Four Australian animation production companies have been invited by the Korean Trade Commission to attend the country’s Cartoon Connection 2016, a conference and meeting event for industry professionals from Europe, South Korea and other Asian countries taking place May 2-5 at Jeju.
Set to attend are Flying Bark Productions, Sticky Pictures, BES Animation and Start VR, with Sticky Pictures’ Production Manager Felicity Abbott participating as a guest speaker. The Aussie studios will participate in targeted meetings and be presented with co-production opportunities with Korean and international companies at the market.
Instigated by Australia’s participation at last year’s Screen Forever event in Melbourne, the invitation marks the first time an Australian contingent has been invited to Cartoon Connection since the signing of a Free Trade Agreement with Korea in December of 2014, and follows a series of initiatives by Screen Producers Australia including collaboration with the Korean Trade Commission, CARTOON, the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade and Screen Australia.
“We consider Screen Forever as an important forum and connection point for producers to do business. The conference gave us the opportunity to make introductions that we would not otherwise have had the opportunity to make and the event’s forum enabled us to gain greater insight into what Australian producers need to consider in entering into a co-production agreement with Korea,” said Barbara Stephen, Managing Director, Flying Bark Productions.
Screen Forever 2016 will be held November 15-17 at the Crown Conference Centre Melbourne.
