Ebele Okoye

Ebele Okoye is Africa’s pioneer female animator, changemaker, and equity advocate with over 20 years of industry experience. A two-time laureate of the Africa Movie Academy Award, she also has awards, honors and recognitions from institutions like DEFA Foundation, Robert Bosch Foundation, Focus Features, United States Congress, California state legislature and Amnesty International. With a portfolio spanning international co-productions, jury work, and educational endeavours, including animation tutelage at the Bauhaus University, Weimar, Germany, Okoye has left an indelible mark on the animation landscape, and has founded numerous animation training programs, like "smed LAB2013", Nigeria’s first Animation course, "Motion to the Sound" and "Ani-JollyGilrs’ Special Training" A sought-after speaker and panelist in industry events. Ebele is also an advisory board member for the Development Oriented migration program of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ). She is the operational force behind Jolly Squid Media and the founder of Spunky Toonz, an EdTech brand, which promotes healthy, social, and eco-friendly values in young minds.