The gobsmacking success of Chinese animated feature “Ne Zha 2,” which recently topped $2 billion in China to become the first ever to break that record in a single market, has got toon-makers in Asia, well, animated…
“Ne Zha 2” is now well on track to become one of the six best-performing movies of all time.
These are heady days for toons in Asia. The HKIFF Industry Project Market has seen a staggering 60% jump in animation submissions versus last year — of the 48 projects in the project market, six are toon features.
“Animation may be an area that Hong Kong is trying to play a role to become some kind of a hub that people can come and exchange ideas and projects … we think this may be an area for growth,” HKIFF industry director Jacob Wong told Variety.
“We have people coming in from Japan, a traditional powerhouse production country for animation. And then we have people coming in from China, who recently produced this mega-box office animation hit (“Ne Zha 2”). And then we have people coming in from Indonesia, which is a major animation production country in Southeast Asia. They do a lot of animation for children, which is a really big market,” said Wong.
The animation slate in the project market comprises both industry veterans and rising toon talents, including Hong Kong director Toe Yuen (“My Life as McDull,” 2003 Annecy best film winner) whose “A Mighty Adventure” (Taiwan, Hong Kong, Malaysia) was shot live in Taiwan, with 90% of computer animation completed in Malaysia.
The development slate includes Kunming-born artist Gao Yuan’s “Cloud of the Unknown” (Hong Kong, France), backed by producer Isabelle Glachant. Gao’s previous short of the same name premiered at Locarno 2020, winning the Arte Laguna prize.
Mumbai-based Triparna Maiti brings “The Tale of the Holy Beast” (India), which previously pitched at Annecy’s Mifa market, the Busan Asian Project Market and Seattle’s Tasveer Film Market. Rounding out the animation slate is Xu Zao’s “Light Pillar” (China), produced by actor-director Da Peng.
Among the companies hoping to ride the wave of Asian animation is success is Munich-based family entertainment specialist Studio 100 Film. After securing strong international sales across multiple territories for “Miss Moxy” and “North”, Studio 100 Film is seeking Asian distribs at FilMart for its slate of animated films.
As well as “Miss Moxy” and “North”, Studio 100 Film is bringing “Rally — From Paris to the Pyramids”, helmed by Rasmus A. Sivertsen (“Captain Sabertooth and the Magic Diamond”) and written by Rob Sprackling (“Gnomeo & Juliet”). The film is set for delivery at the end of 2025.
“The global animation market remains vibrant, with a strong appetite for independent productions. However, given the saturation of animated content in the market, quality has become the key differentiator. Distributors are seeking well-crafted stories with broad audience appeal, ideally on strong Ips,” said Lucrecia Magnanini, who manages sales and acquisition at Studio 100 Film.
“We are closing strong deals in markets like Taiwan and Vietnam, which reflects the ongoing potential for quality animated content,” she said.
