Stycie Waweru

EARLY LIFE

Stycie Waweru was born on 1 December 2008 in Nairobi, Kenya. Her father, Joseph Njata (also her manager), worked as a booking clerk at Fox Theatres cinema in Sarit Centre, which gave the family regular access to films. From a very young age she was captivated by cartoons (especially Teletubbies) and cinema. Her parents noticed her natural flair for performance; her father began filming her on a phone and coaching her in front of the camera. She started performing in school dramas around age four and won multiple awards at drama festivals.

CAREER

Waweru’s breakthrough came at age nine when she landed the lead role of Jo, a terminally ill girl who dreams of being a superhero, in the critically acclaimed Kenyan film Supa Modo (2018). The film was Kenya’s official submission for the Academy Awards and brought her international attention. She followed this with the role of Bakhita in Lusala (2019) and Ashley in the Netflix film Just in Time (2021). As a voice artist she is best known as the voice of Sema, the lead character in the animated series Super Sema (produced by Lupita Nyong’o and Kukua), one of Africa’s first major child superhero animated series. She also voiced Enkai in Disney and Triggerfish’s Kizazi Moto: Generation Fire. In television she has co-hosted Sema’s Labs on Citizen TV Kenya and Generation 3 on NTV Kenya. She continues to work in film (including projects such as ChorArt, where she was lead and executive producer) and voice-over work.

PERSONAL LIFE

She is the daughter of Joseph Njata and Agnes Muigai and has an older sister, Sharon Waweru (a film director). She lives in Nairobi and balances school with her career. Outside acting she enjoys drawing (digital and pencil), animation, singing, dancing, creating YouTube and TikTok content, and interviewing young talents. She has spoken about the importance of parents supporting children’s creative dreams.

Stycie Waweru is regarded as one of East Africa’s rising young talents. She has received the Child Global Prodigy Award (2022), African Child of the Year 2023 (Arts & Culture category), and Best Actress at the Women in Film Awards 2023. She has been featured by CNN, BBC Africa, Deutsche Welle, Variety, and other international outlets. Mentored in part by Lupita Nyong’o on the Super Sema project, she has expressed ambitions to professionalise her career and work in Hollywood while continuing to create opportunities for young African performers.