*That we know of guys. If you’ve heard of more, please let us know!

Since opening shop 7 months ago, the response to Osu has been overwhelming for Simoné and her team. They’ve been welcomed by the industry with open arms, already scoring some big jobs from some of the top agencies. But of course, Simoné is no newbie to ad-land and has an impressive career behind her as both an Agency Producer and Film Production Producer. She comes armed with a wealth of knowledge of all the cogs that make up this big advertising industry machine.
Osu, named after Simoné’s 8-month-old son, is a nod to a bustling cosmopolitan district in Ghana and is also a term used in Karate meaning to push or persevere. Simoné explains her vision for Osu: ‘What we are building here is for the future creatives of South Africa. I want to create a home for them, an institution to grow their talents, a space to push themselves in the industry. Osu is a company that can and will provide people with more than just the opportunity to further their career, but with hope as well. I want to shape the company so that it can start shaping the industry positively.’

iDidTht: ‘It feels like you guys are really up to date with what a film production company needs to be. It’s no longer just the ad right?’
Mzi: ‘Not at all. We make sure that agencies get the return they want in terms of their social media engagement – we start off by finding solutions of how to package content, variations on how to shoot it specifically for social and where it will be positioned. By the time we come into pitch we’ve already solved all those aspects and agencies are presented with a comprehensive proposal of how to move forward.’
Simoné: ‘Osu offers creative ways to produce integrated work that is relevant to our times but always keeping creativity at the core because for us the idea is still the most important aspect.’

Meet the Team: (Executive Producer) Simoné Bosman, (Directors) Mzi Kumalo, Tumelo Moropa, Lauren Chengan, Kenny Mumba, Que Ntuli, Yash Lucid. (Photographers) Lebo Lukewarm, Ricardo Marcusk

The company has brought together a group of creatively talented Black Directors and Photographers who each have a diverse set of skills and goals. The Osu team collaborate on each script that comes in, with Mzi taking on the role of Executive Director to steer their Directors and Photographers on all projects.

iDidTht: What sets the team at Osu apart?
Mzi: ‘The people in this company. We made a concerted effort to gather a team of talented individuals who are in tune with what is relevant in our country and in popular culture. The emphasis we have on collaborating with agencies to come up with solutions is another thing. I love how the team always wants to up the ante. We just wanna do cool sh*t.’
Simoné: ‘Yeah, we produce work that generates more likes than lotto numbers (hehe). We produce commercial content that actually makes people not click ‘skip ad’. Xse, we’ve produced trending content that’s become quotable on Black Twitter!’
iDidTht: ‘Oh we know. You guys really are a woke fam amiright?!’
*After we demonstrate our hot dabbing skills to Simoné and Mzi they inform us they won’t be accepting job applications from iDidTht anytime soon.*
Simoné: ‘To create relevant content you need a team who are in touch with our diverse cultures, only then will you see that truly reflected in your ad.’

When you have a team that understands that cell phones are the new billboards and who are focused on creating socially relevant and culturally nuanced work, you’re bound to get something fresh. Here are a few of our favourite spots from the Osu reel:

Mzi on IEC: ‘Initially the campaign was meant to be done with actors, but we really wanted it to feel authentic. We decided to feature real people who have exercised their liberty and freedom in SA. We found a guy that became a Medical Doctor at the age of 20 – which is unheard of – he’s like our own Doogie Howser. We found the first Black female South African to ever make it to Wimbledon, her name is Kgothatso Montjane and she’s actually out playing the Australian Open now. Dope Saint Jude is this really cool rapper and she starts the ad with sign language and I think it’s the only ad that incorporates sign like that in the country.  We also wanted to speak to our brothers and sisters in the LGBTQI community, so we found a great mix of people. We have a diverse country and we wanted this ad to resonate with all South Africans. In one weekend the campaign managed to get 800 000 new registrations from people between the ages of 18 and 30. At Osu our barometer for success comes in the impact of our work and how it affects people.’

Osu’s services include setting up productions and facilitating post production for all TV commercials, online or digital content, films and photography. By combining both creative and production, they are able to offer cost effective integrated production to agencies. And if that doesn’t sell it, they also happen to be a Level 1 BBBEE contributor that is 100% Black female owned, focused on driving transformation and youth development in SA and we’re all about that life!