Monday 18 May 2015

Comics journalism on crack cocaine and Guinea Bissau by Benjamin Dix and Tayo Fatunla

Follow this comic on BBC, see link below.

Tayo Fatunla, Britain-based Nigerian Comics Artist and long-time friend, sent me this message:

“I am so proud to announce, the launch of the Digital comic which I produced in conjunction with Positive Negatives, titled HOOKED, and produced by the BBC. HOOKED begins on 18th May and will run daily on TV and online at http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-32740687 until 22nd May.

Earlier this year, PosNeg conducted interviews around crack cocaine addiction in the small West African state of Guinea-Bissau.

Written by my new friend since January, Benjamin Dix, I was called upon as a Comic Artist to illustrate the comic. I worked with loads of pictures Benjamin submitted to me.

Guinea-Bissau has been a key centre for smuggling cocaine from South America to lucrative markets in Europe and has often been referred to as Africa's first 'narco-state'. 

HOOKED is based on reportage that tells the story of Buba, a young man growing up in the neighbourhoods of Bissau and the consequences of selling and taking drugs and how it is a struggle to opt out of it. 

All names in the comic were changed to protect identities of the many PosNeg met with.

Feel free to tweet or share on FB - Spread the news"

Tayo Fatunla

I have written about Benjamin Dix in this blog before, and about his cooperation with artist Lindsay Pollock. Dix’ approach to comics journalism is groundbreaking and the concept deserves to be spread and emulated.

Tayo Fatunla was featured in the first ever African Comics exhibition in Finland, in the Kemi Comics Festival in 1993. Tayo also visited Finland in 1999 at the “World Village” event.


Posted by Leif Packalen  

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