Togo animators take pride in tales told without help

WATCHING over the dozen illustrators, editors and voice actors working at his animation studio in Togo, Boris Kpadenou hailed how they brought truly African tales to life without any outside help.

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With no animation school in the coastal west African country, the Aruka studio in a working-class neighbourhood of the capital Lome relies on a cast of passionate young volunteers, backed by a few paid professionals, to animate its creations.

Though Aruka works with limited funds, often raised through its sideline in producing advertising spots, Kpadenou fears topping that up with foreign investment would compromise the studio's identity.

"In Africa, when films are made with external funding, we often don't have the freedom to tell our stories the way we want to," Aruka's director said.

"What we end up producing is no longer authentic.

"The scripts are watered down and don't truly reflect our reality. That’s the real struggle we're up against," he added.