NEWS: Creative content lessons from India

When people think about India and the content industry, the first thing that springs to mind is Bollywood.

But industry observer, Anand Gunarni believes that India can offer more than scenic landscapes and heart-pumping choreography.

Gunarni is the co-founder, chief executive officer and managing editor of AnimationXpress.com, an industry and business to business portal in India.

Gunarni will be in Kuala Lumpur for Kre8tif, the Dec 7-9 content industry conference that is organised by the custodian of the MSC Malaysia inititiative, the Multimedia Development Corp.

In an e-mail interview with Techcentral, he tells us how the Indian digital content industry is growing and why the world shouldn’t just expect Bollywood titles from the country’s studios.

TechCentral: India is known as an IT giant in the world today. How do you expect this scene to be more vibrant with a thriving content industry?

Anand Gunarni: Long before India got into IT, Bollywood was already producing 1,000 films a year. So India is primarily a huge industry for communication, entertainment, information and knowledge.

The only change we speak about now, is that how will it be with digital content? I think we have to wait and watch. Its already great from the industry and entreprenuership side, but the audience is yet to give the positive vote to animation.

Kids love it — the videogame console and Cartoon Network are as much a part of their lives as their families. So as we go ahead in time, its going to grow exponentially.

TC: We have noticed a lot of Indian names in a few international productions this year. What’s new in the Indian content industry?

AG: The new thing in the Indian CG and animation content industry is that its growing fast in both international work as well as domestic animation feature films being produced for local consumption.

More than 40 animation features are under various stages of production in India and AnimationXpress.com showcased 12 trailers of upcoming Indian animation features at the Digital Bollywood CXO Conclave event recently.

In television, titles like Little Krishna and Chota Bheem are doing wonders.

On the international front there are some Indian studios that are making features for global audiences including Crest Animation which is making the Alpha & Omega film in co-production with Lionsgate of the United States.

In the VFX (visual effects) and CG for Hollywood space, companies like Rhythm & Hues, (which is now also in Kuala Lumpur), Prana, Crest, DQ, Anibrain, Imageworks, Dreamworks and Geon studios have all done some great work and are riding higher up the quality value chain all the time.

TC: Can the world expect new content from India soon?

AG: Yes. And it will bring smiles on faces worlwide. Some of them include Kuchi Kuchi Hota Hain, which is an animation version of the 1997 classic super hit Kuch Kuch Hota Hain, Hey Krishna! and Delhi Safari.

TC: There is no doubt that Bollywood is India’s popular export. However, we believe there is more to the Indian content industry that that. What other gems is India hiding?

AG: Of course there is more than Bollywood. But at the same time, let me also give my perspective that Bollywood today does not only mean the Indian film industry but all the entertainment content India produces and to me it stands for songs, dances, costumes, romance and family values.

There is a lot of talent that has not yet come to the fore in terms of the hidden gems, but that’s because of the star system we have here. Audiences want to see their stars and so not many films can be made by independent studios with a low budget.

TC: What would you say are India’s strengths in the content industry? What about her weaknesses and how can this be remedied?

AG: The Indian industry’s strengths include entreprenuership skills, technology savviness, animation production and a huge market, which Bollywood has tapped for almost 100 years but is yet to be tapped for animation.

However, the industry will need to work on pre-production and script development skills as well as how to effectively package and present our animation titles.

We also hope that the Indian government give more support to this industry as currently there is a lack of support and structure from them.

TC: How long do you reckon would the Indian content industry (specifically digital content) take before it has the same reputation as content powerhouses like Disney, Nickelodeon, Nelvana etc?

AG: Already studios like Prana, Crest, VCL, Graphiti and Famous Animation have a top league reputation globally as CG production and co-production companies.

In terms of powerhouses of content that produce their own intellectual property I think companies like UTV, Big Animation, Greengold are on their way. I believe it will happen in the next five years.

TC: How large is the Indian content development industry and where does it stand globally?

AG: I can speak for animation, VFX and games as those are my domains. These are worth between US$300mil -US$350mil (about RM1.1tril) with around 400 studios, 20,000 artists, 100 education companies, 2,000 training centers and 200,000 students.

These figures are from AnimationXpress.com research and analysis and are based on six years of our company’s involvement with Indian animation.

TC:What would your advice be to budding content developers who are about to dip their toes in this highly competitive industry?

AG:Firstly search your heart as to what is the story or idea you want to communicate to the audience. And then put your 100% focus and energy on creating the best possible experience for the viewers. Be ready to spend sleepless nights, be ready to be broke, be ready to be called a fool, but dont be ready to compromise on the experience of your content.

Gunarni will be moderating a panel discussion titled How to grow a studio from the ground up. For more information about Kre8tif, go to bit.ly/34oAjd or their Facebook page at www.facebook.com/kre8tif.