Rendezvous with the Vice President of Animation Today

Animation is quite a nascent concept and industry in the Indian sub-continent. India stepped into this field much later than its foreign and Asian counterparts. However, it is slowly emerging as a country that is well-versed in the forte of animation. We had a tête - à - tête with Mr. K.M. Ranjith Chandrasekharan, Vice President of Animation Today, the leading animation magazine in India, who tells us more about this upcoming sector.

GI: Could you elaborate a little about Animation Today?

RC:We started Animation Today around one year ago. It is India’s first animation magazine that centers all its content predominantly around animation. In Asia too it is the only animation magazine available in the English language. The main reason behind starting such a magazine was to acquaint India to the field of animation.
Until now we have featured some extremely interesting and intriguing realities and facts about animation. The magazine has covered a wide and diverse range of topics, from tutorials to interviews of renowned personalities.

GI: What sort of work is being outsourced to India?

RC: Till around 2003, India’s participation came only during the final stage of production. However with the country’s increasing knowledge and skill in the animation forte, the country’s genius is being acknowledged and the works are now being taken from the initial level of production itself. India plays an important role from the birth of the projects till its culmination.

GI: What do you have to save about the emergence of a ‘Toon Boom’ that India is experiencing today?

RC: We cannot dispute the fact that India is certainly witnessing a ‘Toon Boom’ today. There are a series of channels such as Pogo, Disney etc that are available throughout the country’s network. However I personally feel the need of Indian studios to develop and design something new, novel and most importantly original. Till date whatever is featured on these channels is works from foreign studios which are dubbed and presented. There should be something that is purely of an Indian origin

GI: Can India outperform advanced animation content creating countries such as U.S. and Japan?

RC:I think that before dreaming about outperforming such giants such as the U.S. and Japan, we should atleast take the first step by being on par with them. Surpassing them in this field is a dream that is not impossible or unattainable; however it certainly is difficult and requires a lot of hard work, grit and determination.
Here I would like to mention that India’s biggest strengths are its cheap and skilled labour along with language proficiency. We have the boon of the English language that a lot of other foreign countries lack. Currently many U.S.-based firms are venturing to India, thanks to the strengths that India possesses and the benefits it offers over most other countries.

GI: Speaking about venturing and investing, what do you have to say about Venture Capitalists eyeing Indian animation?

RC: This is indeed the apt time for venture capitalists to invest in Indian animation. At present India is ‘the market’ and investors will surely profit enormously by sowing their money here.

GI: What do you think is the scope of 2D and 3D animation in India?

RC: 2D animation has been ruling since a very long time. Until recently, much of the work done by Indian computer animation production houses for the global market was mainly 2D animation. 3D animation grew in India only after 2001. So it’s a relatively new concept. Comparatively there is lesser skilled man-power in the 3D sector and fewer amounts of people are engaged in it. However Indian companies are scripting limited success stories in their attempt to penetrate the global market for 3D animation work.

GI: What are your views on ‘Hanuman,’ India’s first fully animated 2D feature film. How do you think has it affected the Indian animation industry?

RC: Hanuman’ has placed India on a glorious position on the global map of animation movies. The movie has been praised and acclaimed not only in India but also has received a lot of awards and accolades throughout the world. ‘Hanuman Part 2’ is also on its way, strengthening India’s grip in the world of animation. Apart from ‘Hanuman Part 2’ there are other works that will hit the big screen by 2007.

GI: India’s main lobby group for software industry – the National Association for Software and Service Companies (NASSCOM) – had estimated the Indian industry to log $950 Million in revenues in four years. Do you think that can be a reality?

RC: As for now we have hit the $250 Million target. I do think that we should reach upto atleast $900 Million in the coming four years.

GI: What do the Indian animators require to hit big in the global market?

RC: Indians, by and large are very creative and artistic by nature. It is these qualities of Indians that are essential plus points in the animation field. However we do lack in training skills and technical knowledge about the subject. Once we get technically trained, I don’t think anything or anyone can deter us from being on the top.

GI: What do you consider as the basics to enter the animation industry?

RC: Apart from things like creativity and technical knowledge, one thing that anyone keen to enter this industry should have is a lot of sustenance power. I would like to mention here that in this field nobody starts big. There is a lot of hard-work and struggle before you get anywhere. You need to be focused towards your goal and nothing or no failure should discourage you from working harder and better by the day. Once you make your mind about this and get focused, then you are surely set to hit big.

GI: What’s the future of the animation industry in India?

RC: The animation industry is growing very well in India. It is somewhere on par with India’s IT industry. Infact there are many big IT companies that are investing in this industry.
Due to the extremely competitive climate as well as the global slow-down, some of the large studios in the US have implemented large amounts of layoffs of animators and artists. India is slowly emerging as an alternative to Korea, Philippine and Taipei for animation outsourcing. India is also emerging as a post-production hub for animation. Over time it is projected that more and more high value jobs would be outsourced to India. For low value post-production works, it is easier for a studio in the US to outsource its post production work as probably nothing is going to go wrong. India has one of the lowest labor rates, which makes it an attractive destination for animation outsourcing.