By Jared Stoke
Published June 21, 2021
Creators from Kenya, Uganda, Zimbabwe, South Africa, Nigeria and Egypt are set to bring their unique visions to audiences around the world with Kizazi Moto: Generation Fire, a Disney+ Original ten-part collection of premium original films set to premiere exclusively on Disney+ in late 2022.
This animated anthology brings together a new wave of animation stars to take you on a wildly entertaining ride into Africa’s future. Inspired by the continent’s diverse histories and cultures, these action-packed sci-fi and fantasy stories present bold visions of advanced technology, aliens, spirits and monsters imagined from uniquely African perspectives.
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Oscar®-winning director Peter Ramsey (Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse) will serve as executive producer for the anthology, with Tendayi Nyeke and Anthony Silverston as supervising producers. Triggerfish Animation Studio will be the lead studio for the anthology, working in collaboration with animation studios across the continent and globally.
“We are bringing the work of a visionary new generation of African filmmakers to Disney+. In addition to delivering thrilling animation for fans of all ages, this collection of ten original films taps into the Afrofuturism phenomenon which was turbo-charged by Marvel’s Black Panther and reflects Disney’s ongoing commitment to partnering with leading global talent to tell the stories of the world from fresh and authentic points of view,” commented Michael Paull, President, Disney+ and ESPN+, The Walt Disney Company.
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“Kizazi Moto derives from the Kiswahili phrase, kizazi cha moto, which literally translates as ‘fire generation’, capturing the passion, innovation and excitement this new cohort of African filmmakers is ready to bring to the world. Moto also means fire in several other African languages, from Rwanda’s Kinyarwanda to Shona, a Zimbabwean language, speaking to the pan-African spirit we hope this anthology embodies,” commented Tendayi Nyeke, Supervising Producer at Triggerfish.
“I’m really pleased to be part of a ground-breaking, fresh and exciting project that’s aimed at exposing the world to a whole new wave of creativity and invention from a place that is just ready to explode onto the world animation scene. … There are stories that touch on other worlds, time travel, and alien beings, but all of these genre conventions are seen through an African lens that makes them totally new. I can’t wait for people to have their minds blown and say ‘I want more!’” says Peter Ramsey, Executive Producer of the anthology.
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But just how has the production of Kizazi Moto: Generation Fire come to be?
More than 70 leading directors and creators across the continent were invited to pitch their ideas, after a multi-year research phase that included input from Ghanian comic book blogger Kadi Tay, award-winning Congolese animation supervisor Sidney Kimbo-Kintombo (Avengers: Endgame) and Namibian-South African producer Bridget Pickering (Hotel Rwanda).
The process was curated and produced by the team at Triggerfish, including Supervising Producer Tendayi Nyeke, Head of Development Anthony Silverston and Kevin Kriedemann, who proposed the initial idea for the anthology. Fifteen shortlisted projects were mentored by Academy Award®-winning director Peter Ramsey and the creative teams from Triggerfish and Disney.
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The final 10 films are Enkai by Ng’endo Mukii (Kenya); You Give Me Heart by Lesego Vorster (South Africa); Herderboy by Raymond Malinga (Uganda); First Totem Problems by Tshepo Moche (South Africa); Mukudzei (Adventures of Muku) by Pious Nyenyewa & written by Tafadzwa Hove (Zimbabwe); Surf Sangoma by NthatoMokgata and Terence Neale (South Africa); Stardust by Ahmed Teilab (Egypt); Hatima by Terence Maluleke and Isaac Mogajane (South Africa); Moremi by Shofela Coker (Nigeria) and Mkhuzi: The Masked Racer by Simangaliso ‘Panda’ Sibaya and Malcolm Wope (South Africa).
Each film will be roughly ten minutes long, and together will comprise a feature-length anthology of original animation that will be released as a Disney+ Original across the globe.
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