Looking for the African Akira

What better measure of society is there than through the fiction it creates? In 1988 the Japanese animation feature film AKIRA was released to the world envisioning the near future of a 2019 neo-Tokyo. At the time, there was nothing like it, most animated films (especially those from Disney and Warner Brothers) targeted kids and had rather simplistic story-lines. Animated projects also tended to suffer from tight budgets, and heavy financier control.

When AKIRA came along it truly revolutionized animated films. It’s set in a dystopian future, it deals with very adult themes like nuclear holocaust, gang violence, rape, and the ‘god-complex’ of politicians who gain too much power. On a technical level, the film was incredibly ground breaking for it’s visual effects and high-quality animation which greatly exceeded the levels of other animated films coming out of Japan at the time. It caused a dramatic experimental shift in style and expectation that raised the bar for animated films and is considered by some to be ‘one of the greatest animated films of all time’. To give a bit of perspective, ten years later, THE MATRIX in the U.S. would do for action and sci-fi movies, what AKIRA did for animation. The directors of THE MATRIX, the Wachowski brothers, cited one of their main influences and inspirations as AKIRA and that films director Katsuhiro Otomo (STEAMBOY, MUSHISHI, MEMORIES).

Fiction as a Measure of Progress

Fiction represents the ideas of a society that’s thinking as much about it’s future as it is it’s past and present. It represents as much about the hopes of that collective society and it’s factions as it does the fears. The concept of who and what heroes and villains are, protagonists and antagonists, are critical concepts for framing identity. Africa, for the size, has an absence of published fiction and especially of science fiction and the fantastic. Most people would have you believe that fiction is the result of leisure, and that’s absolutely true. Without an abundance of time (and the worry of fulfilling primary needs like thirst and hunger) there simply is no opportunity to spend the day ‘thinking’ (or the ultimate of leisure activities: ‘thinking about other people’s thinking’). But with the growth of a middle class in South Africa, Nigeria, Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda and in other African countries, that argument goes away. There are now many millions of people in the continent with both the time, the resources, the talent and the skills to create beyond just things that are necessary for survival.

Am I asking Africans to pour millions of dollars into the next animated epic? No, of course not. But the production of movies, books, comics, animation, TV and other form of media is all indicative of cultures that can produce more than just laborers and politicians. Africa is beginning to see a great shift towards people who pursue conceptual and intellectual careers, these people with both consume and create the next generation of Africa’s stories. And whatever form this takes, it will be for the good of the whole continent.

Waiting for the Renaissance

The biggest threats to science-fiction and fantasy in Africa are religion and politics as they were also the biggest threats to the great thinkers of Europe during their Renaissance. Creative movements thrive in open societies, in closed societies (like the many African countries that remain so) it’s often snuffed out before it starts. If the government views it’s great-thinkers as a threat, it’s pretty blatant what will follow. We need only look to history for examples (ex. Germany pre-WWII, 17th century France, and Rome).

Oral Traditions of African Storytelling and Myth

Some of the most compelling stories ever told have been passed down from generation to generation using one of the earliest forms of communication, the spoken word. From Greek and Roman mythology to African Folklore, these stories acted as early science and inspiration. These stories are timeless, they transcend cultures, they’re rich in detail but they are closely tied to the histories, traditions and religions of continent. At some point, the passion that goes into re-telling and re-imagining these stories, will be put into moving beyond tradition to creating new fiction.

Africa is also rich in music and poetry which highlights the continents appreciation for rhythm, pattern and recursion. These are all, of course, fundamental elements of storytelling.

Semantics aren’t Important

I could have titled this article “Looking for the African Shakespeare” or “Looking for the African Gutenberg”, but the idea is ultimately remains the same. In addition to technological improvement, there needs to be a creative revolution in the types of stories that are being told in Africa; how stories are distributed needs a revolution as much as the mediums that they are told with does. In my opinion, we’re on the horizon of such a shift.

Liz Ng’ang’a recently wrote a piece for Business Daily Africa stating that “African Writers Should Turn to Science-Fiction“. In the article she writes:

…I wonder why science fiction has not taken root among African writers. During the early part of the 20th century, Africa was a popular setting for foreign science fiction writers. The continent has since lost its edge, as the unexplored home of exotic, strange and previously undiscovered creatures, to the outer space. A few Africans have since endeavoured to create African-inspired science fiction.

She goes on to list a few authors leading the movement like Ghanaian-born, Britain-raised John Akomfrah, who often writes about the continents movement towards modernity. Recurring themes in his work are the alienation, isolation and displacement felt by many present-day Africans. She also mentions John Rugoiyo Gichuki, a Kenyan playwright who explores futurism and the changing landscape of the world post-globalization.