Animation Masters' summit on May 6, 7

Thiruvananthapuram: The children of  the nineties might remember the cartoon series ‘Meena’ about a little girl who questions various social injustices, including discrimination towards girl children. The series director Ram Mohan, referred to as the father of Indian animation, will be honoured during ‘Animation Masters Summit 2016,’ a conference of animators at Technopark,  organised by Toonz Animation Private Ltd, on May 6 and 7.   

“We felt it is our sublime duty to venerate the master animator,” said Mr P. Jayakumar, CEO, Toonz Animation, said at a press conference on Tuesday.
Animators from around the world will share their experiences at the summit. French animator Jean  Marie Olivier will speak  about the success story of ‘Oggy and the Cockroaches.’  The summit’s festival director Mohan Subramanian said, “You may not have heard of ‘Oggy and the Cockroaches,’  but your children must know it. The series is highly popular in India.”

Rajiv Chilaka, the creator of Chhota Bheem, will speak about ‘creating India’s largest children’s brand.’ Charuvi Agarwal who made ‘Shri Hanuman Chalisa’, Arnab Chaudhari who directed ‘Arjun, the Warrior Prince’ and art director Sabu Cyril will attend it.

The winners of ‘The Flying Elephant Animation and Short Film Competition’ will be felicitated. When asked about the growth of animation industry in India, Mr Jayakumar said that it was  still in its nascent stage  as compared to Korea or Japan.

However,  it was  growing and there are 25 animation studios in Thiruvananthapuram, he added. “Today there is an appetite for local content and Indian content is driving the industry here. Moreover,  digital technology is changing the landscape. Chotoonz, the web cartoon channel we launched, is watched by children in over 200 countries,” he said.