'We are ready. We've been ready:' Black Panther ushers in a new wave of black sci-fi

"Wakandaforever!"

It's the rallying cry of a proud African general and part of a new way of reimagining African culture and heroes on the big screen.

In Black Pantherthe woman leading the charge is played by Danai Gurira.Walking Dead fans know her as Michonne the dreadlockwarrior, eking out a life in the apocalyptic TV series.

In Black Panther, Gurira is bald, strong and loyal to T'Challa, the regal king of Wakanda, whomoonlights as a superhero in a catsuit.

Part of what sets the latest Marvel movie apart isthe vibrant vision of an African country unscathed by colonization.

It's a fictional creation first dreamt up by comic creators Stan Lee and Jack Kirby in the 1960s.

In the real world there is no Wakanda, but GurirasaidBlack Panther highlights Africa's rich culture in other ways.

"It's synthesizing a lot of the beauty and the strengths of the continent that's we've never seen, but they've always been there."

While there have been black superheroes on the silver screen before, there never has been a comic-book movie quite as Afrocentric as Black Panther.

Behind the camera is director Ryan Coogler,a black filmmaker who first burst onto the scene withFruitvale Station, a filmabout the day in the life of a victim of a police shooting.

$200Mbudget and A-list cast

With the full support of Marvel studios and a $200 million USbudget, Coogler filled out the cast with an impressive array ofactors, including Angela Bassett, Lupita Nyong'o, Daniel Kaluuya and Michael B. Jordan as Erik Killmonger, theusurper to the king's throne.

A decade ago a commitment to an African-inspired superhero with a nearly all-black cast may have seemed radical, but if reports of pre-ticket sales are any indicator, Black Panther arrives at a time when audiences are clamouringfor greater diversity.

Black Panther: The start of a Hollywood culture shift?

7 years ago

Duration 4:07

Marvel's Black Panther could be be the start of a Hollywood culture shift and may signal the arrival of afrofuturism as a cultural phenomenon. Critics have chastised Hollywood's superhero movies for under-representing people of colour and restricting them to minor roles Black Panther bucks the trend with its black director and a nearly all-black cast. Advocates are ecstatic and see its promotion as part of "afrofuturism": a growing genre aimed at changing the perception of black culture and how it's portrayed

However, Gurira saidthe interest in Black Panther goes beyond theAfrican-American audience.

"Nobody has seen this imagery and everyone black, white, questions why. Why do we only see things from one perspective? We are ready. We've been ready."

Black Panther's power source: Afrofuturism

Part of the power of Black Panther's imagery comes from Afrofuturism, a movement that fuses African culture within a futuristic narrative. The terms was coined in the 1990s but musicians such as Sun Ra and George Clinton's Parliament were some of Afrofuturisms pioneers.

Author and filmmaker Ytasha Womack said Afrofuturism is " a way of looking at the future or an alternate reality, but through a black cultural lens."

Womack saidpart of the appeal is how Afrofuturism offers a sense of possibilities that challenges the negatives images that areall toooften associated with Africa.

"It's this idea that you can reinvent yourself. That hasoften pushed black cultures forward. It certainly helped people to push past any sense of limitations that they may have experienced."

Black Panther is just one of a number of films offering a different vision of the future. Coming soon in March, director Ava DuVernay's A Wrinkle in Time, amultiracial adaptation of the much-lovednovel, starring Oprah and Storm Reid.

Like Black Panther, A Wrinkle in Time also features a legion of strong female characters, another Afrofuturistic signature according toWomack.

"There is an element where they recognize thatwomen are a part of this society and that even a fictitious character like Black Panther can't exist in a world where women are marginalized "

Opening in Canada asA Wrinkle in Time hits screens is another vision of the future centred on strong black women.

Inspired by the science fiction stories of Nalo Hopkinson, Brown Girl Begins takes place in the near future where the elite of Toronto are protected by a force field.

• Afrofuturism, sci-fi and why 'it is a radical act for Black people to imagine having a future'

Carving out a living in the desolate wastelands known as The Burn the Caribbean community call on spirits to save them.

Canadian director Sharon Lewis grew up loving science fiction, but when she tried to find funding for her film she saidHollywood North was more interested in telling stories of the past.

"It felt like if I had chosen to do a slave narrative that that might have been an easier path. But to put forward something where black people exist in the future I think it feels threatening."

Another shade of beauty

But Lewis persisted.She cobbled together funding, shooting the film on a shoestring. For her young female lead, Lewis cast Mouna Traor.

"As soon as she walked into the audition we were like, 'Wow,' because she's tall, she's gorgeous, she's dark skinned. That was really, really important to me to have a lead actress that represents another diversity. Another sort of shade of beauty."

Traorsharesthe screen withEmmanuel Kabongo, an actor viewers of Frankie Drake Mysteriesmay recognize. Kabongo, who was born in Congo, sees his industry at a turning point.

"People want to feel part of something.So movieslike Black Panther or Brown Girl Begins are very positive message to say we can also be heroes. People can also look up at us."

The question remains whether the latest wave of black-led sci-fi visions are here to stay.

• Game of Thrones showrunners tapped for new Star Wars films

The recent news that the showrunnersof theGame of Thronesseries will be creating a new series of Star Wars films was a reminder of how the genre is dominated by white male creators.

With the success of filmmakers such asGet Out'sJordan Peelethat may be starting to change.