Griot, an animated feature film
By Marcus McGee
Treatment (Draft Form)
Proposal: Full Length Animation Feature Movie
Setting: West Africa, Ghana, Slave Castles (Cape Coast and Elmina)
Time: Present and Past
Theme: A celebration of the Oral Tradition of African people and the triumph of the human spirit
Background: The slave castles in Ghana have become a popular destination for descendants of Africans in the Americas and the Diaspora. Some describe the return as a solemn pilgrimage. Just as Ellis Island is a notable point in the journey of European and Asian American families to the US, the slave castles are a nexus and defining moment in the journey of African American families. Recently, CNN anchor Leon Harris did a feature on his journey to West Africa and his return to one of the places where his ancestors no doubt passed through. The Africans called it “the point of no return.” And yet year after year, thousands of families return to honor ancestors who passed through the castles. A plaque next to a dungeon door readsIn Everlasting Memory of the anguish of our ancestors. May those who died rest in peace. May those who return find their roots. May humanity never again perpetrate such injustice against humanity. We, the living, vow to uphold this.
To put it all in perspective—during the inhumanity associated with World War II, estimates suggest that as many as six million Jews were killed. And yet, as a result of the slave trade, between nine and thirty-two million Africans left Africa through those castles, with estimates that up to one-third died during the journey.
Many African American families engage in a tradition passed down over hundreds of generations, a tradition inherited from African ancestors. It is a form of family bonding that connects the old with the young, the past with the future. In Alex Haley’s Roots, it was the story of Kunta Kinte, who was captured by slavers when he went to get wood to make a drum for his brother; it was the story of Kizzy and the story of Chicken George—oral histories that reinforced the family’s values and connected the past to the present. This oral tradition is a central part of the culture of African American families. It is how descendants of Africans have recorded and preserved important family events and maintained values since the dawn of human history.
Oral Tradition:
Histories and stories of a people that come to us in a spoken and sung form are part of what is called an oral tradition. Oral tradition means that the information, the stories, are told rather than written down. Sometimes, a people have both a written and an oral tradition. Oral traditions have a different way of being alive than written histories. Because people hold the oral tradition in their memory, and sometimes the story changes with the telling, oral histories can be more fluid, more dynamic, more alive, than written histories. This doesn’t make them less true, just different than written histories.
In West African storytelling, the Griots are the keepers of the culture, as their amazing memories and storytelling abilities allow them to keep alive the culture, history, and genealogies of their people.·
The Griot: The Griot and oral tradition
In the old days of the Great empires, griots tutored princes and gave council to kings. The Griots (GREE-ohs) are historians, praise-singers and musical entertainers. And yet, none of these descriptions quite captures their unique status. They used their detailed knowledge of history to shed light on present-day dilemmas. Long after the fall of the Malian Empire in 1468, a Manding family of means would have their own griot to advise them and help them negotiate matters with other families. Griots arranged the terms of marriages and mediated disputes, always relying on their understanding of each family’s history.
Somewhere along the line,
griots also became the official musicians of the society, they entertained the
kings’ entourage. History was passed on from generation to generation through
the praise-songs of griots. Kings and queens assigned them to prepare warriors
mentally for important battles. Today although his role has evolved through
times it remains that the griot still has a pre-eminent role in Sénégalese
Society.#
Griot
The Characters:
Jamal Washington……………………… 14-year-old twin
Jamila Washington……………………… 14-year-old twin
John Washington……………………….. Father of twins; businessman
Wilma Washington……………………… John’s wife; mother of twins
The Griot……………………………….. An old African
Big Papa…………………………………. Twins’ grandfather; John’s father
The Story:
When Atlanta businessman John Washington announces to his family one morning that his company is sending him on a week-long assignment in West Africa, his wife, Wilma, suggests that she and the twins should accompany him and make it a family vacation. The twins, however, have no desire to visit Africa. In fact they are strongly opposed, characterizing Africa as “a savage place with nothing to see but a bunch of wild animals.”
Their mother insists that they keep an open mind, reminding them of the new things they discovered on past family vacations to Germany and China. Still, the twins do not want to go. John tells twins that at age 13 in many places in Africa, children are given adult freedom and responsibility. He says he’ll let the twins decide whether or not to go. If they remain in Atlanta, John will have his father, their “Big Papa,” come over to stay with them for the week.
The kids love the offer of greater freedom, but they do not relish the idea of spending a whole week with Big Papa. They groan about his rambling and his re-telling the same stories over and over again. They complain that he alternately lectures and preaches all the time. Slightly insulted, John tells the kids Big Papa is coming over for dinner that night and they have until after dinner to decide about the West Africa trip.
His distaste for the stories notwithstanding, twin Jamal cannot fathom how his “ancient school” Big Papa could listen to rap music. Jamal is a skateboarder who likes rock and roll, while Jamila is into the hip-hop culture. At dinner as Big Papa tells story after story, the twins eyes meet and they decide they would rather “tough it out in Africa” than endure a whole week of Big Papa’s stories and lectures.
The twins announce to their parents that they have decided to go to Africa for the family vacation. Much to their disappointment, Big Papa announces that he will also go with the family to Africa.
During the flight, the twins insist on sitting at least five rows behind parents and Big Papa for sake of their sanity. They are listening to music on respective devices when they see the northwestern coast of Africa for the first time at sunset. To them, there is something that seems strangely familiar about the scene.
When they awaken in a hotel in Dakar, the Sénégalese capital, they are surprised about how “modern” everything seems—they were expecting a jungle with lions, snakes and elephants. The city is vibrant and alive; Jamal is surprised to see a group of skateboarders while Jamila enjoys the opportunity to practice the French she’s been taking in school. The twins want to stay in Dakar, but their father tells them his business in the city is brief. He says they’re leaving for Accra, Ghana’s capital city, on the next morning, but there will be an early afternoon stop in Yamoussoukro, the capitol of Côte d’Ivoire.
In Yamoussoukro, the family visits a restaurant where an old woman tells them about the major issues facing West Africa, including the AIDS epidemic, the civil unrest in Liberia that has spilled over into neighboring states and economic consequences. The children learn that Liberia is made up of the descendants of U.S. African slaves who, with the help of the U.S. government, returned to the motherland to create their own state.
On the way to Accra, the family gets a glimpse at the African rain forest and some of the animals that inhabit it. Big Papa starts to tell a story that has been in the family—a story about how the family’s ancestors were taken from Africa, but the kids shrug him off. Jamal says, and loud enough for his grandfather to hear, “Those are just stories floating around in his head. I mean, how would he know?”
The family arrives at Katoka Airport in Accra, Ghana in the evening. At dinner in a local restaurant, John says he’ll be busy at business all the next day, but he insists, “Don’t go to the castles without me.” The next morning, Wilma, Big Papa and the twins visit Aburi gardens and the Makola market. When people at these places realize the family is American, they ask, “Are you going to see the castles?” Excitement about the castles begins to grow in the twins. Jamila comments, “These castles must be somethin else!”
The family has dinner that night at John’s client’s home. They eat traditional West African dishes (okra, yams, etc.) After dinner, when Big Papa begins to retell the story of how family left Africa and went to America, Jamal cuts him off, trying to change the subject. The host tells Jamal he is rude, commenting, “I don’t know what happened to your family after you went to America, but here in Africa we respect our elders. We value them, especially the Griot in our family.” After being dressed down, Jamal whispers to Jamila, “I didn’t know we had any Creole in our family.”
On the next morning, the family arrives at the State Transport Company, Ghana’s official long-distance commuter service, to take the three-hour bus journey from Accra to the coast to see the slave castles. On seeing the high white walls of Elmina Castle, the twins are both surprised and disappointed. The castles are nothing like the castles they saw in Germany and the palaces they saw in China.
A guide introduces the family to Elmina Castle, pointing out the plaque next to the dungeon door that reads: In Everlasting Memory of the anguish of our ancestors. May those who died rest in peace. May those who return find their roots. May humanity never again perpetrate such injustice against humanity. We, the living, vow to uphold this.
From that moment on, a sense of darkness and sadness descends on family. The guide tells group about the castle’s history and about the squalid living conditions of the men, women and children who were imprisoned there as they awaited the ships that would take them away from their homeland forever. Jamal doesn’t understand how and why something so awful and inhumane could have occurred. He asks, “Who was responsible for this?” to which the guide answers, “No single man, no single group of men. Rather, it is the greed and inhumanity that exist in all of us, if only we allow that evil to triumph.”
The family visits Cape Coast Castle next, where the family learns that the castle is also a graveyard for those who did not survive long enough to board the ships in chains. They see the castle’s Door of No Return, which had given so many thousands of enslaved Africans their last view of the coast before they were imprisoned in the hulls of the slave ships.
After spending almost an hour in the dungeons, the scene of countless atrocities, Jamila complains that she is feeling sick and does not want to continue the tour. Jamal won’t admit to feeling sick, but he offers to stay with Jamila so his parents and Big Papa can finish the tour.
As the twins sit in a dungeon room, they hear a tap on the wall in the corner behind them. Jamal investigates and discovers a secret door in the wall. Pushing it open, he starts to enter the passage. He calls back to a nervous Jamila, who reluctantly follows him into the corridor. They follow the passage until it ends at a secret room, and in that secret room they discover a very old man who sits with his eyes closed. “Come in,” he says, “Do not be afraid. Come on in. Sit with me.”
Apprehensively, the twins sit on the floor along the opposite wall. The old man asks the twins how they like the castles. Jamila says it seems she can feel the spirits of the people who came through the castle; she can palpably feel the desperation, sadness and anguish of the persons who suffered there.
Again Jamal asks “why” and the old man tells him the answer to his questions exists in another time and place. Jamal asks the old man who he is and why he is there. The old man answers he is there because that is his place. He identifies himself as a Griot. For a second time, the twins mistake the word Griot for the word Creole.
The Griot explains that griots are part of a rich and celebrated African tradition; that the griots are the keepers of the stories and thus the keepers of history; that they are teachers, praise-singers and musical entertainers. He says griots must possess incredible memories and that the stories have been passed down from griot-to-griot since from the beginning of man. He says, “unlike others, our history is alive, for if there is someone alive to tell your story, you can never really die.”
Because griot history is alive, the Griot can go to any place in time. He asks Jamal and Jamila if they really want to know the story of the castles, to which the twins answer, yes. Thus through song and storytelling, the Griot transports them to another time and place.
The Griot says this story begins in the kingdom of Asante (Ashanti) as he and the twins walk through a bustling African city from the early 1800s. He says Asante is a wealthy kingdom as a result of its main trade export: gold. He says that for the Akans, like so many people, the gold, as beautiful as it was, became the source of great evil and led to their downfall; the lust for gold and power tilted the axis of the world and spilled Africans as slaves into the Diaspora.
Mining the gold, or “taking the gold from the ground,” required the labor of slaves. Knowing this, the Asante kings raided villages and overran smaller kingdoms to acquire these slaves. Armed with guns that had been traded for gold, the Asante overcame all resistance.
When the kings began to trade gold with the Portuguese and Dutch and greater gold production was required, the Portuguese, knowing more slave labor was required, went to Nigeria and Sao Tome and purchased slaves, which they sold to the Akans.*
The use of slaves was expanded to clearing jungles for agricultural purposes, driving greater need for forced labor. Eventually, Akan society became dependant on slave labor and its kings, along with the Portuguese, Dutch and British, evolved into major players of the slave trade.
Over time, as western exploration expanded to the Americas and the need for cheap, expendable labor was realized, African slaves were added to the list of products exported by greedy Asante kings and brokered by inhumane Portuguese and Dutch traders. The castles on the Gold Coast, which had been originally built to house gold reserves, ivory, cocoa, textiles and other African treasures were almost wholly converted to the detention of slaves prior to separation from the African continent.
The small room (32ft x16ft) in which the twins are sitting, says the Griot, held three to five hundred men in dark, suffocating, insufferable conditions where sometimes they waited 10 or 11 months for the slave ships to come. Mortality rates in such rooms were high, as disease and pestilence spread rapidly in such squalor. The castles became the final resting place for thousands upon thousands of captured Africans.
But, says the Griot, “that is not the story I want to tell you.” The story he will tell is not about evil men and their greed. Rather, it is a story about how, even in the face of the greatest adversity, the human spirit will prevail. Ultimately good will win over evil, and wickedness, in its own time, will be punished.
He says his story is about a young princess whose name, by coincidence, is Jamila, meaning beautiful. Although her father was not the king, Prempeh, he was an Asante prince. Her father, Osei, was a good man whose empathy for slaves has been seen as a weakness on his part.
In fact, he has married a slave, and yet Jamila is recognized as a princess despite the fact that her mother had been a slave. This was because the people held deep respect for her father. Prince Osei deplores slavery, asserting it is undignified for humans to believe they can own other humans, let alone to sell them. In his realm, some 40 forty miles outside Kumasi, the king’s city, he even forbids his subjects to own slaves.
His statements and attitudes eventually come to the attention of Prempeh, his mother’s brother who is the king (Asantehene). Prempeh is a giant—the tallest, strongest, most handsome man in the country, but he is fierce, arrogant and selfish. The slave trade has been very profitable for Prempeh, and thus he hates Prince Osei and vows to silence him.
Soon thereafter, the king sends warriors to the prince’s home. They take Prince Osei to Kumasi where he is immediately executed. Princess Jamila is also taken to Kumasi as a hostage, and Osei’s young nephew, Jamal, his sister’s son, will be installed as ruler.
In Kumasi, Princess Jamila is treated politely, as the king wishes to make her one of his wives. She immediately objects, but the older women tell her she has no choice except to do what the king asks. She asks to speak with the king. She asks Prempeh why he thinks she would want to be his wife after Prempeh has murdered her father. Prempeh tells her that what she wants does not matter. The only thing that matters is what he wants. She tells him he does not want a wife—he merely wants another slave, and she will not be a slave. Prempeh warns that disobedience will earn Jamila the same fate as her father. Yet Jamila remains outspokenly opposed to marriage to Prempeh.
Sir Thomas Maccarley, British commander of Elmina castle, tells his men the story of the celebrated Golden Stool at Kumasi and about how much gold the Ashanti possess. He wants all the Ashanti gold, and if that means destroying Africa and all the Africans in it, so be it.
In the meantime, Nana Jamal, though young, is installed as ruler in place of his executed uncle. Prempeh sends a warning to the young man and advisors: I’ll be watching this young tree. Mind that I don’t clear the entire forest by selling you all to the savage white men as slaves. Jamal’s advisors encourage their new chief to send a complement of slaves along with gifts to demonstrate his submission to the great king.
Jamal is reluctant to send slaves to Kumasi, though he fears the king. Instead, he sends servants with gold dust, yams, maize, cassava and a declaration of submission. The king returns the gifts with a demand: Send me slaves.
Without warning, the Fantes, another Akan tribe from the along the coast, raid Kumasi. Although the Asante are able to repel the attack, Jamila is taken, along with gold, slaves and other valuables. Prince Kofi, son of the Fante king, sees Jamila and, after finding out she is a princess, falls in love with her. Bestowing gifts and professing great love, he seeks her as a wife.
Jamila rejects his entreaties, explaining that the Fante trade slaves with the white men for guns and other dreadful things. Jamila tells Kofi that, while she finds him handsome and brave, she could never marry a man who prospers by selling souls.
A group of warriors from Kumasi arrives at Prince Jamal’s village to pick up slaves. Political advisors tell the prince he must send slaves or forfeit the lives of everyone in the village. Reluctant about sending slaves, Jamal calls in the local griot and asks for advice.
The Griot tells Jamal that he had a disturbing dream, and in it Africa is a huge skull, the head of a man. The skull receives a blow from behind and is fractured so that the very soul of Africa is stolen away by the white slavers. He says he has been to the slave castles and describes the conditions there.
He makes a distinction between slavery in Africa and slaves being sold and shipped away. He advises Jamal to take a stand against the evil of selling humans. Jamal tells warriors he will not be sending slaves. Warriors tell Jamal he is foolish and predict the destruction of the village.
Prempeh, king of the Asantes, has a disagreement with British commander Sir Thomas Macarley. Conflict is imminent. Macarley is a greedy man who is obsessed with possessing the celebrated Golden Stool, a solid gold artifact symbolizing the king’s rulership. Beyond that, the Golden Stool represents the very essence of Asante unity.
In the heated disagreement between Prempeh and Macarley, the British commander threatens to unite with the neighboring Fantes and the Denkyira in order to defeat Prempeh and secure the Golden Stool.
Prince Kofi tells Jamila that the Fante, along with the Denkyira and the British, are planning to attack Prempeh at Kumasi. Shortly thereafter, Jamila asks Kofi if he can help her escape home to help her cousin, who is being threatened by Prempeh. Determined to marry her, Kofi tells her he will take her to her village and help defend it. The two flee the Fante state in the cover of night with an army of soldiers and slaves.
Commander Maccarley, asleep at Elmina castle, has a reoccurring nightmare that he is held captive by the souls of dead captives and being dragged down. He awakens and tells his lieutenant about it. He says the human slavery business is profitable, but it is just that, a business. He says slaves are more profitable than gold, but slaves are more trouble. A griot visits Maccarley and lieutenant at the fire, he warns lieutenant to get out of Africa to save his soul. He indicates it is too late for Maccarley.
During the next day, Prempeh sends an order to Nana Jamal, demanding soldiers and assistance in the pending war against Maccarley and the Fante. Prempeh’s messengers remind Jamal of Prempeh’s role the Asantehene (Ashanti King) and that Jamal is duty bound to serve his king. Jamal consults the Griot, who tells him he has a greater obligation to history, honor and justice.
Jamila and Kofi arrive with army. All agree to make a stand against Prempeh. “But what about the cruel white man Maccarley?” Kofi fears, “With his boats and cannons and endless supply of guns, he will completely take over Africa for certain.”
The Griot answers, “What may become of dear Africa is uncertain to me, but I have seen it and Mccarley has seen it: Nature has judged him for his crimes. He will be swallowed deep into the bowels of Elmina, where thousands of his victims await him.”
The war begins. The Griot describes it as a savage war. Prempeh’s warriors are fearless and loyal. Maccarley forces, the Fante and the Denkyira are well armed and overwhelming. The war goes on for many days before all realize it is only a matter of time before Kumasi and Prempeh are captured.
Prempeh consults the Griot, who tells him Maccarley is after the gold treasures of Kumasi and the Golden Stool. The Griot advises Prempeh to transport the Ashanti gold and the Golden Stool to a safe place outside Kumasi before it is too late.
Jamal, Kofi and army are stationed at the edge of Jamal’s village to protect against attack. Messengers arrive and announce that Prempeh is on his way. Jamal is ordered to advance on the enemy that is pursuing the king. “The enemy is too many. You will die for sure, but you will buy Prempeh time to escape.”
Jamal and Kofi refuse to advance on enemy. Rather, they will stay to protect village. Royal guards and priests arrive with Ashanti gold, the Golden Stool and the king’s household and request safe passage through region. Jamal grants safe passage and protection for the king’s treasures and household.
In the heat of battle, commander Maccarley is stabbed in the shoulder with a poisoned dart. He swoons for the loss of blood and is treated on the field. Delirious, he orders soldiers to take him back to the castle.
Prempeh and warriors arrive at the edge of Jamal’s territory, demanding safe passage and protection. Jamal, Jamila and Kofi go out to meet Prempeh, who towers over the three. Jamal and Kofi tell Prempeh they will not sacrifice themselves and their soldiers to protect him. Incensed, Prempeh swears to destroy them.
Jamila confronts Prempeh, telling him he and his soldiers will not be given safe passage through the region. “If you wish to destroy us, bring it on. We are prepared to fight you.” Enraged, Prempeh tries to attack Jamila, but Jamal’s soldiers intercede.
Jamila stands her ground. “Go away Prempeh. Go to your fate.” Prempeh exits, vowing to return to punish the village. Jamal and Kofi call army together in preparation for Prempeh’s attack.
Angry, Prempeh returns to his warriors. He declares he will destroy the village, but first he will turn to deal with his enemies. “The army behind will not attack us, but they will fight anyone who attacks them, and thus they will protect us against any rear attacks.” Prempeh and warriors turn and fiercely advance on oncoming enemy.
Feverish and anxious, Maccarley stumbles about Elmina castle mumbling about the dream and calling for help. He wanders into a passage and throws open a dungeon door. Chained Africans reach out and grab him, dragging him screaming and protesting into the darkness of the dungeon.
Prempeh and his warriors have lost the battle. The Fante and the British have captured the king. Soldiers place chains around Prempeh’s neck and around his wrists. Thus he is led away in chains to Elmina castle, where he is imprisoned with the thousands of humans he has sold.
As the sun rises on the African horizon, Jamal, Jamila, Kofi and the Griot welcome a new day. The Griot speaks: What became of Africa after that day a million griots telling hundreds of stories could never tell, but on that day those young people understood that living history has powers and wonders beyond our understanding, that children, armed with courage and conviction, can stand up to giants… and win.
Jamal asks Griot about what happened to the Griots that were in Elmina and Cape Coast—the ones that were shipped away from Africa. The Griot explains that the griots still live among you.
Look to your old people—your grandfathers and grandmothers—they know the stories; they are the griots among you. There is one in every family. Look to your musical entertainers—there are griots among them. Look to your teachers, look to your religious teachers, and at last, look within yourselves. Learn the stories of your family. Keep your family’s history… alive!
The guide enters room with parents and Big Papa. The guide says he is not surprised to find the children with the Griot. John tells children they missed an interesting tour and says he hoped they were not bored. The children introduce the Griot to their parents. They praise him as “living history.” Big Papa and the Griot embrace.
At dinner that night, Big Papa says he wants to tell family something. He announces that he is sick and that he wanted to take the trip to Africa because it was his last chance. The doctors say he has nine months to live. Family is saddened.
On the day
family is set to leave Africa, Jamal and Jamila watch the sunrise, they reflect
on their journey. They realize Africa and the Griot have changed their lives.
They vow to each other to spend the next nine months learning all Big Papa’s
stories to keep him alive; they vow to spend their lives learning the stories
of Africa so that they can, for those who come after, become a part of living
history.
· Source: www.si.umich.edu/chico/UMS/Drummers/storytelling.html
# ibid.
* Between 1500 and 1535, the Portuguese supplied the Akans with more than 12,000 slaves.