(South) Africa’s online animation revolution: the case of Jonas Lekganyane’s The adventures of Noko Mashaba

Abstract

ABSTRACT The staging of the first Comic Con Africa in Johannesburg, South Africa in September 2018, which was a sold out event, confirmed the progressive maturation of the comics industry in South Africa and Africa generally. Despite this welcomed advancement, the traditional printed comic book modality remains exclusionary for a majority of black South African comic artists interested in generating and publishing their own material. This paper is interested in how comic animations disseminated via the Internet have emerged as an alternative and redemptive practice for black South African comic artists seeking to insert their content into the creative industries mainstream. Through a reading of Jonas Lekganyane’s The adventures of Noko Mashaba animated series, I show how black South African comic artists have, through online and virtual platforms, circumvented the difficult to access comics publishing terrain in South Africa – and the rest of Africa generally – to contribute much needed creative plurality related to imaging of contemporary Africanity. The online animations have also cultivated a new cyber-space-based fan culture within South Africa’s comics landscape.