Check Out Francis Yushau Brown’s Story

Today we’d like to introduce you to Francis Yushau Brown. They and their team shared their story with us below:

Francis is the founder and the creative director of AnimaxFYB Studios, an award-winning filmmaker from Ghana, trained in a number of different cinematic mediums, and has over ten years experience in the audio-visual industry. He is a member of the International Academy of Arts and Sciences (EMMY), a Jury at MIPCOM in Cannes and a frequent speaker on different film and television forums around the world.

He specializes in Animation, Illustration, Film Making and Graphic Design. Having attained a Bachelor’s Degree in Fine Arts at the National Film and Television Institute (NAFTI). Francis was shortlisted for the 42nd Student Academy Awards (Oscars), won Best Animation Film at the Africa International Film Festival 2016 (AFFRIF), Black British Entertainment Awards, Best Creative Artist 2017, animator of the year at the 2017 Ghana UK Based Awards (GUBA) and also Best Animation at the 2018 Ghana Movie Awards.

In the year 2019 face2face Africa named Francis Y. Brown as one of the five African animators who can give their Hollywood counterparts a run for the money. In 2020 Francis Y. Brown was once again mentioned as one of the top animators making African animation go global by Africa Vibes magazine. His debut, Mmofra channel, a 70min children’s content was picked up by Amazon Prime making him the first African animation producer to achieve such a feat. Francis was honored as a laureate of Africa 35 under 35 as one of the 35 most inspiring young entrepreneurs under the age of 35 making great strides in Africa. In 2021, his short 3D animated film ‘ROOM 5’ was nominated at Annecy International Animation Film Festival. Making him the only West African director to be nominated for the year and one out of four films from Africa in general.

The film has moved on to receive another nomination at the LA International Shorts Film Festival, making it the second Oscars & BAFTA qualifying film festival for ROOM 5, nominations at the New York Shorts International Film Festival (Canada Screen Qualifier) and at the Africa Movie Academy Awards. Francis also won the Creative Art man of the year at the 6th EMY Africa Awards. In June 2022, the young Ghanaian animation professional was made a jury member at MIPCOM (Marché International des Programs de Communication), which is part of the multinational Reed Exhibitions. He continues to be a regular feature at Meta Cinema Forum, the largest Africa and Middle East film and cinema convention. He is also a planning committee member and artistic director of the Afrotino music festival where Latino and African performers will be meeting in a series of cross-country concerts [Panama, Costa Rica, Colombia and Mexico].

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
In 2016, armed with a shoestring budget and a lot of mad courage, I plodded along unbeaten paths on a soul-searching journey across Africa to find and create aspirational networks in the Animations ecosystem.

“That shoestring budget was constantly at a dangerous breaking point, and I kept asking myself if I was not being quixotic, like Don Quixote, you know.

In 2022, Ghana’s strong presence at Le Festival International du Film d’Animation d’Annecy is an African statement. And it is exciting to lead an entire village to the stage, as we proudly represent the motherland. Wutang Clan’s words — taking the whole village to the stage — couldn’t be more relevant today.

For the first time, Ghana had a booth at the pavilion. But this didn’t just happen. The story began in 2015 when I attended Annecy as a winning package from the Accra Francophone festival. I was alone, lonely and lost in a sea of huge national representations accompanied by important film boards. My feeling of loneliness led to deep introspective moments, and I promised myself to advocate for more inclusion from Ghana while adding my two cents to get our film board installed. Five years later, Ghana’s National Film Authority was commissioned.

Today, Ghana has become the first West African country to be officially selected for the Annecy international animation film festival. Ghana has also been consistent with official selections since 2017; thus becoming the most selected West African country at the festival.

The icing on the cake last year was Ghana’s first official booth (2022) at the MIFA Pavilion. This shows the country’s impressive trajectory following that introspective loneliness at the world’s biggest animation festival seven years ago. The impact has been felt. And I looked around with pride and emotion (not prejudice) and punched the air like an athlete who has just won a gold medal. This one is for the industry and the motherland. We’ve done it.

On my journey, the major setback has been on three major blocks. Lack of Governmental structures supporting the film industry, Technical knowhow and funding.

Over the years, technology and the internet has made tools and knowledge accessible to artists who are interested in Animation on the continent, this is gradually bridging the knowledge deficit gap but there is more training needed. In Ghana, the Government recently commissioned the film board to set up the necessary structures to enable the film industry to thrive. There have been actions like film classifications, making Ghana a destination for filming, building co-production treaties and synergies. With that said, the film authority still has a lot of work to cover as the Ghana film industry is over 70 years old.

All of these challenges are challenges that I strongly believe will be solved in no time and through the process of solving them, great lessons will be learnt and a formidable industry will be born out of it.

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I am the founder and creative director of AnimaxFYB Studios, based in Accra – Ghana, one of the leading animation hubs in Africa. I produce and direct work in 2D and 3D animation techniques and visual effects for films. I love to tell authentic African stories, especially historical and periodic pieces. I want to entertain our children or teach them about themselves. We hardly get content with black subjects and some of those products that feature them are also misrepresenting who we are as people. I believe what sets me apart from others is my consistency, dedication and staying true to one’s Identity in the way and form which I tell stories. I am a modern-day griot using animation as my storytelling medium.

Is there anything else you’d like to share with our readers?
The potential for Ghana to become an animation hub for the region is potent and it is time to think through a sustained effort…

With at least 30% of our population being kids and considering the fact that by 2030, 40% of global youth will be from Africa, children’s programming is an essential opportunity.

Ghana had been under the radar despite having existed for decades. One major situation that contributed to that phenomenon was the unorganised state of the animation industry, and this was due to the general lack of information. Without access to a database of animation professionals and/or resources, the animation industry remained at a standstill. As a result, there was little awareness and very few collaborations in the industry. But a wind of change has been gathering speed and the industry is now coming alive. Thanks to technological advancement, it is leapfrogging the phase where it would require a traditional database to thrive, as it were. With the development of new media platforms, it has become much easier to identify who is doing what in the field of animation, not only in Ghana but across the continent — which is now a global village, literally.

In Ghana, animation players have embraced the paramountcy of creating synergies as the catalyst that makes up for lost time.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.animaxfybstudios.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/animaxfyb?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/animaxfybstudios
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/francis-y-brown-90825426?lipi=urn%3Ali%3Apage%3Ad_flagship3_profile_view_base_contact_details%3B5d6SIS15R3CggAdhGLtnhQ%3D%3D
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/animaxfyb?lang=en
• Youtube: https://youtube.com/@animaxfybstudios1056

Image Credits
Courtesy: AnimaxFYB Studios