Hlalele: The go-to-person for animation

Sunday August 29, 2021 09:24

Arts & Culture: Tell us about your animation background. When did you start it?

Hlalele: I received my first award in Fine Art when I was in Standard 2. Over the years through training and experiences, I honed and sharpened my skill, accumulating numerous recognitions and awards along the way. I displayed work at the National Museum for as long as I can remember and participated in numerous art exhibitions in and out of school, never leaving empty handed.

When I completed my Form 5, fine art was almost a natural choice for me as to what I was going to study at varsity. However, my feeling was that I had to study a fine art based programme that would involve more than just pencil and paint. As a regular at the museum, I stumbled upon an exhibition hosted by Limkokwing University in 2001. At the time I was waiting for my Form 5 results and had taken a job as a temporary Art teacher at Kgosimpe CJSS in Jwaneng. Eventually when the results came out my best six subjects were over 40 points, which was more than enough for me to qualify for a placement at the university in its mother campus in Kuala, Lumpur, Malaysia. I then approached the then Student Placement and was granted a scholarship to further my studies. My journey to discovery began when I left Botswana’s airspace on March 5, 2002 at 1400hours.

Arts & Culture: What inspired you?

Hlalele: Disney’s Lion King really left an indelible mark in my life as an animator. When it came out in 1992 my life was that of a village boy in Mochudi and as such boring and uneventful. To discover that the entire production was a series of drawings each slightly different from each other creating an illusion of motion when played-back at high speed, was almost a dream come true.

I knew instantly I wanted to be an animator and of course wanted to work for Walt Disney. This was going to be great as it was a fusion of Fine Art and Technology. My gut tells me now that there won’t be any need to go to the US and work for Disney. We will create our own Disney here in Botswana. This will allow us to tell raw, undiluted and unpretentious stories about our country, by us.

Arts & Culture: Animation is not really done by a lot of Batswana so what drives you?

Hlalele: I like this question because it doubles as an answer as well. Case in point, why would I settle to trade with a product that is already abundant in the market place? Of course that was not going to be the case. I like competition and hate it at the same time. I am proud to say I have been educated in three continents. This has undoubtedly exposed me to many cultures, inspired me in many unique ways and gave me an edge over competition.

Arts & Culture: Tell us about the role your education and experience played into the kind of animator you are today?

Hlalele: My Bachelor’s Degree in Creative Multimedia exposed me to what I’d like to call a world of wonders. I have in the past done video production work and produced several music videos, commercials and a documentary.

I have done lots of work in Motion Graphics, Graphic Design and web-based technologies. After living a fulfilling seven years as a university lecturer in Eswatini, it was time for me to return home and reclaim my place in the creative arts as an entrepreneur. I had to think hard about what I was going to sell when I got home. Certainly not look for a job as I quickly realised that a salary was now never going to afford me what I want in life. I dug deep in my sack of options and eventually settled. I decided I was going to be the go-to-guy for animation in Botswana. I then embarked on production called Rre Phokoje yo o dithetsenyana, which was going to be my pitch piece.

Arts & Culture: Upon return to Botswana what was your mission?

Hlalele: When I set foot on home soil, lo and behold! I quickly realised there was a huge gap in the film industry and most definitely my dream to curve a niche in animation was not far-fetched. My childhood dream was now coming true. It is a road most would not opt to travel because of the high level of skill and patience required but I jumped in without thinking twice and this was one of the best decisions I’ve taken on my career. I made a conscious decision to focus on animation and this has positioned me quite well. I now would not have to join the bandwagon of film producers or graphic designers in an industry that is highly contested.

Arts & Culture: What do u say to people who think animation is just dipopae for kids?

Hlalele: This stereotype could not be any further from the truth and many will agree with me. It’s rather imperative to view animation from two angles. One; animation has reclaimed its place in the corporate world in a form of public announcements, training, commercials, tutorials, etc. Majorly, this is because it allows the creative work to transcend boundaries unlike conventional film production.

This is where the statement No limit rings true. Anything that can be imagined can definitely be conceived in animation. Classic example; Jerry whose the funny little mouse in Tom and Jerry is still alive and well even after decades of bashing and stretching at the hands of his arch rival Tom, and the opposite is true about Tom. Two; by creating animated content targeting mature audiences we are able to break conventions and barriers and the perception that cartoons are for kids. Our audiences continue to beg for more.

Arts & Culture: Where do you want to take animation?

Hlalele: We all get inspiration from somewhere. Batswana have accepted animation and they love it, particularly when it has been locally produced and speaking in vernacular. Setswana, as you know, has a peculiarity that allows one to articulate issues in ways otherwise impossible in any other language regardless of how sexy and exotic the latter may be.

Batswana love that, as animators we love that and it opens a whole world of possibilities in as far as effectively reaching audiences goes. More and more entities are looking at unconventional ways to advertise their products and animation offers that option.

Arts & Culture: What does the future look like for animation in Botswana?

Hlalele: With the establishment of the Botswana National Arts Council, Botswana Screen Society, Botswana Animators Guild and related guilds, with continued enthusiasm and support from government, we will in the not so distant future realise the establishment of world-class animation studio called Animation Sensei. Bofinet’s UPIC TV, Now! TV and Btv have opened opportunities as a market for animation as well and will continue to play an integral role in growing the industry. It is through these kinds of developments that we are able to generate funds to be able to purchase equipment and software, attend training, afford to employ others and grow the industry. We therefore need work to be able to reach certain milestones. In the future, look out for Botswana’s first Animation University as well.

Arts & Culture: Can you tell us more about some of your work?

Hlalele: I’d like to view myself as a newbie in the animation industry but do not be deceived. My first real animation was my final Bachelor’s Degree major project that was a culmination of four and a half years of undergraduate training in June 2006, with the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology in Australia. It was an animation titled “Fa re Bina”, which in fact was profiled in one of the local newspapers in 2007 upon my return from overseas.

I got a distinction for that work. As I mentioned earlier, I believe the natural progression of my career as an amateur and now as a professional had been predestined. I only had to travel the road in person. Fast-forward to 2021 and I have conjured partnerships with different experts in different fields and this is where I get inspiration for my work.

Ideally this approach also blurs the line between reality, fact and fiction resulting in a very interesting twist of “realfaction” that is very palatable to mature audiences. It puts to shame the notion that animation is for kids. Look out for “Re Phunya Sekaku”, an animated medical talk show hosted by Lets Montsosa and Dr Gure on Facebook. Sponsor it or place an advert on it. Look out for Ditlontlokwane News Network on UPIC TV, satirical news broadcast. I also did a 13-episode production with the comedian Lentswe that is also coming soon. Visit our Facebook page at Animation Sensei and contact us at 7738-5354/74352829 to discuss your animation project.

Arts & Culture: Your last words

Hlalele: It takes a lot to produce a single minute of animation and as such it is a tedious yet highly rewarding process. Apart from the expensive hardware and software needed for production, the men hours needed are breakneck.

The scarcity of locally produced animated content, the extended periods sitting in front of the computer screen and a high level of skill required generally explains why animation is expensive to produce and subsequently priced high.

Due to the expensive Internet, scanty financial resources, expensive hardware and scarce skilled personnel we are limited to producing short clips and skits.

We are optimistic that both government and private entities will complement us and commission us for work. In no time we can very well add yet another commodity to our countries’ list of intangible exports.

Animation, which is the art of making inanimate objects appearing to move, is not quite popular in Botswana as some just dismiss it as dipopae (cartoons) for children. This week, Arts & Culture’s MOMPATI TLHANKANE talked to a talented Motswana animator Sipho Hlalele whose dream is to curve a niche in animation and become the go-to person for animation in Botswana.