Pushing China's animation industry to the next level

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The China International Cartoon and Animation Festival (CICAF) in the eastern city of Hangzhou is putting the spotlight on China's animation industry. Companies and investors have cashed in the booming market, but it seems like this has not fully borne fruit yet.

This year’s CICAF is a carnival for fans of Erciyuan – a Chinese term referring an online world of anime, comics, video games and novels. Their devotion has caught the attention of major tech companies like Tencent and Xiaomi, which have spent a large sum of money in creating their own content.

The 14th China International Cartoon and Animation Festival opens in Hangzhou. /Xinhua Photo

According to a report by EntGroup, revenue for China's animation industry hit over 23.6 billion US dollars last year, making up 24 percent of the entertainment industry. More than 300 million people are paying for what is known as ACG – anime, comics and games. And over half of that lot were born after 1990.

However, the domestic animation market is still heavily influenced by Japan. A lack of originality and creativity is one of the reasons why China is lagging behind its neighbor.

"Animation makers must produce high-quality works instead of imitating or copying other works with high similarities," said Hu Jianping, CEO of Electronic Soul.

Lessons can be learnt from the success of the British cartoon Peppa Pig, which has gone viral on Chinese social media. Olivier Dumont, the managing director of the company behind this character, attributed its success to the content.

A festival visitor takes a picture of animation modeling devices at the International Animation Exhibition Area on April 25, 2018. /Xinhua Photo

"It's more the series itself or content itself that allows people to get familiar with it and get comfortable with it because they can recognize themselves in the show," the president of Entertainment One Olivier Dumont said.

Compared with these cultural icons, China's domestic animation industry definitely still has a long way to go before it takes over the nation.

Organizations and companies from 85 countries and regions are attending the festival, which has divided into five major sections, including exhibitions, competitions, and business fairs. The CICAF kicked off on Thursday and will run through May 1.