Toonz plans to set up four animation training centres

Thiruvananthapuram-based Rs 20 crore Toonz Animation India Private Ltd is planning to set up around four centres of excellence (CoE) for training students in the animation industry. This apart, it is also looking at getting into animated feature film production in the near future.

"Within the next six months we are planning to set up about four training centres. The cities that we are looking at are Mumbai, Delhi, Bangalore and Hyderabad," P Jayakumar, chief executive officer of Toonz Animation India Private Ltd, said.

"For the new centres we may either go on our own or involve some business partners," Jayakumar said. "Toonz has already set up an animation school in Kolkata, in collaboration with the West Bengal government. The West Bengal government had invested about Rs 2 crore in infrastructure," Jayakumar said.

Toonz is, at present, working in collaboration with companies from the UK, Canada and France to produce a 52-episode 2D series called 'Brady's Beasts'. "We are co-producing the $10 million project, that is likely to be internationally premiered in April this year," Jayakumar said.

"This apart, we are also co-producing a 39-episode half-hour 3D series with a US and a UK group," Jayakumar said. Toonz will be investing Rs 20 crore in the project and similar amounts are likely to be invested by the US and UK groups as well, he added.

"We would also like to get into animated feature film production and are at present negotiating with US studios for this purpose," Jayakumar said. Toonz, which has 450 people working for it, is also planning to increase its workforce to 600 by this month-end, he added.