2023-09-23 17:57:09
Dressed in superhero capes and science fiction costumes, thousands of people flocked to a vast exhibition center on Friday for the first day of “Comic Con Africa”, which runs until Monday.
The festival, which is in its fourth edition, offers an “Afro Geek” pavilion dedicated to comics reflecting African society and heritage.
“The cartoons that we used to watch, especially Tarzan, had this colonial mentality towards Africans… It was regarding a character in Africa but Africans were invisible. That didn’t didn’t suit me,” artist Trevor Ngwenya told AFP.
His latest project is a superhero inspired by King Shaka, a 19th-century leader still revered for unifying much of the country as the Zulu nation.
Other “Afro Geek” projects include a black paladin battling the incessant power outages that have plagued South Africa in recent years and a comic book series inspired by African mythology.
“Seeing superheroes who look like me allows me to be closer to reality. It makes me want to read comics a little more,” says Ethan Msithini, 26, an animator who promotes the series. Kidwiz Inc featuring the blackout hunter hero.
The festival is hailed for having opened a space for “cosplayers” (people dressing up inspired by video game or manga characters) on the African continent.
“I really like the fact that people of color are reappropriating certain things like science fiction,” said Abigail Backman-Daniels, a festival-goer dressed as Valkyrie from the Thor film franchise.
© 2023 AFP
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