Johannesburg Jobs Get Ready to Launch Your Animation Career

Nigerian animator Ridwan Moshood was so determined to learn how to make cartoons, he spent hours in internet cafés in Lagos, watching YouTube lessons and taking notes.

In what must have felt like sweet revenge, his cartoon was inspired by a bad experience at high school, involving a rubbish bin and school bullies.

I decided to create Garbage Boy as a beacon of hope and forgiveness. And to show others who had been bullied that those names don't define who you are.

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He has since formed a production company and he's now hoping to have his latest idea, a cartoon set in Lagos, called In My Hood, commissioned into a series.

All over the continent we hear these stories, says Nick Wilson, the founder of the African Animation Network, who is based in Johannesburg.

He reels off a list of countries where local animators are starting to make their mark: Nigeria, Ghana, Kenya, Uganda, Egypt, South Africa, Mozambique and Burkina Faso.

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Wherever we've been able to scratch the surface and connect the community, we've found pretty exceptional talent and the majority of this talent is self-taught, he says.

But while stories of self-taught animators breaking into the industry are inspiring, more formal training opportunities do need to be developed, he says.

Doh D Daiga is a Cameroonian animator who lives in Burkina Faso. He's responsible for skills and development at the African Animation Network.

Animation Company South Africa

My experience in this industry shows me there exists an immense pool of young, talented and creative minds that never get to the see the day, he says.

Recently, partnerships have been announced with international animation studios Toonz Media Group and Baboon Animation. Both companies plan to establish animation academies in Africa, adding to the handful that exist already.

The end result is a series made up of 55 short animated films that are available in English, Swahili, Hausa and Somali.

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In each episode, the characters navigate complex situations - such as negotiations about early marriage - but in a lively and accessible way. As well as a cartoon, each film features an interview with a real-life high achiever, such as Africa's first female pilot.

When it was broadcast in Kenya earlier this year, My Better World quickly became the top rating children's TV show. It was also nominated for this year's Annecy International Animation Film Festival, one of the world's top animation competitions.

But not all African animation work is aimed at the young. Nairobi-based artist and animator Ng'endo Mukii uses the medium to tell stories that are challenging and at times, confronting.

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I wanted to look at the way women are using skin bleaching products in Kenya, and what we believe is beautiful, she says, adding she wants to know why.

It also allows people to not feel necessarily attacked by what you're discussing, so they can maybe engage with it a bit better.

Her work has received numerous international awards including the Best Animated Short at the Chicago International Film Festival for Yellow Fever in 2013.

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Last year Netflix acquired its first African animation, Mama K's Team 4 - a cartoon about four teenage girls set in Lusaka, Zambia.

There is an incredible demand for animated content right now. This was true even before the pandemic because the streaming networks are really hungry for new content; and animation is a great way to get viewers from all different audiences, he says.

With advertisers and other video producers unable to film in the field, those who can afford it, are turning to animation to fill the gap.

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That's putting a lot of demand on the pipeline, he says. Because professional animation studios are suddenly getting offers they can't refuse from other, non-traditional clients.

But while more animators are joining the profession in Africa, many are facing an obstacle to getting their content on local screens.

The African Animation Network hopes to overcome that problem by launching its own TV network - if it can attract enough investment.

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Broadcasters are not incentivised to invest in the local industry because they can turn a profit on really cheap [foreign] content, he says.PLEASE NOTE: We are experiencing technical difficulties with our landline. Contact us on community@, or alternatively, directly to the person you are trying to reach.

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This Local Artist Quit His Job To Make Cartoons, He Now Has A Show On Cartoon Network

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Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.With no other plan of employment, this South African animator quit his job as a graphic designer to pursue animation, and he now has a 13-episode show on Cartoon Network.

I always knew how to draw. I was very skilled when it come to drawing as a kid, and every Saturday I'd wake up early in the morning and watch cartoons while eating my cornflakes.

I liked how they made me feel so happy at that time, you forget everything. When I realised I could draw I knew that this is exactly what I want to do, said the young artist.

Creating Kea's World

Msipha's mother was aware of her son's love for animation, and after he completed high school, she was determined to lead him to where his talent would be nurtured.

She took it upon herself to find him a school and a bursary, and after matric he went straight to The Animation School – and the whole experience was a blast, said the 27-year-old. Three years later, he completed a Diploma in Animation.

After finally getting his qualification in 2017, Msipha got his first job as a graphic designer, but he absolutely hated it, so much so that he quit a year later with no other plan.

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Being in the work environment for me was very hard. When I got to that environment it was even harder because I worked for a year and was really depressed.

That's when I thought I need to do my own stuff. It was solidified in 2018 when I got the job and I realised that this is not for me, Msipha said.

He decided to finally focus on his talent with no fear of failure. A month after quitting his job, he got funding from the National Film and Video Foundation to create a short film called Ringa Mzansi, an animated talk show that looks at contemporary world issues through satire and comedy.

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Msipha moved on to creating the Nurse Thandi character at the height of the pandemic and it became very popular on TikTok.

After I uploaded it on TikTok it blew up. People were loving it. I uploaded the video and went to sleep. When I woke up, it was all over Twitter, he said.

I went to go test for Covid and this is the reception that I got from a nurse, telling me I can't test, I need to test closer to home. It was just a weird experience, and I thought I need to make this into a cartoon, said Msipha.

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During the hard lockdown around

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