But where are the people?

If you were among the lakhs of viewers watching the 76th Academy Awards on television on March 1, you are likely to have heard of Kyle Cooper. The motion picture graphics designer and CEO of Prologue Films designed and executed the dazzling array of computer-generated graphics for the Oscars.

But you may not know the team that assisted him in creating the spectacular television graphics. Among team members were Indian computer artistes and engineers from Tata Elxsi's Visual Computing Labs (VCL). The fact that VCL executives in Mumbai, Bangalore and Burbank helped during the Oscars indicates that Hollywood is increasingly relying on the Indian animation industry's expertise.

Visual Computing Labs head K Chandrashekhar thinks that 2004 could turn out to be the big year for India's animation industry. "If companies perform to the satisfaction of international clients, 2004-2005 can see India becoming a hot destination for outsourced animation work," he predicts.

Today, a regular Hollywood film has a minimum animation budget of $50 million. When "The Lord of the Rings" was made, $200 million was spent on animation.

With major work being outsourced to India, there is a great opportunity for animation companies here. In money terms, animation production in India is expected to go up from US $ 0.6 billion in 2001 to US $ 1.5 billion by 2005. (A study on animation by the National Association of Software and Service Companies forecasts that the global animation industry will generate revenues of $ 50-70 billion by 2005).

In India, some 70 companies turn out animations, the more prominent being Paprikas, Tata Elxsi, Digital Art Media, Deccan Animation, JadooWorks and Acropetal.

Digital Art Media (known for its special effects in films like "Koi Mil Gaya" and "Dil Chahta Hai"), for instance, is currently working on four Indian films and one UK film. The company employs 15 full-time and 10 part-time consultants. It has also done some animation work for UK firms which is being used by broadcasters such as Disney and Nickelodeon.

Avishkar Dahiya, chief executive producer, Digital Art Media, says that all's well with the animation industry, for now. "But we are at a phase where investments to increase the talent pool are most essential," he says.

Most animation industry experts echo Dahiya's concern about the shortage of animators. While animation studios in India may be flooded with enquiries and projects from the entertainment industry in the US, the industry here has very little manpower. And that, according to VCL's Chandrashekhar, is the biggest challenge. "It lies in finding quality animators, critical for the manpower-intensive industry. There is a dearth of good quality, experienced animators who are the lifeblood of the industry," he says.

Today, the Indian animation industry is said to employ about 5,000 people. Considering the growth in outsourced work to India, as well as the pace with which animation companies are scaling up their operations, trained manpower is likely to be the biggest concern in the near future. By 2006-2007, it is estimated that the industry will need between 30,000 and 40,000 people to keep pace with the requirements of the animation business.

That's why animation companies are keen to resolve the manpower shortage. For starters, they have taken it upon themselves to train people in animation. According to Ashish S. Kulkarni, chief operating officer, Jadoo Works, the company spends a considerable amount of time and money on training people. "A new employee takes nearly five months to be useful," he claims.

Kulkarni, however, feels that the industry must encourage the opening of more training schools for animation. "The days of full-length animated feature films from India are not far away," he says. However, feature film animation not only requires proprietary software but also trained personnel. "Currently, we invest money on training that can actually be done by training institutes," he adds.

Agrees Digital Art Media's Dahiya: "Today, our biggest challenge is the lack of education in animation. It is high time that universities include animation courses as part of their curriculum."

To ensure that the training institutes offer training that meets the requirements of the industry, animation companies are working closely with schools like the National Institute of Design, Ants and Toonz. They have suggested changes and alterations in the syllabii of animation schools.

In a serious bid to prop up manpower numbers, Jadoo Works has also tried to convert traditional skills into digital skills. Many who are talented sculptors, painters and cartoonists have been encouraged to use technology to apply their creativity to animation. "The idea is to provide courses on the grammar of animation. The reason for our involvement with animation schools is the fact that people spend huge amounts of money to enroll themselves in animation courses. But most of the courses are not tailored to the requirements of the industry. As a result, we decided to recommend course material that is more applicable to the industry," says Kulkarni.

JadooWorks has an employee strength of 262. In the last one year, the company has hired over 150 people. It will ramp up headcount far more rapidly in the next financial year, provided deals for a foray into animation feature films fructify. If that happens, Jadoo will require an additional 700 people.

Dahiya believes that an animator requires special skills, the most important being imagination. As far as cost is concerned, getting work done in India is far cheaper. Currently, some of the biggest production houses in the US make full-length animation films on a budget of nearly $ 220 million. Work of this nature can be executed in India at a cost of $ 50-60 million.

In India, trainees in the animation industry start with a salary ranging between Rs 2,000 and Rs 5,000 a month. This could go up to Rs 7,000 to 12,000 a month. After a year's experience, trained animators earn between Rs 12,000 and Rs 16,000 a month. Beyond this, the compensation is based on performance.

According to animation industry experts, besides the lack of trained personnel, the industry also suffers from problems like a shortage of finance, lack of government support, animation studios' short-term approach to business, poaching and so on. "Studios usually outsource the actual production of animation in a project, while retaining creative control themselves. Nevertheless, Indian studios can turn around if they produced high quality work," says Visual Computing Labs' Chandrashekar.

He points out the need for manpower to meet production deadlines. "Most animation projects have a production period of 18-24 months before delivery. So studio capacity plays a major role in determining the quantum of work that can be outsourced to India. Also, Indian studios must be able to fund and sustain themselves for the duration of the project," he says.

Chandrashekhar is quick to add a word of caution. "Despite the positive trends, only the strongest and the financially sound Indian studios will survive 2004 and step into 2005," he says.

Though the crucial manpower problem is likely to continue, it could lead to a major boom in the training sector. International training acadmies could also look at setting up base in India. "This may force the Indian institutes and the government to finally sit up and take note of the enormous potential the animation industry has," he adds.

Executives at animation companies argue that that if the government pushes for more animation institutes being set up and supports the industry in terms of taxation policies, funding and trade treaties with major animation outsourcing countries, India could well produce its own Kyle Cooper one day.