Disney Lines up Nigerian SciFi Animation ‘Iwaju’ For its Streaming Service

Disney has announced that Iwaju, a science fiction animation will premiere on its Disney+ streaming platform in 2022.

Iwaju was developed by Kugali Media, an entertainment company that focuses on telling stories inspired by African Culture using comic books, art and augmented reality.

It was founded by three friends (Tolu Olowofoyeku, Hamid Ibrahim, and Fikayo Adeola) from Nigeria and Uganda in 2017 because they were frustrated by the fact that non-Africans were telling African stories.

The sci-fi which is a “first-of-its-kind collaboration with an African company is set in Lagos, Nigeria and it will explore major themes of class, innocence and challenging norms according to director, Ziki Nelson.

It will “combine Disney’s magic and animation expertise with Kugali’s fire and storytelling authenticity. Iwájú represents a personal childhood dream of mine to tell my story and that of my people.”

While more specific details about the show are not yet available, Disney Animation Studios’ Chief Creative Officer, Jennifer Lee, said it will explore themes of “class, innocence and challenging the status quo.”

Speaking about Kugali Media, Lee added, “their talents as storytellers blew us away.”

Although Disney+ is not live in Africa yet, the announcement of Iwaju may be a clear signal that the streaming service will soon be launching on the continent soon.

So we can say beware Netflix!