OWN is developing the network’s first animated comedy series The Mound from Munirah Safiyah Jones — who is no stranger to the animation space. Jones is the creator of OWN’s NAACP Image Award-nominated animated short form series Sincerely, Camille and the viral hit Junt Land.
The Mound is set in the 1980s in the Orange Mound neighborhood of Memphis, Tennessee, which is the first Black neighborhood in American history built by and for Black people. The animated comedy series follows the lives of Duke and Naomi Wiley-King as they balance marriage, family, and careers with the more pressing community issues of salon gossip, bougie aunties, suspect potato salad, and aerobicized colonizers.
“Munirah’s incisive wit makes you laugh out loud and think critically at the same time,” said OWN President Tina Perry. “We can’t wait to see what she does with the backdrop of such a unique Southern setting in the ‘80s.”
“The Mound is about community. It’s about showing up, despite personal or interpersonal issues, for the good of the whole … even when your neighbor keeps blocking your driveway,” said Jones. “This show is for the men and women who built Orange Mound from the ground up and who deserve a joyful, relatable, hilarious portrayal of the community they love.”
The Mound is produced for OWN by executive producers Jones and Harpo Films, in association with Bent Image Lab.
Jones is repped by Heroes and Villains Entertainment and Ginsburg Daniels Kallis.
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