Cartoon in frame over 'plagiarism'
Source: Xinhua |
July 31, 2011, Sunday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
CHINA'S Internet users have accused the makers of a soon-to-be-released domestic cartoon series of copying a Japanese one.
The series, called "High-speed Rail Man," tells the story of a young man who fights the forces of evil to protect train passengers.
Both the plot and frames were found to be similar to anime "Hikarian" - produced in 1998 by Japanese children's merchandise and entertainment company Tomy - after Internet users compared frames in a six-minute trailer and those in Hikarian.
Feifan Creative, the series' producer, based in China's northeastern Shenyang City, said last week that production was not finished and would be modified.
An administrative officer, surnamed Sui, with the company said it was common that animations looked alike.
"Our high-speed train has a streamlined design, while the Japanese express is flat-headed. There are big differences," he said.
But netizens were unimpressed. "It's such a pity that China is producing copycats, while Japan and the United States have made animation a pillar industry," posted cartoon fan Zhu Yiping.
Another Internet user, called "Chenzhuoshunjian," vented his fury. "Poor technology and poor plots are forgivable, but such plagiarism is irritating. I'm so angry."
China is a large animation producer. It produced 220,500 minutes of animation in 2010, the most of any country, according to the Annual Report on the Development of China's Animation Industry, published this month.
However, experts are concerned about the originality of China's animation industry.
Wang Lei, assistant dean of the Animation School at the Communications University in Beijing, said the industry lacks qualified writers and directors.
"It takes a graduate 10 to 20 years to become a real artist. But Chinese companies do not offer such environments for growth," said Wang.
Internet users also appealed for a revival of the renowned Chinese school of animation of the 1950s and 1960s, characterized by its ink painting technique and the influence of traditional Chinese drama.
"Animators should stop copying and learn from ink painting cartoons," said microblog user "hundansi."
The series, called "High-speed Rail Man," tells the story of a young man who fights the forces of evil to protect train passengers.
Both the plot and frames were found to be similar to anime "Hikarian" - produced in 1998 by Japanese children's merchandise and entertainment company Tomy - after Internet users compared frames in a six-minute trailer and those in Hikarian.
Feifan Creative, the series' producer, based in China's northeastern Shenyang City, said last week that production was not finished and would be modified.
An administrative officer, surnamed Sui, with the company said it was common that animations looked alike.
"Our high-speed train has a streamlined design, while the Japanese express is flat-headed. There are big differences," he said.
But netizens were unimpressed. "It's such a pity that China is producing copycats, while Japan and the United States have made animation a pillar industry," posted cartoon fan Zhu Yiping.
Another Internet user, called "Chenzhuoshunjian," vented his fury. "Poor technology and poor plots are forgivable, but such plagiarism is irritating. I'm so angry."
China is a large animation producer. It produced 220,500 minutes of animation in 2010, the most of any country, according to the Annual Report on the Development of China's Animation Industry, published this month.
However, experts are concerned about the originality of China's animation industry.
Wang Lei, assistant dean of the Animation School at the Communications University in Beijing, said the industry lacks qualified writers and directors.
"It takes a graduate 10 to 20 years to become a real artist. But Chinese companies do not offer such environments for growth," said Wang.
Internet users also appealed for a revival of the renowned Chinese school of animation of the 1950s and 1960s, characterized by its ink painting technique and the influence of traditional Chinese drama.
"Animators should stop copying and learn from ink painting cartoons," said microblog user "hundansi."
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