NATPE's First Animation and Special Effects Expo (ANIFX) drew a limited number of participants in its first year. While activity on the floor was definitely quiet, some of the panels lead to lively discussions. Topics that are sometimes brushed over were discussed in detail and in a candid fashion.

Event organizers boasted a registration of over 2,000 after the first day, but the lull on the showroom floor indicated that perhaps most of the participants attended the panel discussions. Exhibitors and panelists definitely made use of the opportunity to interact in a more relaxed setting rather than the frantic pace of NATPE's other annual convention.

The event's "Career Center" was spare, probably more reflective of the present lull in animation industry recruiting and lack of company, student attendance rather than of any shortcoming of the event itself. Overall, timing seemed to be the great disadvantage of NATPE, with this brand new event taking place so shortly after the World Animation Celebration in Pasadena, and on the cusp of the Annecy Animation Festival, the "big daddy" of world animation events.Despite the rather meager attendance, ANIFX presented a fine selection of panel discussions and seminars, most of which featured impressive panelists and interesting content. What made the sessions more colorful than usual was that most of the moderators truly did get a friendly banter going on between their panelists. Plus, the panels included some new faces who were happy to express their points of view, as well as seasoned professionals who know every trick in the book.

For instance, Thursday's Children's Programming: Contents Under Pressure delved into sensitive areas regarding the new FCC regulations that require three hours of educational programming a week on US networks. Jean MacCurdy and Margaret Loesch were especially insightful as they outlined how the changes would influence their respective networks. The fact that guidelines to the FCC's mandates are not clearly defined is a frustrating challenge. As DIC's Robby London says, "The government is like a bad parent...we don't know how to act in order to avoid getting sent to our room." Does a show that encourages kids to read entertaining books educational? Or to qualify must a show contain strong educational messages? All of this has been left up to the network heads to decide. The entire panel agreed that while the average parent is not upset with current children's programming, certain special interest groups are. By turning the responsibility of policing programming over to the children's industry executives, parents are thus excusing themselves from having to actively participate in viewing with their children.

Another frightening aspect of this change for the networks is that the FCC does not have jurisdiction over cable, and hence, if network television becomes too educational, it will push fun-seeking kids even further into the world of Nickelodeon and Cartoon Network. The forced "volunteerism" of this program has everyone wondering how long it will be before someone says, "Enough is enough."