I’m sure most of us remember the story of how the tortoise got its shell cracked. I remember my grandmum telling me that story in her smoky, dim kitchen in the village with the dried corn hanging from the rafters.
It was the story of the tortoise who borrowed feathers from birds as they flew up to the sky for the great feast of the birds. The tortoise, disguised as a bird, was asked who he was and he said his name was “Everybody.” And so, when food and drink were brought for ‘everybody’, he claimed it all for himself and left all the birds angry. When it was time to fly back to Earth after the feast, all the birds, out of anger, plucked off the feathers they had given to Tortoise. Tortoise begged one of the birds to tell his mother to put a mattress together to cushion his fall as he saw no other option but to jump out of the sky. But the bird instead told Tortoise’s mother to put sticks, stones, spears and all the sharp objects she could find. Then Tortoise jumped out of the sky….you all know the rest of the story.
More than just a tale to explain to curious, nagging children why a tortoise’s shell is cracked, this story is really a cautionary tale about greed. It is to warn children that if you act greedily in life, what befell the tortoise will befall you too. Oral tradition in Africa was really about this; stories that shaped our moral and value systems and made us understand from a tender age how our African social system works and interacts with beliefs and ethical lines.
All our lives, we have been told our own stories. Cartoons we watched in our childhood like “Super Book” made us believe Jesus was a white man with long blonde hair and blue eyes. Even Kenyan Jesus wants us to think so. Whereas Jesus was a black man with thick lips, wide nostrils and dreadlocks.
We live in an era of representation and there is no better time to tell our own stories. Technology has made it easy to produce and distribute material and content that will enable us to do this. And the best way/people to start this with is with the children. Our children.
My sister’s kids spend a good portion of time watching cartoons on cable or on YouTube Kids. Those children even got me dancing to ‘Baby Shark” and watching Dora The Explorer All of which is foreign content.
But why are they not being told our own stories? Why are they not watching a cartoon on the tortoise and its cracked shell? Simply because those contents do not exist, or if they do, are not widely distributed! Whereas these are our own stories and our kids need to grow up knowing them too.
THE PRODUCT
So if you are a cartoonist or digital artist, get together with someone who can rewrite these stories in a format that can be put together to make short cartoons for children. You can meet a nursery school teacher and child psychologist to help you figure out the texture of the language you would need to write the dialogue and story in, as well how to pitch your voice to make it interesting for kids. An anthropologist could help add even more context and layers to the story
You can put together twenty short stories complete with a menu. In between these stories you can slot in songs that go with games. E.g “ngombele ngombele mukenge mukenge, OR mini mini mini mini ooo mini mini.” I mean, if Stanley Enow could make us grown men with big stomachs dance to njama njama cow, then that should be biscuit for kids.
THE DISTRIBUTION
These cartoons can be sold in USB sticks. A lot of homes today have TVs with USB plugs and that is the most convenient methods to sell. Digital downloads can also be made available with payment done via the mobile. These cartoons can also be put on TV and advertising space sold to advertisers. I am sure biscuit and yoghurt manufacturers will love to do so.
THE PRICE:
A lot of such content are sold in our local markets. It’s easy to find out what they go for and make a price valuation based on your production costs. Besides you can seriously cut your production costs by having these USBs printed in China. You can have the USBs come in a little jacket where you print the menu of stories and other information to guide parents.
THE PROMOTION.
For the promotion, you go to where you will find parents. You can sell directly at the gates of nursery schools when parents come to get their kids. Also, the church is a great place. In many churches today, Pastors preach with a powerpoint presentation. You can project a demo on a Sunday. I am sure many parents will be thrilled at the idea of seeing stories they were told as kids in cartoon formats. Emotional branding is a strong sales tactic here.
THE DERIVATIVES
When you have had a big enough market and considerable interest, you can move to the next phase; merchandising. Imagine you made the cartoon and a single character was telling these stories (like Scheherazade in Arabian Nights). You can make dolls and stickers of this central character, and sell to parents. Kids love to have effigies of characters they see in cartoons.
We have basically given you a business model along with the market analysis and a go-to-market marketing strategy. There is a lot more to do this, but if you are serious about the idea, you can work the rest out yourselves e.g a pre-market study is essential.
My imaginary girlfriend and I are planning to have kids. I know she will be thrilled to have our imaginary kids see such cartoons.
So, the idea is up for grabs. Even if you cannot draw cartoons, you can find someone who can and sponsor the venture. It is time we start telling our own stories.
Happy Big Day Maria to our catholic followers
Wandji Wilfred & Tino Foy.