From ‘The Woman King’ to Netflix’s ‘African Queens’ — how Africa’s history went pop | opinion
’s release in 2018 was a watershed moment. It was both critically and commercially successful, grossing $1.3bn worldwide. To media executives, creatives and the general public, this proved definitively that therepaved the way for more of these stories to be told., a docudrama series to which I contributed, was one of them. It is a passion project of American actress Jada Pinkett Smith.
The series looks at the life of Njinga Mbande, a 17th-century queen of Ndongo, in modern-day Angola, best known for resisting the aggressive attempts of the Portuguese to colonise her kingdom. For 60 years, she fought against them, exercising noteworthy skills in politics, diplomacy and warfare. In Angola and other neighbouring nations, she is seen by many as a hero. In Luanda, Angola’s capital city, a statue was raised to her in 1975 when the nation proclaimed its independence; it still stands.
The fact that we’re seeing such stories being told and shared on global platforms only recently is not because storytellers — African or otherwise — have only recently begun to tell stories featuring African histories and myths.
However, as the influence of India, China and many African countries surges, more of these countries’ stories are being widely told and adapted. On Netflix and other streaming platforms, you have access to Korean dramas and Bollywood films as much as American and European shows. Japanese anime, which was a fringe aspect of nerd culture when I used to watch it as a child, has become mainstream.
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