Tag Archives: Mounia Aram Company

MAC, Gobelins link for African animation

France-based producer and distributor Mounia Aram Company (MAC) has linked with French visual communication and arts school Gobelins to help develop the African animation sector.

Mounia Aram

The two will set up a summer school in July next year. Held for two weeks in Ghana, it will focus on 3D character animation.

The agreement comes as part of each organisation’s ambition to grow animation sectors across Africa, with a focus on productions that represent the cultural values of the continent.

Mounia Aram, who is originally from Morocco and has set up a studio in Agadir, launched MAC in 2019 to build a bridge between Africa and the international market by presenting animation projects to producers for coproduction and broadcasters for distribution.

Aram said: “I want to give the necessary tools for the talent to acquire the international requirements. I wanted to partner with the best and bring the excellence in terms of animation training.

“This partnership with Gobelins allows me to develop the excellence in my studio in Morocco and in Africa, with a first step being my collaboration on the summer school in Ghana.”

tagged in: ,

France’s Mounia Aram eyes Morocco expansion

Mounia Aram Company’s development slate includes Nigerian show The Makerbolts

France-based distribution outfit Mounia Aram Company has unveiled plans to open a second office and studio in Morocco to follow the launch of its new African animation training programme.

Mounia Aram, founder and president of Paris-based Mounia Aram Company, told C21 she expected the Casablanca office and studio would open next year.

The second branch of the company will focus on creating and producing, while the Paris hub will handle distribution and networking, Aram added.

On why Morocco was chosen as the location of the new office and studio, Aram said: “It’s part of my strategy to focus on and promote content from Africa. For me, Morocco is the first door to Africa.”

Mounia Aram

The new hub follows the announcement of a new animation training programme launched by Aram alongside media consultant Patience Priso.

African Creative Talents will train 40 students, at least half of whom will be women, over a three-year period and will also be based in Casablanca. The programme, which will involve an internship at an African studio, is set to start in January.

It is hoped that once students complete the programme they will be employed at Mounia Aram Company’s studio in Casablanca, Aram added.

Aram said: “I’m really eager to work with talent in Africa but there isn’t enough, and that can be a problem when you sign coproduction deals, and they shift the production away from Africa because there aren’t enough trained animators. I decided to launch African Creative Talent to keep talent in Africa.

“It’s also very important to have at least 50% female students because we have a lot of creative women in our industry, but they need to be more visible and have more access to education.”

Mounia Aram Company was founded in 2019 to promote African talent internationally, with a particular focus on animation through international coproductions and sales.

On its development slate are titles such as The Makerbolts (52×11’) from Nigeria, Message Beats (36×11’) from Ghana and The Troublemakers (78×7’) from Mozambique, while the company also handles distribution of content from Splash Entertainment among other producers.

tagged in: , ,

Cameroon studio partners on fantasy series

Video game Aurion was inspired by African mythology

French outfits Chouette Company and Mounia Aram have partnered with Cameroon’s first video game studio to turn its game Aurion into an epic animated African fantasy series.

Paris- and Angoulême-based Chouette and distribution specialist Mounia Aram have teamed up with Kiro’o Games in Yaoundé to adapt the IP for the small screen.

Based on African mythology, the PC game launched in 2016 and since then Kiro’o Games has been expanding the brand into comics and smartphone games, with an animated series the next ambition.

The series will begin by recounting the Kori-Odan saga that is at the heart of the game, plunging viewers into an African fantasy world with love, action and existential dilemmas, the producers said.

A copro between Kiro’o Games and Chouette Company, production will be carried out by the artistic teams of both companies between their studios in Yaoundé and Paris.

Mounia Aram Company, set up in 2019, will oversee the distribution of the programme, as well as licensing.

Olivier Madiba, CEO of Kiro’o Games, said: “We have created a simple and deep fantasy universe which can be exploited for 30 years, depending on the ambitions of partners. Behind the action and drama, Aurion is mostly about the quest buried in each of us: who am I? What is the purpose of mankind?”

Mounia Aram, CEO of Mounia Aram Company, said: “I’ve been eager to bring African animation to another level since I’ve launched my company. Aurion is the perfect show to start with; it brings tradition along with a modern aspect of African tales. Partnering with Kiro’o and Chouette, I believe that we will bring together a fantastic story with a strong African DNA.”

Sylvain Dos Santos, chief creative officer of Chouette Company, added: “The Aurion universe is one of the most exciting and lavish creative universes I’ve come across in recent years. It immediately won me over, and I’m convinced that, with Kiro’o, we will develop it into an incredible animated saga.”

tagged in: , , ,