Stories in Motion – Stop-Motion with Bonface Wahome Maina at the Opera Village

As part of this year’s KIFIFE Children’s Film Festival at the Opera Village, children and young people had the opportunity to produce their own films in a creative stop-motion workshop led by animator Bonface Wahome Maina – from the initial idea to the final animation. Imaginative stories came to life through paper, colors, and everyday objects, resulting in lovingly crafted short films.

During the four-day workshop, Bonface introduced participants to the fundamentals of stop-motion animation, explaining storyboarding, image composition, and movement – and showed how powerful results can be achieved with the simplest of means. With his attention to detail and educational sensitivity, he created a space where all children could explore their creativity and bring their ideas to life.

Bonface Wahome Maina is a self-taught stop-motion artist from Kenya whose work explores Africa’s rich history and cultural heritage. Driven by a deep passion for storytelling, he weaves historical events into his animations to create visual narratives that celebrate African identity. His dedication to preserving and presenting cultural memory has earned him numerous awards, including two from the German Embassy in Kenya and one from the Alliance Française in Nairobi. Equally impressive is his ability to shoot and edit projects entirely on a smartphone – a powerful example of the creative possibilities accessible technology offers in modern animation.

The results of the workshop – short, self-produced animated films – were presented to an audience at the end of the program and received with great enthusiasm. Children, parents, and guests alike were impressed by the imagination and expressive power of the young filmmakers. With KIFIFE, we aim to offer children a space at the Opera Village where they can unfold their creativity and express themselves through media. Especially in a globalized media environment, it is important for African children to tell and shape their own stories. The stop-motion workshop was an inspiring example of the potential of young voices – told through images that move.

We would like to express our heartfelt thanks to this year’s sponsors, without whose generous support the KIFIFE Children’s Film Festival at the Opera Village would not have been possible: Tales Of Us, Stormig Donkey Productions, Rainer Werner Fassbinder Foundation, Jutta Vogel Foundation, Norbert W. Grossklaus (Protestant Pastor / City Councilor Offenburg), and Planbar 3 Gbr.

Photos: © Madi Zongo