Last year, Komotion Studios unleashed Dawn of Thunder, an animated short film that explores the story of the Yoruba god of thunder Sango. The 3D film is arguably the most culturally visible animated work till date and still bears the promise of a web series or feature-length movie. Telling African stories subsumed by history can be a daunting, dispiriting task, and this is because of the zeitgeisty taste in more commercial genres like romantic comedies.

Back in March, we reported that Imaginarium and Magic Carpet Studios were joining forces to make an animated adaptation of Cyprian Ekwensi’s classic novel The Passport of Mallam Ilia. The move consolidates on efforts in telling authentic African stories, especially through animation, and now Magic Carpet Studios has officially released a teaser to keep the buzz going.

 

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Once upon a time, in the 19th century ancient city of Kano, it wasn’t your words that got you the woman, it wasn’t your pocket that got you your bride, you had to fight to be the last man standing. Passport of Mallam Ilia; a story of love, war and conquest comes alive in Africa’s first 2D animated movie project #ThePassportOfMallamIlia Anyone excited about this? Here is a teaser! If you read the book #POMI by Cyprian Ekwensi, then you know what to expect: sanchi fights, lots of action, Ilia and Zarah’s relentless love, and the repeated attacks by Usman, We at @magiccarpet_studios are currently animating this story and we need your support to fund this project. Please click the link in our bio to donate. For sponsorship and partnerships, call 08183795464 or email hello@magiccarpet.studio www.iliathemovie.com #ThePassportOfMallamIlia #CyprianEkwensi #MagicCarpetStudios #POMI #Animation #FilmMaking #MovieAdaptation #Film #Animation #MovieCasting #Nollywood #NorthernNigeria #Arewa

A post shared by Magic Carpet Studios (@magiccarpet_studios) on Nov 12, 2018 at 6:17am PST

Originally published in 1960, Cyprian Ekwensi’s The Passport of Mallam Ilia was required high school reading, a story begging for adaptation. Set in colonial Northern Nigeria, the book tells the story of Mallam Ilia’s quest to avenge the death of his beautiful wife Sarah at the hands of Mallam Usuman. While Ilia was able to get his revenge, it was one that came at a very high price. The Passport of Mallam Ilia is undergoing crowdfunding and you can help by donating. Details are on the Instagram page of Magic Carpet Studios.