Joan Vogelesang, is someone whom many Indian
animation pioneers look up to as a mentor and expert in the field of animation.
She is also the president and CEO of Toon Boom. She sits on Toon Boom’s Board
of Directors and under her leadership; Toon Boom continues to maintain its
position as a world leader in animation technology.
With well over 30 years of experience as a
senior executive responsible for international business development, customer
care and operational management in large and smaller organisations; Vogelesang
is regularly invited as a guest speaker at international animation events.
These include Asia Animation Conference, ChangZhou Animation Festival, HangZhou
Animation Festival, eLearning Africa, FRAMES and NASSCOM Animation India.
Her association with Indian animation
continues till date and in 2004, the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce
& Industry honoured Vogelesang with the Life Time Achievement Award for
promoting the Indian Animation Sector on the global map.
The globetrotting CEO managed to take out some
time off her busy schedule and share her thoughts with AnimationXpress.com’s
Sidharth Iyer in a heart to heart e-mail interaction on the future of the
Indian animation industry and where it stands currently…
Excerpts:-
You have seen the Indian animation industry
upfront, close and personal for several decades now. Can you give us an
outsider’s perspective on it?
A decade ago, India had a great opportunity to take a leadership
role for outsourcing opportunities, as well as developing the skill to create
local content for export. However, India missed the opportunity due to lack of
training on a large scale to prepare the workforce as per international
standards. In addition, the focus was more on 3D and productions that did not
meet international standards, except for one or two studios.
The opportunity was missed then but is now regenerated through
education at the elementary and secondary levels.
What are some of the positive initiatives that
the Indian animation industry has made over the years?
A couple of very strong studios emerged over the years and
carved themselves an impressive reputation internationally, not only in terms
of outsourcing within India and overseas but also investing in productions.
Education still needs to be addressed to get the workforce
well-trained and market-ready.
Which initiatives have harmed the cause of the
Indian animation industry?
Mostly, it is the lack of education in animation concepts,
storytelling, and production pipeline delivered to a broad enough group to
supply the industry. Another element relates to the mindset of keeping up to
date with training and technology, as both evolve rapidly due to market
requirements. Lastly, the fact that studios are competing among themselves
instead of competing as a cohesive group internationally, along with using
pirated technology has hampered them a lot.
What is needed to get the Indian animation
industry on the growth track?
Primarily, it would be to develop a well-trained workforce and
have entrepreneurial stakeholders invest in infrastructure. Secondly, it is
important to connect studios to work internationally within co-productions and
content development that is exportable. Toon Boom has a methodology that has
been implemented in other countries and has proven to be successful. There are
not enough people to fill the studios and not enough studios to deliver content
to broadcasters and netcasters such as Netflix.
Can you talk about some of the successful
animation studios in India and discuss their strengths and the work they have
produced?
DQ out of Hyderabad has emerged as a leader in both outsourcing
and IP development. Early on, they focused on staff development by bringing
outside experts to transfer the knowledge and continued developing their skills
to be proficient in different techniques. Their leadership is tremendous; Tapaas
is known internationally and has worked very hard to gain their current
reputation.
Toonz Animation out of Trivandrum is another strong player,
mostly known for their investment and development of IP, as well as their
hiring of outsourcing studios within India and outside. In the past, they
organised an event called “Week with the Masters”, introducing international
animators to the local community and exposing them to established animation
concepts and quality requirements. Jayakumar and his team worked hard to
maintain a high-profile reputation globally.
There are many others that are doing excellent work, such as
Technicolor India headed by Biren Ghose out of Bangalore. They provide very
good services to Technicolor International. Biren has a thorough understanding
of the industry and his credibility is very well established.
One of the big advantages these studios have is their fiercely
entrepreneurial quality and nature, which bode very well for the future.
How would you rate the animation industries in
some of the southeast Asian countries and China as compared to the Indian
animation industry?
The Philippines and South Korea are very well recognised for the
quality of their workforce and production throughout compared to China, where
the tremendous investment in infrastructure and training is not paired with
quality as per international standards. DeTao Master Academy is paving the way
to significantly up the storytelling capabilities and production quality. They
have initiated a significant transfer of skills and invested in manpower but
still, quality standards are not yet met.
In India, even though the investment in manpower is not backed
by government, there are still pockets of expertise nurtured by the
entrepreneurial nature of key stakeholders. India is well positioned to moving
forward and getting the sector up in a timely fashion. In India, it is quite
common to have most senior visitors meet and talk to the junior staff while
visiting the premises. It is a great benefit to share information in an open
society.
Can India break out and become a global
animation force?
Absolutely; all the pieces are there. They need a strong
business group or association that wants to make it happen and move forward as
a team. Creative industries, of which animation is a significant part, can
represent a significant pillar in the economy and translates to job creation
and the generation of export earnings.
Here are some stats:
In Quebec, Canada: Creative industries provided Montreal with 91,500 jobs in 2012
and generated economic benefits of $8.6 billion for the greater Montreal
region.
The average rate of job creation in the creative industries was
more than twice of that seen in the average Montreal economy in recent years.
Self-employed workers account for 25 per cent of total jobs in
the creative economy compared to 11 per cent overall.
Montreal ranked seventh out of 21 North American cities in terms
of the importance of the creative industries to its economy. In Montreal, 3.5
per cent of the workforce is working in creative industries, behind
front-runners like Seattle and New York, but neck and neck with Toronto and
Vancouver, and ahead of cities like Chicago, San Diego and Boston.
In Ontario, Canada: Creative industries support more than 300,000 jobs 1,000
digital media companies employ16,000 people and generate about $1.2 billion in
revenue.
Film and television production companies account for 30,000 jobs
and contributed $1.3 billion to the economy in 2011.
In the UK:
The creative sector accounted for $1.6 of every $15.6 of British export.
British creative industries generate close to $109,000 every minute.
It is worth mentioning that animation technologies are now used
within the educational system from elementary to secondary to teach all
subjects. Not only does it keep students engaged and motivated to learn, it
opens up career options and prepares them to pursue their education in the
field to join the creative and digital communication market.
How is Toon Boom faring in India? Which
software technologies have found traction and why? Do you see a large market
for it in the coming years? What steps are you taking to meet your
expectations?
Toon Boom has had cyclical success in India and continues to be
active. The future is positive. We see great interest in our 2D-3D integration
capabilities, which is the style mostly chosen for gaming and consumer products.
We are at the studio level as well as in education throughout all levels up to
training for jobs.
Are you still bullish on India? Why?
Absolutely. It is
necessary. India is a huge force for the future in many different sectors. We
feel extremely optimistic from Toon Boom’s perspective and are with the
industry.
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