On 26th February 2019 the Association of Czech Animation Film (ASAF) organised a meeting with representatives of an animation cluster from the Canary Islands at the Spanish Embassy in Prague. “Tourists are the main source of income for our economy. However, the government realises the need to diversify the economy and offer a perspective of interesting application to young people too, so in 2015 it decided to focus on the animation industry. This sector has a future. In addition, it is an environmentally friendly industry, which is important for our little paradise on earth here, ” as Natascha Mora explains the motivation behind establishment of Canary Islands Film. The organisation is established and run by government agencies represented by Natacha Mora (Government of the Canary Islands, Culture Sector), Pila Moreno (PROEXCA agency for the internationalisation of the Canary Islands and attracting strategic investments) and Sabita Jagtani (Canaria ZEC agency promoting investment within the Canary Islands tax zone). The main objective of the Canary Islands Film is to create favourable conditions for animation production, e.g. through film incentives in the amount of 40% to support the outsourcing of local studios or tax advantages for setting up new companies or subsidiaries. As […] ...
In connection with the Association of Czech Animation Film’s long-term strategic focus on increasing the competitiveness of Czech animation and the economic performance of individual subjects, an excursion to the Animation Media Cluster Region in Stuttgart, Germany, took place at the end of last year. Stuttgart is one of the most industrialised areas in Europe. Thanks to Mercedes and Porsche car manufacturers, many tens of thousands of people work in the automotive industry and employment in the area is predominantly dependent on this industrial commodity. The government of the German state of Baden-Württemberg is therefore trying to develop other industries too and, similarly to economists in places like South Korea, are turning their attention to the “leisure economy”: the development and production of audiovisual works, especially animation and digital postproduction. Representatives of the creative industry in cooperation with the public sector (government of Baden-Württemberg) aim to set up a cluster of companies that will offer high-quality animation and visual effects services to clients from all over the world. The idea to visit the cluster in Stuttgart (AMCRS) stemmed from a growing need to bring new impulses and trends to animation in the Czech Republic, particularly from developed markets. As the […] ...