Russian animation to be shown in Asia

Russian film companies summed up the results of their participation in the international film market Telefilm Vietnam, which was held in June in Ho Chi Minh City. The Russian Content Worldwide (RCW) booth was organized by ROSKINO, the Russian film promotion body; in total, more than 80 projects from 18 companies were presented. Representatives of Vietnam, China, Hong Kong, South Korea, Singapore, Malaysia, India and other countries were interested in Russian cinema. Russian companies held almost 230 meetings with foreign content buyers. The most popular genres were animation, action, historical series, thrillers, military dramas, as well as documentaries dedicated to popular science, history, travel and nature. There is a growing interest among Asian partners in co-production in the field of animation.

Among the Russian projects that the Asian audience will soon see are the animated series I’ll Get You! Holidays and Rockoons, the thrillers The Vacant Life of a Chef, Ya idu iskat and When She Comes, the historical series Ekaterina, the documentary series Space Flight, Incredible Science and Mysteries of History, the action-movies The Silver Spoon and The Silver Spoon goes South and others. Negotiations are ongoing on many projects.

Animation companies presented 25 projects at the Telefilm Vietnam market. The market for SMF Animation was productive. The company entered into a deal with Vietnam Satellite Digital Television Company (VSTV) for the animated series I’ll Get You! Holidays and Rockoons. In August and September of this year, the projects will appear on the satellite children’s TV channel K + KIDS, and in the K + app for online viewing. As representatives of SMF noted, the animated series I’ll Get You! Holidays aroused the greatest interest among buyers, since the Soviet project I’ll Get You! was very popular in Vietnam in the 1980s-1990s. FPT Play, the largest OTT platform in Vietnam, with which cooperation is already underway, was interested in the new seasons of the series The Secrets of Honey Hills, The Adventures of Peter and Wolf and other projects.

Voronezh Animation studio said that representatives of companies from Southeast Asia are interested in co-production with Russia in creating animation. The studio presented the fifth part of the Snow Queen franchise The Snow Queen & The Princess; an animated series for teenagers The Steel Family: Brotherhood vs Gold; and a new full-length project under development, Arctic Heroes. As part of cooperation with CJ E&M Corporation, an agreement was signed for the theatrical release of The Snow Queen & The Princess in Vietnam—release dates to be confirmed.

RIKI Group presented serial projects to international buyers – The Fixies, Tina and Tony, Beardy Bodo, as well as the Finnick franchise. At meetings with partners from Vietnam, South Korea, Taiwan, India and China, the possibilities of content distribution to the countries of the APAC region, co-production, as well as the possibility of co-investment were discussed. Negotiating companies included Cheers Media, Box Asia, Muse Communication, Zee, Viacom 18, Sunwoo&Company, ACE Fair, Planus Company, RAPA, BH Media, Golden Egg Entertainment and others.

Animation for preschoolers was one of the most popular themes among Asian buyers at Telefilm Vietnam. Companies from Vietnam, Hong Kong, China and South Korea were interested in the animated series Puppies&Kittens and Be-be-bears from Digital Television Russia. Also popular were the flagship projects of Digital Television Russia—Leo and Tig and Fantasy Patrol. Negotiations are currently underway and the terms of the deals are being discussed.

Representatives of the YARKO Animation company spoke about their interest in animation for preschool children, as well as in 3D projects. In the Telefilm Vietnam market, the company introduced the animated series Dragonia, Team M.A.T.C.H., Fly Deliveries and Tickabo, which had a successful launch in Russia. To date, the flagship project of the studio Tommy the Little Dragon is already available in Thailand. By the end of the year, it is planned to launch the project in China.