By Efe Onodjae

The French Embassy in Nigeria is set to sponsor five indigenous animation studios to the upcoming Annecy International Animation Film Festival in France.

The Annecy International Animation Film Festival is an annual event that takes place at the beginning of June in the town of Annecy, France. The 2024 festival is scheduled for June 9th to 15th.

Following an open call for projects and fierce competition among promising animators, five studios and their works emerged as winners and will represent Nigeria at the festival. They include Small But Mighty produced by Gilded Hammer, Detective Jacqueline by VX Studio, Legends of Alkebulan by Tribe Temples Studios, Buddy by Align Animation Studio, and Nok Nok by Magic Carpet.

The final screenings and pitch sessions, held last week in Lagos, were hosted by the French Embassy in partnership with Animation Nigeria. In attendance were international MIFA 2024 cohorts, stakeholders in the Nigerian animation industry, and lovers of the creative sector.

French Consul General, Laurent Favier, noted that this year marks the third time Nigeria will participate in the festival. He assured that the quality of networking opportunities, windows for collaborations, and co-productions, among others, will boost the creative sector, particularly the animation industry. These are some of the reasons for supporting Nigeria’s participation this year. He further revealed that the embassy is taking 25 people to the festival, including the producers of the five films, and sponsoring a Nigerian pavilion at the festival.

He further assured France’s continued support for Nigerian youth and the creative sector to fully develop and maximize their creative potential not just for themselves but for the country’s development as well.

Speaking on the journey toward the final pitching, mentors Mounia Aram, Delphine Nicolini, and Omotunde Akiode all applauded the animators, praising their dedication, commitment, creativity, and the quality of their work. Aram said she was delightfully impressed by the level of quality and urged the animators to continue improving their craft. Nicolini, for her part, assured the lucky animators that they would do well at the festival as their animations were world-class. Akiode expressed delight at Nigerians gracing the festival again and showing the world the level of talent present in the country.

Regional audiovisual attaché, Embassy of France in Nigeria, Christophe Pecot, praised Nigerian creatives, adding that the country has immense potential in the creative industry and that France will always support the country in harnessing it for the benefit of all.

One of the animators, Sagir Carpenter of Gilded Hammer, noted that his studio’s film would be loved by fans of animation across the world due to its engaging and fun storyline, technical quality, and creativity. He said he is sure his film would do well at the festival to win the grant needed to employ more people and get the equipment needed to expand his production and reach.

Omoyefe Majoroh of Align Animation Studio said they underwent four days of intensive workshops and learned a lot from the facilitators. “I am looking forward to going to France as it is an opportunity for me to network, pitch my project, meet industry professionals, and attend panel sessions. It is also international exposure for me and will help my work immensely.”

She said that although animation in Nigeria isn’t where she wants it to be, there has been a lot of progress in the last few years and it will improve more. “We practiced and prepared well for the call for projects, as we knew what was required and when we were selected, it made us happy as it showed we are on the right track. It is a continuous work in progress; it does not end here. I hope to do well in France in order to expand our studios when we return,” she said.