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African toon Iwájú to debut on Disney+

Iwájú comes from Tolu Olowofoyeku, Hami Ibrahim and Fikayo Adeola

African animated series Iwájú is set to debut on streaming platform Disney+ in 2022.

The series was developed by Nigerian comic artists Tolu Olowofoyeku, Hami Ibrahim and Fikayo Adeola and is a collaboration between pan-African comic book company Kugali Media and Walt Disney Animation Studios.

According to its producers, Iwájú, which means ‘the future’ in the Yoruba language, tells stories about the African continent and its history, embracing the present and also imagining its future

Set in Lagos, the sci-fi series will explore themes of class, innocence and challenging norms.

Director Ziki Nelson said: “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.”

Walt Disney Animation Studios chief creative officer Jennifer Lee added: “We found Kugali comics from a BBC article highlighting the talented comic book artists. Their dream is to bring African stories created by African artists to the world, highlighting the diversity of cultures, histories and voices across the continent.

“Their talents as storytellers blew us away. I’m proud to announce the first-of-its-kind collaboration to bring original longform series to Disney+.”

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