You have entered into a partnership with UN Women CIV. Can you tell us about the project?
We signed this partnership with UN Women CIV because it is an initiative that is in line with my career, which has been marked by commitment. "Gondwana" reflects this ambition, which is to use humor to convey a message. I am a climate ambassador for the entire Sahel region. Climate change is an issue that is close to my heart, as it affects the whole of humanity, but I am also very sensitive to the issue of violence against women. I couldn't ignore such a cause, which, especially in Africa, affects a large proportion of women, those who are responsible for the day-to-day economy of African households.
As comedians, we have a duty to serve this kind of cause. We must use our popularity to try to be useful. We will begin this partnership with a series of short videos broadcast on social media.
Through these videos, in my choice of writing, I wanted to provoke debate in order to elicit as many reactions as possible on social media and end with a message of awareness. Art must "awaken" debate and "awaken" people!
. To mark the occasion, TV5 Monde Afrique is broadcasting these first videos on its platform for three months.
The episodes of "Parlement du rire en vacances" have racked up a large number of views on social media. How would you sum up this program, which was designed in a particular context?
I am delighted with the success of "Parlement du rire en vacances"
because it is a project I had in mind for a long time. I wanted to go beyond the "classic" format that people are already familiar with to give more depth to our characters, the parliamentarians and the characters who gravitate around them. We recorded 2-3 million views per episode, with over 35 million views in total on social media. This gave a boost to the program "Le Parlement du Rire," which is now in its tenth season.
It's a program I came up with during lockdown. Despite the closure of theaters, we had to show that Gondwana City Productions was responsive. We can announce that "Le Parlement du Rire en vacances" will have a second season based on several themes, in addition to the traditional "Parlement du rire."
Through numerous projects, you have remained very active during the pandemic. What role can comedians play in times of crisis?
During this difficult period, many artists stayed at home to imagine, write… I did the same. It allowed me to reflect on our situation. Today, we understand that as artists, we cannot confine ourselves to the stage. In this particular context, we have been thinking about many projects because we are increasingly being sought out by NGOs, companies, and media outlets that realize that web series are a good way to capture an audience.
What projects are you currently working on?
We have just launched Gondwana.tv, the first 100% African comedy platform.
In addition, we are working on several upcoming series projects, notably with international actors and local web series. At the same time, I am also working on setting up my own comedy school and on a media group project in Africa around the theme of comedy. It's a broad spectrum… We need to shake up the comedy scene and show that we in Africa can also be organized and consistent, and that comedy can be bankable and provide a living for artists.