A new milestone for Moroccan animation. In late June, French-language network TV5Monde announced a €1 million investment (approximately 10.7 million dirhams) to broadcast and co-produce Moroccan animated seriess across its channels, including children’s channel TiVi5Monde and the TV5Monde+ platform. The funding was made possible by an exceptional grant from the French Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs. The series come from two Casablanca-based Moroccan studios: Artcoustic and Neverseen Productions.
Led by Ali Rguigue, Artcoustic produced the series Les Marocains du Ciel and Les Contes marocains, which will join TV5Monde’s programming lineup. Two other titles, Le Coffret des contes marocains and Ghriba, will be co-produced with the network, the studio head told TelQuel. Meanwhile, Yassine Lahrichi, head of Neverseen Productions, told us that the series Chniwla & Boubris, Lilya & Rayane, Abtal Al Aoula and Nhar Tzar Jad will air on TV5Monde, and that the two companies will also co-produce two series: Mini Maestro and Caramel.
This should accelerate the growth of an industry that is gradually gaining ground, from film to video games.
Training, the first bottleneck
But industry professionals point to several challenges that must be addressed before the sector can be properly structured. First among them are training and human resources. Yassine Lahrichi says candidates often have overly broad skill sets, “because there is not much demand for highly specialized professionals.” His studio recruits people who already have the necessary foundational skills, but it takes several months before they are fully operational. While schools can train people with the skills needed to work in 2D, professionals with expertise in 3D, Neverseen Productions’ specialty, are harder to find.
To support the sector’s development, Ali Rguigue founded Flow Motion School in Casablanca in 2020. This year, Gobelins Paris, one of the world’s most prestigious animation schools, partnered with the program. “Our job placement rate is close to 100%, but above all, we are trying to keep these professionals in animation rather than see them move into digital agencies or the printing industry, so that we can build a structured sector,” explains the school’s founder.
Brahim Idlhaj, design and animation manager at Agadir-based video game studio Ikro Games, welcomes the school’s creation and the momentum it has generated. The only drawback is that such schools remain concentrated along the Casablanca-Rabat corridor, even though there is a wealth of talent in both northern and southern Morocco. Ideally, he says, these schools, which offer programs geared toward sought-after professions in both the domestic and international markets, should be established throughout the country, allowing young people to develop their skills.
He also points to another persistent problem in education: language. “Training programs are often offered in English or French, and some young people are not proficient in these languages. The amount of content available in Arabic remains limited. Using Arabic would make training more widely accessible,” he emphasizes.
Government support needed
Industry professionals have identified another way to accelerate growth: greater government involvement. “Public institutions should make co-productions easier,” says Ali Rguigue. Producers nevertheless remain confident. Gaming, a key segment of the animation industry, is beginning to receive support through a dedicated national strategy, particularly via the Innovation Support Fund. “On the film side, the Moroccan Cinematographic Center is preparing to launch calls for 3D animated film projects to fund both shorts and feature films,” notes Yassine Lahrichi.
Brahim Idlhaj shares this optimism, saying that funding should no longer be an issue within five or ten years. Ali Rguigue, meanwhile, emphasizes the importance of the creative and cultural sector, which is beginning to attract the attention of public authorities. “Today, the creative and cultural industries account for 2.7% of GDP and 140,000 jobs. I think this is starting to attract attention within government. Officials are beginning to realize that the cultural sector is a genuine part of the economy and that they should listen more closely,” the producer adds.
But to get the industry off the ground, “funding assistance must be made available. It is necessary even when foreign funding is available. A mechanism will need to be put in place quickly,” insists Artcoustic’s director.
One form of support is already in place: in Morocco, calls for projects from broadcasters SNRT and 2M helped get the industry started. “Broadcasters issue these calls regularly every year. The funding is not substantial, but it allows us to invest continuously in artists and equipment and retain certain talent,” says Yassine Lahrichi. He adds that this puts Morocco in a fortunate position compared with other African countries that struggle to produce content because of a lack of funding.
The million-dirham pilot
The issue of funding is far from trivial. While salaries are lower than in Europe, project management costs remain unavoidable.
Compared with live action, animation production costs are significantly higher. The difference is apparent from the cost of producing a pilot episode, which is often presented to broadcasters to sell a series. In live action, sets and equipment can be assembled quickly. In 3D animation, everything has to be built from scratch: creating a single set can take one to two months. Designing and animating the characters are also costly tasks, even when outsourced, industry professionals tell us.
A live-action pilot episode is estimated to cost between 130,000 and 150,000 dirhams, while an animated pilot costs nearly 600,000 dirhams and can run as high as one million dirhams. The pilot can account for up to 60% of the project’s total cost, we are told.
These pilot episodes may be submitted in response to calls for projects, with no guarantee of being selected. It is a difficult process in a country where the industry is not yet fully developed. “If there were an established industry here, we could offset the risk with other projects. But as things stand, there is nothing else,” laments Yassine Lahrichi.
Exporting Morocco on its own terms
“Animation is a powerful tool of cultural diplomacy that can showcase Moroccan folktales, oral traditions, historical figures, Amazigh culture, Saharan heritage…”
“Animation is a powerful tool of cultural diplomacy that can showcase Moroccan folktales, oral traditions, historical figures, Amazigh culture, Saharan heritage…,” Brahim Idlhaj also points out. Whether in video games or series, the sounds, colors and landscapes draw on elements of Moroccan culture.
Ali Rguigue, meanwhile, points to the need for animated content in Arabic, “but also in Amazigh, in order to showcase Morocco’s cultural diversity,” adds Brahim Idlhaj. “This will allow us to truly export our culture on our own terms, as every other country does. That is how we will achieve greater authenticity,” says Artcoustic’s director. What remains is to give Moroccans the means to tell these Moroccan stories.
Written in French by Salomé Krumenacher, edited in English by Eric Nielson
