royal
Academy of Engineering's Africa Prize
for coding a device which tests for malaria
without drawing blood.
And 2019 appeared to follow suit. Disney
released a remake of everyone’s favorite
childhood movie Lion King, complete
with a soundtrack album titled The
Lion King: The Gift, boasting music
powerhouse Beyoncé Knowles-Carter as
Executive Producer. She was deliberate
in featuring acts from various regions of
Africa; acts like Tiwa Savage, Wizkid,
Yemi Alade, Burna Boy, Tekno, Busiswa,
Mr Eazi, Oumou Sangaré, Shatta Wale, to
mention but a few.
Closer to home, a team of 20 teenage
students from South Africa assembled a
Sling 4 plane and flew to Egypt, landing
in Namibia, Malawi, Ethiopia, Zanzibar,
Tanzania and Uganda during the
12,000km (7,455 miles) trip. It was flown
by 17-year-old Megan Werner.
Statistics and notable achievements
like these go to show that not only are
Africans insanely innovative, creative
and talented but also more than capable,
under the right circumstances. From these
examples, the future really is Africa. But
is it African?
More often than not, whenever Africans
Statistics and notable recent achieve-
ments go to show that not only are Af-
ricans insanely innovative, creative and
talented but also more than capable, un-
der the right circumstances. From the
numerous cases, the future really is Afri-
ca. But is it African?
40 MAL34/20 ISSUE
come up with relevant, creative, inventive,
disruptive and futuristic bodies of work, a
range of obstacles get in their way. First
of all, producing quality work for a global
audience or consumer base often requires
extensive technological, human and
financial resources - large sums of money
to source and pay talent, rent or purchase
equipment, secure sites and resource
logistics.
And whether local talent is raw or just
unknown, investors often feel more
reassured flying in expatriate directors,
producers, technological support, and
more to ensure that the story is well told,
and amply financed.
So the most successful African stories end
up being told by non-Africans, ironically,
to a predominantly African audience.
Resultantly, African creatives end up
losing out on opportunities to showcase
and grow their skills on a commercial
platform, with the potential to gain
exposure through collaborating with
expatriates.
If the inverse were true - expats coming
in to support African creatives tell their
stories instead of coming to tell them in
their own way - the result and direction
of the creative industry would be wildly
different.
But the solution is in our hands. For one,
we can ensure that we support homegrown
talent by investing consistently in skilling
and upskilling our creatives. Institutions
like ADMI are in existence to support
gifted students turn their passions into
professions, through practical courses