Makoko 2035: An Encyclopedia

Afrofuturism

Afrofuturism is a type of creative work that "combines elements of science fiction, historical fiction, fantasy, Afrocentricity, and magic realism with non-Western cosmologies in order to critique not only the present-day dilemmas of people of color, but also to revise, interrogate, and re-examine the historical events of the past", addressing "themes and concerns of the African Diaspora through a technoculture and science fiction lens, encompassing a range of media and artists with a shared interest in envisioning black futures that stem from Afrodiasporic experiences" [1]. The term was first coined by Mark Dery in 1993 and was explored deeply in the late 1990s, with such notable talents as Samuel R. Delany, Octavia Butler, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Parliament-Funkadelic and Sun Ra included as afrofuturists, but the concept didn't explode into the global popular culture until the mid- to late 2010s.

Whereas most black characters in science fiction prior to 2016 were constrained to supporting roles (Lando Calrissian and Mace Windu in Star Wars, James Rhodes and Sam Wilson in The Avengers), in the mid-2010s a number of African or African-American characters began to take center stage in popular culture. This arguably began with Sam Wilson, formerly the Falcon, becoming Captain America in Marvel comics in 2014, but picked up steam with Finn becoming the co-protagonist of 2015's Star Wars: The Force Awakens and was cemented in 2016 with the debut of Black Panther in Captain America: Civil War. ​The character's show-stealing success led to his own film franchise becoming one of Disney's most profitable franchises, which then led in turn to the Afrofuturist popular culture boom in the 2020s and 2030s.

This both accelerated, and was accelerated by, the rise of Nollywood (Nigerian cinema) beginning in the early 2000s, which was rapidly followed by similar rises in other African media, including books, comics, video games, virtual reality, and augmented reality. This also gave rise to an explosion of African talents, including the Lagosian graphic novelist Roye Okupe and the Makokoan graphic novelist Michael Mwonaji.

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Afrofuturism​

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