Dated: 6 December 2001
In conjunction, with the launch of the Asia Animation Conference 2001, the Singapore Broadcasting Authority (SBA) organised a Singapore Animation Showcase, held today at the Sentosa's Shangri-La Resort, the venue for the Asia Television Forum 2001.
Mr Koh Tin Fook, Deputy CEO and Director (Industry Development), SBA said, "Animation is fast becoming an important element in the visual entertainment industry, both TV and film, and there is much potential in the area for the industry to exploit. SBA initiated the Singapore Animation Showcase as a platform to feature the excellent efforts of our very own local companies. We hope that the Showcase will encourage the creation of more exciting and compelling animation programmes for TV that can travel beyond Singapore."
The Singapore Animation Showcase featured Singapore-made animation programmes for TV, two of which made their first appearance: Kukupin and The Earth Story 2099.
Produced by Pandora Interactive Studio, Kukupin is a 24-min animation programme featuring Kukupin, a mystic creature of the jungle, who embarks on a new lease of life as he discovers his magical powers and learns to adapt to city life. Viewers are taken on a journey with Kukupin as he escapes the clutches of the evil Dr Mad and foils his plans for world domination.
Mr Rex Lee, Head of Animation, Pandora Interactive Studio said, "Pandora is proud to be launching Kukupin for the first time in Singapore -- Kukupin is a home-grown children's animation programme which takes its audiences on a magical adventure ride. We believe it will be a hit with families, and plans are in place to spin the production into an animation series to be marketed internationally. Our team has invested a lot of effort and passion into this project and we are very privileged to have SBA's support in making this production possible. We're also excited about the possibilities of making Kukupin available over the Internet and wireless platforms -- this is all in line with our company's vision as a creative digital content provider for new media."
Kukupin has already been picked up by MediaCorp TV12 for broadcast on Kids Central at the end of this year. According to Ms Koh Lee Lian, Senior Assistant Vice President at MediaCorp TV12, "Kids Central is proud to be the first channel to premiere this local animation as part of our year-end special on 31 December 2001. We are confident that viewers will find the character Kukupin endearing and the story captivating. Pandora has put in much creative effort and time in producing this animation. We look forward to any new shows that they will be working on in future!"
Another animation programme that was featured at the Singapore Animation Showcase was The Earth Story 2099, produced by 7G Studios Inc, the same team that created the award-winning RATS 2099. The Earth Story 2099 tells the story of a child hero, Brocco, who discovers the legend of a city called Meetros and how it was once ruled by a horrifying force named Tagoo. The 24-min adventure-packed animation sees the re-emergence of Tagoo to regain the city of Meetros and Brocco's attempt to conquer and subdue him.
Mr Edmund Ooi, Chief Executive of 7G Studios Inc commented, "The Earth Story 2099 is an expression of our passion in 3D animation creation. With the achievement at the Asian Television Technical and Creative Awards, 7G Studios seeks to remain at the forefront as we continuously strive to achieve high-quality, high-end animation. We also aim to inspire people of the endless possibilities available in animation production. A concerted industrial effort in animation development and production should be harnessed to develop Singapore as a regional animation industry hub."
The Singapore Animation Showcase also featured the established work of Starts Corporation with its 12 Family series. The characters from The 12 Family were created from the 12 symbolic (or zodiac) animal in the traditional Chinese astrology.
Dr Tan Hock, Chairman of Starts Corporation said, "Starts will display its contents-driven franchising model, with The 12 Family cartoon characters as the focus. The two animated series based on The 12 Family are only the beginning of our effort to provide different varieties of contents for the international market to drive our business in the areas of children's education, licensing of merchandise, publications and the like."
The three local animation companies featured at the Singapore Animation Showcase will also be participating at the Asia Animation Exhibition 2001: Pandora Interactive Studio (Stand A01), 7G Studios (Stand A03) and Starts Corporation (Stand A10).
In addition, SBA has its own suite (Suite 742) to further its promotion efforts on Singapore as the premier broadcasting hub and to encourage collaborative efforts and co-production projects between local and international players. The SBA suite will be a place for participants of the Asia Television Forum and Asia Animation to find out more about broadcasting and TV production business in Singapore.
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