Chioma Umeala pushes for more diversity in animé

• Published date: 26 April 2024
• Publication title: SowetanLIVE (Johannesburg, South Africa)

The 27yearold actor is known for her performance in Netflix's popular liveaction adaptation of the manga series, One Piece, slipping into character as feisty Nojiko

This weekend she will take to the main stage at Comic Con Africa in Cape Town, joining a panel discussion that delves deeper into the process and experience of making the series.

"I'm seizing this opportunity as a way to bring in more diversity. Yes, it's a nerd convention but I believe the narrative has changed where we think a 'nerd' is a white man with glasses. Some of us don't look like that but we like animé, hence it's important to show our faces in such a medium," she said.

"Black people are commonly known to be seen last on the screen and with us showing our interest in such a medium, we stand a better chance at dominating these spaces."

Umeala got a lifechanging experience acting alongside Oscar winner Viola Davis and Mzansi's very own Thuso Mbedu in The Woman King in 2022.

"I've always been a fan of storytelling since I was quite young. I love stories being told in any medium, be it podcasts, film, television or theatre. Animé is just that in another medium," she said.

"Often people think that animé is a genre or division but it can be split into many things. There are different ranges, from comedy to drama or horror.

"The reason why we tend to resonate with cartoons more is that it allows us to explore worlds beyond our imagination. It allows us to take storytelling to another dimension."

Umeala recalled growing up on the comic series Supa Strikas and being a diehard fan of Dragon Ball Z.

"My nickname is Gigi, who is Goku's wife; having such a childhood where you see animé exist in your world meant quite a lot...