Walt Disney Animation Studios and Pan-African entertainment company Kugali collaborated original animated series Iwájú is set to premiere this April and May. Set in a futuristic Lagos, Nigeria, Iwájú will premier on Disney Channel (DStv Channel 303) across Africa.
Iwájú will premiere each weekday from Monday, 22–26 April at 18:00(EAT) with a marathon on Saturday, 27 April from 15:00 (EAT). Special repeat broadcasts will run from Monday, 29th April–Saturday, 4th May with a marathon on Sunday, 5th May from 13:35 and, on Africa Day, Saturday 25 May, viewers will be able to view another 6-episode marathon from 12:00pm (EAT).
The premiere of the original animated series gives viewers the opportunity to view the series in territories where Disney+ is not available. Iwájú tells the exciting coming-of-age story of Tola, a young girl from a wealthy island, and her best friend, Kole, a self-taught tech expert, as they discover the secrets and dangers hidden in their different worlds.
Iwájú is a with African entertainment company, Kugali Media. It’s written and directed by Olufikayo Ziki Adeola, with Hamid Ibrahim as production designer and Tolu Olowofoyeku as cultural consultant.
Christina Chen from Disney Animation produced the series, with Jennifer Lee, who is the Chief Creative Officer for Walt Disney Animation Studios, executive producing along with veteran Disney director Byron Howard. The screenplay is by Adeola and Halima Hudson from Disney Animation.
Speaking on the series, Kugali Media’s president and Iwájú cultural consultant Olowofoyeku explains, “The origin of “Iwájú” is part of a phrase in the Yoruba language that is actually ‘Ojó iwájú,’ which means ‘the day ahead’ or the future. Many of our main characters in the series are Yoruba, one of the main ethnic groups in Nigeria.”