Event promises new technologies, old favorites
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THE 12th China International Cartoon and Animation Festival (CICAF) — the biggest event of the year for cartoon fans and industry insiders in China — will take place between April 27 and May 2 in Hangzhou.
The main venue for the six-day extravaganza is the White Horse Lake Cartoon and Animation Square. Events are also scheduled at 14 secondary venues around the city.
Some 50 events are scheduled this year, including the Cartoon Game Business Conference. In attendance will be luminaries such as Andrew Millstein, the producer of “Zootopia,” Liu Zhijiang, the producer of “King of Heroes,” as well as animators, designers and company representatives from some 80 countries and regions.
Cartoon fans can also watch clips and view artwork from series such as “Transformers,” “Star Wars,” “The Avengers,” “Garfield,” and “Dragon Ball.”
Meanwhile, there will also be drawings from school children from 20 countries and regions inspired by the G20 Summit to be held in Hangzhou in September.
Last year, attendance at the festival reached more than 1.37 million. Representatives from more than 600 companies flocked to Hangzhou and altogether nearly 15 billion yuan (US$2.4 billion) in contracts were signed during the 2015 event.
Industry events
This year, several recurring events will aim for even more exposure by expanding their scale and adding new content. As usual, there will also be plenty of new technologies and innovations to catch the public’s attention.
One of the highlights this year is the new virtual reality display section. Visitors can experience a series of virtual interactive activities using state-of-the-art VR equipment. There will also be holograms, large-screen projections and three-dimensional displays to present high-definition cartoon works.
On the industry side of the festival, there’s the Cartoon and Animation Industry Summit. This summit will include speeches from some of the animation world’s biggest names. Special attention will also be placed on how China’s cartoon industry can pursue development.
Meanwhile, the Cartoon Master Class will host, among others, Melissa Cobb from DreamWorks, as well as reps from British visual effects studio Double Negative. Participants will share their expertise on cartoon creation, production and opening new markets.
More than 20 young cartoonists from China, Japan and South Korea will also face off in an exciting competition that will see them create storylines and images on the spot.
In addition to the contest, local Hangzhou cartoonist Xia Da will stage a solo exhibition during the festival. The show will feature over 100 pieces from her popular work “Chang Ge Xing.”
In Japanese, voice actors are known as seiyu. Many of them have carved out niches for themselves by voicing popular cartoon characters or providing narration for well-known programs.
In recent years, barriers to the profession have come down as recording software allow fans to create their own dubbing work and share the results online.
This year, organizers are cooperating with smartphone dubbing software maker Pei Yin Xiu to encourage users to share their works at the festival.
After years of development, the CICAF’s seiyu competition has become a major platform for professional and amateur voice actors. Many accomplished seiyu actors have been discovered at previous festivals, which in turn has helped the competition attract even more attention at home and abroad.
Auditions for this year’s seiyu competition started in January. More than 40 colleges and universities from Zhejiang, Guangdong, Shandong and Hunan provinces have participated. In addition, this year’s competition has attracted actors from 15 countries, including France, the United States, Germany and Italy, highlighting the international appeal of both seiyu and Japanese animation.
Professional dubbing actors Jiang Guangtao and Li Jingtang will judge the contest. Websites like Tencent and Netease confirmed that they will be scouting for talent among the prizewinners.
Zhu Deyong is a Taiwanese cartoonist known for his light-hearted images. A few of his works have been adapted into TV shows. This year, Zhu will be the subject of a 2,000-square-meter exhibition at the festival’s main venue. This exhibition will feature artifacts, images and merchandise dedicated to Zhu and his creation. Visitors will also be invited to create a 10-meter-long mural with the artist himself.
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