Animation Entrepreneurs Get £2,000 Business Grants

 Mary Nnah

Leading cartoon studio, Basement Animation in collaboration with the British Council has awarded  £2,000 (US$2,390) grants to each of the 10 animation entrepreneurs who took part in the Creative Enterprise Support Programme(CESP) that was rounded off recently in Lagos. The grants are to help develop their businesses.

The 10 young and emerging animators went through a six-month rigorous training and mentoring by experts in Nigeria and the UK animation industries.

The grant recipients included Oghenefejiro Itimi (Iruo Animation Studio), Olukayode Aliyu (Kod3d Studios), Lorver Daniel (Trident Media), Gabriella Opara (Echiche Animation School), Somtochukwu Onubogu (Schucks Media), Samuel Gbadebo (G-d Streamz Studio), Matthew Isikhuemen (The Albastic), Oluwaseyi Fajimi (Folktail Studios), Abdulmumin Muslim Idris (Ocean Tide Studios) and Peace Toba Olatunji (Dopay Studio).

60 CESP participants got into the two-week intensive animation business training programme, out of which 30 were selected for the mentorship and coaching stage, where they worked in six groups of five to create short films on the theme, “Body and Soul”.

The top 10 participants were selected during the CESP live animation pitch and showcase event that took place at the Basement Animation studios in Lagos, where the six films were showcased.

Jury members at the event were Head of Arts, alongside Regional lead for SSA creative economy at the British Council Nigeria, Brenda Fashugba; Director of the British Animation Awards, Helen Brunsdon and Andy Wyatt of UK-based Animation Associates.

The initiative aimed at helping the creatives to fund their animation businesses was delivered by Basement Animation and UK-based Kate O’Connor Consulting.

The animated films presented during the live animation pitch and showcase event include: “Finding Jomijo”, “Soul Beats”, “Flight Plans”, “Imole (meaning ‘light’)”, “Against the Wind” and “The Journey to Paradise.”

Giving an overview of the event Creative Director, Basement Animation Studio / British Council CESP Animation Delivery Partner, Mbuotidem Johnson said, “We started this programme six months ago. The programme is called the Creative Enterprise Support Porgramme (CESP). The British Council has been running this programme for a while but they have been focusing on different sectors of the industry this time, they decided to focus on the animation industry.

“We started with a call over where we had over 600 participants from all over Nigeria. We did a screening to select the top 60 where they just submitted their portfolio work, and answer a few questions from the application. Then when we started with the selected 60, we had a two weeks intensive programme with speakers from UK and Nigeria studios. These were speakers that have been running studios for between 15 and 25 years and they mainly focused on the business of animation. So the whole structure of this programme was not more of a technical but more of a business training because we have had so much of technical training in the industry and yet we do not have business-minded people. That is why for a while now the industry has been struggling because  have creatives, creatives, and creatives without anybody taking it and turning it into a business.”

Johnson explained that the focus of the programme was to create business people who would know and understand the business of Animation, adding, “The two weeks programme was majorly on business and about the industry not just in Nigeria but the industry as an international market.

“We were trying to also teach them that they must programme themselves to think like an international business so that you can sell your products anywhere in the world”, he added.

Johnson expressed the hope that the animation industry in Nigeria is going to be so ready and will burst through on the international scene, adding, “We are sure the participants will take this sector to the next stage of growth. You are phenomenal and I’m sure you are going to create sustainable businesses.”

Head of Arts, (Nigeria) British Council, Brenda Fashugba, said her organisation was passionate about the business of animation, hence engaged experts to help develop and stimulate the sector.

“Through our implementing partners, participants were involved in training over a period and at the end, we can see their business plan, and basic processes. We can keep very small brands relevant and help accelerate their businesses by giving them small grants.”

She noted that while this is the first of its kind, in the animation field in Nigeria, the British Council looks forward to impacting the sector. “All awardees are alumni of the British Council and we will be supporting them by helping to make the right connections internationally and give them access to markets.”