HARARE, ZIMBABWE – At 23, Tafadzwa Tarumbwa, has already made a name for himself in Zimbabwe’s animation industry.
His eyes shine with passion, and his enthusiasm is infectious. He says his day consists of three activities: eating, sleeping and animating. Like most of his peers in the Zimbabwean animation industry, he started off with no formal training, armed with only a burning desire to create animation.
“My early days in animation saw me forcing the software to bend to my will,” he says.
Tarumbwa made his first animation without any training, guidance or assistance.
“I would start with the end product in mind, and then I would work backwards, using the software to create what I saw in my mind’s eye,” the gentle digital artist says. “Envisioning the end is when you can begin.”
After a couple of years of creating for himself, Tarumbwa wanted to share his animations with others. He had made a miniseries animation called “Salad Chick” and another one called “Stunt Goat.” He wanted people to see them so he submitted them to the Zimbabwe International Film Festival in 2009.
He didn’t expect much success, but he won Best Animation of the Year, as well as Most Promising Film Director. He suddenly found himself catapulted into the industry of animation.
Fast-forward to 2011, and Tarumbwa has two National Arts Merit Award nominations under his belt for Best Musical Video and Best Television Series. He has also recently won an international award for his animation “The God Feather,” a humorous clip of a criminally minded feather that literately squeezes a grapefruit for everything it has.
Like many other Zimbabwean animators, Tarumbwa is self-taught and continues to make animation for the sake of the art rather than for a profit. To continue to strengthen animation in Zimbabwe, he gathered with other passionate animators this past weekend at the Zimbabwe Festival of African Inspired Animation, ZIMFAIA.
Experienced and aspiring animators convened at the festival, which took place from Dec. 9 to 11 in Harare, the capital. Animators say the industry has grown substantially in recent years. They also say there are abundant opportunities in the future for animation to serve the entertainment, education and advertising sectors. Adding to this future are young animators who have joined the industry before their teenage years. Animators also say that a unique emphasis on collaboration and new software expand the potential of animation in Zimbabwe. But they say that creating an animation studio and increasing funding are key to realizing this potential.
Joint Afrikan Animation Group, JAAG, an organization working to develop a viable animation and special effects industry in Zimbabwe and Africa, organized the festival. This year, the festival also received support from Alliance Française de Harare, a nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting the study and use of the French language as well as the appreciation of culture. Charles Houdart, director of Alliance Française, attributed this support to JAAG’s energy and passion.
“When JAAG held the first ZIMFAIA, it was without any outside support,” Houdart said at a recently held press conference. “The outcome was so good, it spoke of an amazing potential that Zimbabwean animation has. So this year, Alliance Française decided to financially support ZIMFAIA at the second festival.”
The three-day festival featured screenings, workshops and conferences. Entrance to all the events was free.
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