Press Release 15 March 2012
Animation, once regarded as an obscure, labour intensive art form is about quantity in the present global scenario of capitalism. This has led to a booming animation industry in India dominated by outsourced commercial animation from Western countries. Factors that attract foreign entertainment companies to India include prevalence of English which makes it easier for communication, good studios equipped with state-of-the-art hardware and software and most of all, reduced rates of pay, estimated at 6-15 times less than salaries in the US.
Along with job opportunities, the current trend has also brought a mainstream sensibility for cartoons that is by now the standard expectation of young viewers in India. But animation can also be used for revitalizing folk art styles and indigenous culture in remote areas where young people are losing touch with their oral traditions. A three week long Animation Workshop running since 25 February 2012 at the Manipur Film Development Corporation in Imphal is providing the opportunity for young artists to explore animation as a tool to revitalize their folklore. The initiative of engaging a local group for pre-production of a short animated folktale from Manipur was proposed by the UK based Adivasi Arts Trust, a charitable organisation that has conducted similar workshops to introduce animation for storytelling in Nagaland, Sikkim and in Central India. In Manipur this cultural animation project has received support from the Government of Manipur, Department of Art and Culture.
The participants of the workshop are all from the Meitei community. At the start they chose a humorous folktale and over the past three weeks they have set about adapting it for a short animation film. Characters have been designed with reference to the artwork of the ancient illustrated manuscripts and the team wants to maintain a hand-made look for the film regardless of the animation software they use during the production. With the workshop concluding in two days time, the team is preparing a presentation of their work for the Commissioner of Art and Culture, Dr. R.K. Nimai, with the hope of attracting further support for completing the five minute long film.
Rates of production of a half an hour animated programme in US and Canada are said to range from $250,000-400,000; in the Philippines the estimated range is from $100,000-120,000 and in India at $80,000-100,000. Budget discussions have been held in the workshop to calculate how much it would cost to produce a short film in Manipur, where the rates are significantly less than in the animation centres of Mumbai and Bangalore, where salaries for animators range from 20,000 – 35,000 per month. In the United Kingdom, the recommended rates of pay for freelance 3D animation in 2009-2010 was £178- 232 per day; In remote Manipur where the pace of life is considerably slower, 8,000 INR per month is accepted as an adequate starting salary for an animator.
Along with job opportunities, the current trend has also brought a mainstream sensibility for cartoons that is by now the standard expectation of young viewers in India. But animation can also be used for revitalizing folk art styles and indigenous culture in remote areas where young people are losing touch with their oral traditions. A three week long Animation Workshop running since 25 February 2012 at the Manipur Film Development Corporation in Imphal is providing the opportunity for young artists to explore animation as a tool to revitalize their folklore. The initiative of engaging a local group for pre-production of a short animated folktale from Manipur was proposed by the UK based Adivasi Arts Trust, a charitable organisation that has conducted similar workshops to introduce animation for storytelling in Nagaland, Sikkim and in Central India. In Manipur this cultural animation project has received support from the Government of Manipur, Department of Art and Culture.
The participants of the workshop are all from the Meitei community. At the start they chose a humorous folktale and over the past three weeks they have set about adapting it for a short animation film. Characters have been designed with reference to the artwork of the ancient illustrated manuscripts and the team wants to maintain a hand-made look for the film regardless of the animation software they use during the production. With the workshop concluding in two days time, the team is preparing a presentation of their work for the Commissioner of Art and Culture, Dr. R.K. Nimai, with the hope of attracting further support for completing the five minute long film.
Rates of production of a half an hour animated programme in US and Canada are said to range from $250,000-400,000; in the Philippines the estimated range is from $100,000-120,000 and in India at $80,000-100,000. Budget discussions have been held in the workshop to calculate how much it would cost to produce a short film in Manipur, where the rates are significantly less than in the animation centres of Mumbai and Bangalore, where salaries for animators range from 20,000 – 35,000 per month. In the United Kingdom, the recommended rates of pay for freelance 3D animation in 2009-2010 was £178- 232 per day; In remote Manipur where the pace of life is considerably slower, 8,000 INR per month is accepted as an adequate starting salary for an animator.
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