Nigerian production company EbonyLife Studios is teaming up with Will and Jada Pinkett Smith’s Westbrook Studios on a slate of co-produced film and television projects each connected to the African continent.
The deal is the first of its kind for Westbrook in Africa. Under the partnership, the companies will produce at least two series and one film.
‘Dada Safaris’, one of the series lined up, follows four bestfriends who follow a leap of faith after finding themselves at career dead ends. ‘The Gods’, on the other hand, follows the tale of married Cambridge professors who set out to find the cause of a surge in natural disasters but discover ancient African gods.
‘Are We Getting Married?’, a romantic comedy set in the US, tells the story of a girl from a wealthy Nigerian family who falls in love with a nerdy African-American.
EbonyLife boss Mo Abudu called the partnership a “dream come true.”
“We all dream of lofty goals becoming a reality, then one day those dreams come true, I’m proud to announce that our vision of EbonyLife Studios being in partnership with Will and Jada’s Westbrook Studios is now real,” Abudu said.
“Westbrook’s goal is to create and curate powerful and inclusive content. This is completely in line with our vision at EbonyLife – to tell global African stories from our perspective. Together, we will be developing a slate of projects that reflect our shared goals. We are beyond excited!”
The deal comes two weeks after EbonyLife Media’s two-year exclusive first-look deal with Sony Pictures Television, and eight months after signing a major deal to produce two new Nigerian originals plus licensed films and a series for Netflix.
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