What do you know about Morocco's young wave of animators?

When asked, most Moroccans say that all they know about animation is what they see on national television channels.

But a rising wave of young and talented creates eager to bring their unique perspective to Morocco’s animation landscape are faced with lack of schools and professional opportunities in a struggle to pave a carrier doing what they love.

“I would have joined an animation school if I had found one back then,” says Ayoub Azakhmam, a young Moroccan who joined a film school four years ago because he could not find an animation school in Morocco.

This wasn’t the academic path he envisioned, but it helped him develop an artistic perspective and master many cinematic tools.

Azakhmam started watching cartoons and animated movies at a young age, but this was not his motive behind wanting to become an animator. 

The idea of chasing an art career only began when he started listening to classical piano and Lofi music, “It sparked this nostalgic feeling in me which got me wanting to personify it by making it into animations,” says Ayoub.

He now creates animated characters for series and games. Just like any other animator, he hopes to come across a project that will allow him to be creative and give life to his ideas while getting paid according to the quality of his work. “That’s the dream,” he said.

“Companies in Morocco kill creativity,” explains Azakhmam, saying that most companies do not care about art as much as they care about revenues. 

He declared that many animators do not enjoy working with companies and prefer to be self-employed because “working on bland projects gets depressing.”

Khaola Chabaki is a 23 years old Moroccan animator, born in Italy and living in France, with a degree in fashion design. 

Her love for drawing got her to learn how to make digital illustrations, turning her hobby into a huge passion. With the help of social media, she got to know many Moroccan animators based in Morocco.

She witnessed many collaborations between them, saying that the diversity of their styles makes their creations very unique.

“Today it’s easier to identify Moroccan animators because more artists are using their Moroccan background and experiences as their source of inspiration, and finding more pride in their culture,” says Khaola.

From her frequent exchanges with animators that are based in and out of Morocco, she concluded that one has more opportunities outside of Morocco than in it, addressing the startling lack of chances in the kingdom.

Flow Motion School: A ray of hope for Moroccan animators

In April 2022, Morocco has known the opening of the very first flow motion school called “Flow Motion School.” Created by the Rasm’art association, INDH (the Moroccan initiative for human development), the Provincial Human Development Committee (CPDH) of Hay Hassani, and the Azura Foundation, the school favors practical work to teach graphic and motion design, says Ali Rguige, the president, and founder of Rasm’art.

The 10-month-long training course is completely free, and open to all, starting from the age of 18 with a minimum of prerequisites of mastery of artistic and technical tools. The applicants have to pass 3 steps: an MCQ Quiz, a Practical Test, and an in-person Interview.

“The idea of creating this school came following the lack of polished and ready-to-operate talents in the Motion and Graphic design field in Morocco,” says Rguige. 

The Moroccan market has a lot of potential. Except, “We cannot say we have a well-grounded animation industry yet, which is the reason why we have to supervise and train graphic designers and animators” explained Rguige.

He mentioned potential future collaborations with international studios which shall strengthen the capabilities of the students and foster a deeper knowledge of this craft. 

“We have an exceptional cultural history ready to export,” declared Ali, hoping that the upcoming collaborations will bridge the fracture between Morocco and the international animation market while promoting our culture through innovative and original creations.

As it is too early to announce any significant impact of the school given its recent opening, Ali asserts his confidence that the institution is on the right path, with more and more people showing great interest in joining. 

But he said these creators can’t survive onInstagram likes, but need to be accompanied with the development of a robust industry supported by  governmental intervention to offer students opportunities. 

Yasser Koundoussi’s story with animation started 13 years ago.

Specializing in Sakuga, the 22-year-old animator creates specific animations belonging to this subgenre; as it requires a high level of technique. 

In Japanese animation, a sequence of noticeably higher quality, used to highlight a particularly important scene is referred to as Sakuga, which inspired the emergence of this art.

Yasser expresses that in Morocco, people don’t take animation seriously and associate it with kids, “people simply do not believe that you could make a living out of it!” 

He added that parents do not encourage their kids to follow this artistic path in specific, for various reasons like the lack of schools.

Despite being more visible than ever thanks to social media, which allows their works to be seen by thousands of people, Moroccan animators appear to face the same challenges and hardships.

With the establishment of Flow Motion School, there is hope for the future, paving the way for the growth of the animation industry in Morocco and providing young talents with the training they need to excel in this art form.

The road may be challenging, but the passion and dedication of these young animators may ultimately redefine the animation landscape in the country.