Helping Hand in the Animation Boom — Asian Governments
In a trip back home to Singapore, my wife, Yu-Tzu Lin, and I visited a few Asian countries, including Malaysia and Taiwan (where my wife is from) and had the honor to speak at many different animation industry seminars. After meeting and interviewing many of the local industry professionals and students, we had a better understanding regarding the animation industry in Asia.
Asian countries today are known for their low cost labor workforce that produces most of the animated TV shows for North American and European television networks. These include countries such as South Korea, the Philippines, Taiwan and India. In terms of original animated content, one would naturally thinks of anime and manga from Japan. The scene today however, is quickly changing.
As Asian regions grow, improving living standards, as well as the rise in artistic skill standards and better technology in the animation industry, many are starting to create their own intellectual properties (IP), ranging from animated TV series and animated feature films, to today’s advanced videogame developments.
Outsourcing in Asia however, is still very profitable. At the recent Outsourcing Submit, Jonathan Hales (president of the Outsource Report) wrote, “Labor cost in Asia will save companies an estimated 15-60%.” Hales also mentioned that outsourcing initiatives would double in the next few years. For many production houses, outsourcing is a fact of life. Recently, with the push for higher quality next-generation game graphics, realtime game art is in high demand as well. Outsourcing in Asia pretty much has become a standard part of the production process and constitutes a significant portion of the art budget for many production houses.
While many Asian countries are aware of the potential of the animation industry, some state governments have also played an important role in supporting this growing industry to reap economic benefits. Government from various Asian countries, such as Singapore, Taiwan, Malaysia, Thailand, China and Indonesia are investing a lot of effort and money in facilitating the growth of this animation empire.
When George Lucas decided to set up an office on the small island country of Singapore in southeast Asia, it baffled many. However, one would not be so surprised after a visit. Though less than 60 miles across, Singapore has an extremely efficient and complex infrastructure and advanced telecommunications system. Likewise, its neighbor Malaysia has also been actively attracting studios. The last addition was the U.K.-based Code Masters. The list goes on: Ubisoft in China, Rhythm and Hues in India, etc.
Singapore — Building Media Giants in the Tiny Island According to Seto, MDA actively promotes and facilitates the growth of the animation industry by providing assistance to Singapore animation companies. Examples of such assistance programs are as follows:
MDA’s website has more details on its programs.
Media Development Authority of Singapore (MDA) was formed in 2003. The Authority is more than just a regulatory agency for Singapore’s media industry; MDA also helps to establish policies and programs that facilitate growth of Singapore’s media industry. Its goal for the animation industry is to build a robust industry that is capable of creating original IP, as well as to produce quality content that could generate international sales. Lok-Yin Seto, director of MDA’s Industry Development, and his team are working to make that goal come true.
Over the last three years, Singapore’s animation industry has made strides in the international arena. Numerous local animation companies have benefited from the schemes and initiatives. For example, IV Lab signed a deal to co-produce a slate of animated TV series with Nelvana of Canada; Infinite Frameworks signed a deal to co-produce an animated feature with Mainframe (of Canada); Peach Blossom Media has entered into co-productions with U.S. and South Korean companies. With the assistance of these initiatives, many more animation companies are emerging in the country.
Chi Sim Tang, md of Omens Studios, has offices in Singapore and Malaysia, in addition to the one in Los Angeles. His company enjoys support from the respective Asian governments, as these countries are investing aggressively in the growth of the local media and animation industry, having recognized its importance in the knowledge-based economy.
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