Parents who have been looking for children's programs that reflect the diversity and cultural heritage of Africa will be interested in Netflix's latest project.
As part of its growing acquisition of content from Africa, Netflix has announced its first original African animated series. Mama K's Team 4 tells a story of four teenage girls living in a futuristic version of Lusaka, Zambia's capital city. The girls are recruited by an ex-secret agent to save the world.
Designed by Cameroonian artist Malcolm Wope, the animation drew inspiration for the visuals from retro 90s hip hop girl groups, Netflix said in a statement announcing the deal. It was written by Zambian writer, Malenga Mulendema who was one of the eight winners of the 2015 Triggerfish Story Lab initiative, a talent hunt for African storytellers.
Mulendema says she grew up watching cartoons and wondered why none of the heroes looked like her. "In creating a superhero show set in Lusaka, I hope to introduce the world to four strong African girls who save the day in their own fun and crazy way. Most importantly, I want to illustrate that anyone from anywhere can be a superhero," she said in the Netflix statement.
The monetary success of Black sci fi movies like Black Panther have sparked an interest in companies like Netflix expanding their market to Africans and African Americans. Mama K’s Team 4 is designed to particularly target Black families on a global level. This is a market that has been overlooked, and will give young Black children an opportunity to see themselves on screen. Netflix is also planning to use their platform to find the next generation of African women writers.
The series is produced by award-winning South Africa based studio, Triggerfish Animation, and London based kids and family entertainment specialist, CAKE.
No comments:
Post a Comment