When was animation first included in FRAMES? What made you include it?
Earlier on we were not concentrating much on new and emerging media like animation & gaming. It was only in 2004 that we introduced a few sessions on animation & gaming. We also introduced the first ever animation awards, FICCI BAF (Best Animated FRAMES) Awards last year, which were very well accepted by the animation fraternity. This year we have a well defined track on animation & gaming comprising of 5 sessions covering various aspects.
Though still in a nascent stage as compared to other genres of entertainment, animation & gaming hold a lot of promise. Realizing the potential and promise of this sector, we have made a consious decision of focusing on it. One just can’t ignore this sector anymore as a lot of interesting and encouraging developments have taken place recently.
Besides the BPO model, there has been an increase in the number of co-productions. Few of the Indian studios have produced IPs as well. This is the time when the Indian animation Industry needs to be given proper attention. The demographics are favorable, kids channels are likely to explode with more players and result in quick growth and big revenues, as nearly one third of India’s population is below the age of 15. What I understand is that with its strong culture and heritage, India is rich in content. That, coupled with the creative and technical talent, there is no reason why we should’nt excel in this arena, like we have in lot of other areas. We at FICCI are committed to develop this sector and bring it at par with that of developed nations.
How much emphasis have you laid on animation & gaming in this year’s
FRAMES? Which stalwarts are attending this year?
At FRAMES 2005, we have dedicated one complete track on animation & gaming. The sessions would cover business related topics such as “Co-production”, “Marketing & distribution” to technical topics like “Project & Schedule Management”, also creative topics such as “Scriptwiting” and “Making of a VFX movie”
FICCI BAF Awards 2005 have received global attention and acceptance with participation from countries like UK, USA, Canada, Singapore, Denmark, Netherlands, Germany, Ireland, Hong Kong, Australia, Egypt, France, Italy, Thailand, Korea etc.
Global animation industry stalwarts including the likes of Electronic Arts (ASIA) President Jon Nierman & GM (ASEAN) Christopher Thompson, Stewart & Wall Entertainment’s Richard Stewart, Craig Mumma, VES Director Tim McGovern, Cinnamon’s (UK) Chris Rice, Toon Boom CEO Joan Vogelesang and many more will discuss threadbare the emerging possibilities and potential of this very promising sector.
Please elaborate on how the idea to conduct the BAF awards originated?
We have all kinds of awards in this country, for films, for advertising, for music, for television etc. Until we came up with BAF, there had been no recognition what so ever for the animation & gaming fraternity which forms an important constituent of Indian Entertainment industry. Thus we thought of recognising excellence in this sector.
The rationale behind the Awards was that it will not only provide boost and support to this sector, but will also make overseas production houses more interested in India, thus eventually increasing the quantum of inflow of work in the country.
With the help of friends and well-wishers from the industry, we thought of instituting the Awards. I would like to thank all the people who had been associated with us during the inception stage and are still a major support and guiding force.
Please compare the forthcoming BAF awards to last year’s awards. How have they grown and what’s the response like? Are you looking at hosting a festival in a few years time?
Oh yes, certainly! Why not? The kind of response that we have received this time, I am sure that soon we will have a proper festival, with public screenings.
Last year, there were hardly any overseas entries and a majority of them were from Indian studios. This time we have received entries from countries like UK, USA, Canada, Singapore, Denmark, Netherlands, Germany, Ireland, Hong Kong, Australia, Egypt, France, Italy, Thailand, Korea etc. The Awards will be presented by none other than Barrie Osborne, Producer, Lord of the Rings.
We had participated at ANNECY and MIPCOM to promote the Awards. It’s quite encouraging to see the response. Our aim is to create “ANNECY” here in India. It will take sometime but I am quite sure that it will happen.
Besides FRAMES which is an annual affair, what other activities do you do around animation and gaming?
Besides our annual event, we do other activities under the label ‘Knowledge Series’. We organize workshops & seminars to address the issues in various sub sectors of entertainment. Last year we had scheduled seminar to address the career opportunities in animation & gaming. We did workshops to address the lack of trained manpower in the animation Industry. We have quite a few research projects lined up. There are lot of activities planned post FRAMES 2005. We are just waiting for the right time.
FICCI is a strong body. As an organisation with muscle, what recomendations does FRAMES have on animation?
We are a neutral, industry body, with an objective to promote investments, source global opportunities for bilateral trade and provide the best possible support to the industry. We address the key issues that the industry faces and work closely with the government.
For the animation sector, we have a few observations and have been highlighting them at various appropriate forums:
1. The setting up of Market Development Assistance, by the Government, exclusively for animation & gaming. Our competing economies in Asia flourish on Government Support for such activities.
2. The industry is still struggling with the lack of trained manpower. We advocate the setting up of degree courses in animation & gaming at graduate and PG level. There are very few institutions. NID, Ahemdabad is doing a great job. We need institutions on the lines of the IITs and IIMs. The Government of West Bengal has started an animation academy in association with one of the leading production houses. We need more such public private partnerships.