Cartoon industry focuses more on originality

CG, or computer graphics, the technology that Song's company specializes in, may sound unfamiliar to most moviegoers. But it is the core technology used in 3-D blockbusters such as Avatar and Transformers.

"CG is the renovation of tools. It is the trend of the future as government policies also support the development of this technology. But somehow, animation producers have misunderstood these policies and are rushing to develop CG technologies of their own, thereby creating an oversupply of technicians and a shortage of theme production and marketing talent," Song said.

"Most animation companies in China still survive on outsourcing orders from overseas companies. There is still a huge gap between China and Western countries in core and sophisticated techniques," he said.

"It would be better for Chinese animation companies to consider purchasing technologies from Singapore, Thailand, or Europe, or look at more ways to bring overseas professionals to work in China."

Contrary to people's expectations, the creative ability of animation producers in Shanghai is much weaker than those in Jiangsu or Zhejiang as there was initially hardly any support to promote creativity, Song said.

He said the gap between Chinese animation producers and the giants such as Pixar and DreamWorks lies in the market environment.

In the Yangtze River Delta region, which is already taking the lead in China, the soil is still not fertile enough to harvest world-class animation talent, experts said.

Zheng Xiaofeng, deputy general manager of Jiangsu Wanglushen Ewesoft Co Ltd, a Suzhou company that specializes in original animation, said that the talent shortage will become more acute after the entry of big names like DreamWorks and Disney.

Ewesoft was one of the first animation companies to invest in original animated productions from China.

"When we started in 2005, most of the companies in Suzhou were doing outsourcing work for overseas companies. Very few had shown creativity, which is essential for culture-related companies," he said.

With works produced totally on their own, the company has often been following a roundabout way to its market. Zheng said his company has been selling animation to countries and regions in Southeast Asia and the Middle East with an eye on Chinese residents in those regions.

The company also toyed with the idea of entering the European and US markets, but did not due to the cultural differences.

"We should try and put more efforts in the international market and get some valuable international exposure. This will make it easier for us to expand in the domestic market," Zheng said.

Creative challenge

South of Shanghai, there are thousands of small animation companies in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province. Unsurprisingly, the biggest problem here is also the lack of talent.

Animation-related products created by Jiangsu Wanglushen Ewesoft Co. [Photo/China Daily]

Xia Lie, deputy director of International Ani-com College of Hangzhou Normal University, said creative talent has been shrinking steadily in China since the 1990s. The prestigious Shanghai Animation Film Studio saw its golden days end in the 1980s and has not recovered.

"Many animation producers preferred to do outsourcing work for overseas companies to make quick money. After 20 years of such work, we have a great number of technicians who are excellent in techniques but lack any originality or creativity," Xia said.

"The college students who are studying animation were mostly born in the 1980s or 1990s. The situation is not good for them as they are unable to find teachers who can hone their creative knowledge and skills. Many students feel that their thoughts are not fully exploited and their ability to tell stories in the right way is always inadequate," he said.

"It is crucial that we build a bridge between the Chinese and Western experiences. But here comes a more in-depth question: how to seek the soul of Chinese animation and how to discern Chinese animation from US or Japanese ones."

Looking at the current crop of animation shown nowadays, it is easy to see that very few of these works are themed around current topics.

"We have such a huge inventory of literature, but sadly, little has been successfully transformed into animation works. Very few animation producers have the habit of reading and hence most of them cannot tell the stories properly," Xia said.

He believes that Hangzhou is doing a good job in terms of promoting the animation industry as the local government is pushing it aggressively.

shijing@chinadaily.com.cn