Local animators spot Hong Kong opportunities

MANILA, Philippines – Local animators are taking a shot at opportunities in Hong Kong’s film industry with their participation in the recent Hong Kong Film and Television Market Fair or Hong Kong Filmart.

“It is our first time to bring our resources together and participate in the HK Filmart as a country. There are so many opportunities from this experience for the Philippine creative industry,” said Erwin Escubio, director for finance and business development of Cutting Edge Productions, the outfit behind the award-winning animated film “Dayo.”

The country’s participation likewise opened opportunities for Philippine-made feature films such as “Dayo” and “Urduja” to gain entry in film festivals in Asia and Europe.

Local companies Glow Animation, Seventoons, Cutting Edge Productions, Top Peg and Evershine Animation were among those which joined the fair, generating important business inquiries for theatrical distribution of their creative content in areas such as North America, Iran, Thailand, Taiwan, Myanmar and Vietnam.

“The first Philippine participation generated inquiries from companies seeking to outsource or co-produce creative content as well as buyers of content licensing for full-length animated features,” said Ma. Lourdes D. Mediran, deputy executive director and officer in charge of the Center for International Trade Expositions and Missions (CITEM).

“Philippine animation companies were also able to form linkage with Thailand’s Software Industry Promotion Agency and Malaysia’s Multimedia Development Organization,” she added.

CITEM, an attached agency of the Department of Trade and Industry, is tasked to promote the country’s priority sectors including e-services and creative industries.

“The Philippine participation in Hong Kong is our way of harnessing the creativity and innovation of our film and animation companies to forge ahead in the global economy amid the recession,” added Mediran.

CITEM, together with the Animation Council of the Philippines (ACPI) and the Film Development Council of the Philippines, led the Philippine participation. The Export Development Council provided the funding for the endeavor.

The Philippine participation also yielded offers of co-production from China, Singapore and France as well as negotiations for new materials for possible television series production.

Hong Kong Filmart brought in buyers from Hong Kong, Asia Pacific, Europe, China and the Americas.

Industry reports said growth opportunities are seen in the overall entertainment industry specifically on film, television and digital entertainment.

To date, the top five sources of content acquisition in Asia are Hong Kong, China, South Korea, Japan and Thailand.

The Philippine creative industry is composed of audio-visual design, space design, industrial design, fashion design, multimedia, handicrafts, writing-based industries, culinary arts and performing arts.

Under the proposed Philippine Export Development Plan 2008-2010, emerging creative services such as film and television productions were identified as among the potential major revenue contributors.