Animation takes flight in Jamaica

IT costs up to US$350,000 ($30 million) per half hour of animated programming in the US compared to less than US$75,000 for similar production work in India.

This competitive advantage helps India earn US$739 million annually from animation outsourcing — despite accounting for less than 10 per cent of the market — and is one of the dynamics of a growing global industry into which Jamaica is trying to tap.


Industry data reveal that the animation industry was valued at approximately US$115 billion at the end of 2009, with an average annual growth rate of 12 per cent. Against this background, the Jamaica Film Commission, which forms part of Jampro, has identified animation as part of its medium-term strategy to encourage non-traditional exports.

"It's us moving in a new direction," Jamaica's Film Commissioner, Kim Marie Spence, told the Business Observer yesterday. "The fact is that the animation industry is booming; they don't have the capacity to deal with the demand because it's no longer just a children thing."

Indeed, the marketplace for animation is now a diversified one — from 30-second commercials and five-minute cartoons to feature-length Hollywood films — that stretches across all demographics.

According to Spence, the prospects for Jamaica are encouraging, given that most animation is done through business process outsourcing, with smaller studios all over the world providing animation services to big studios. The upshot is a robust prospect for job creation comparable to that of the booming informations and communication technology sector.

"Animation provides a number of benefits, besides the entertainment content, as it is labour intensive and requires a high level of skills. It promises jobs with transferable skills for Jamaicans and it also provides another avenue for us to tell our stories," Spence said last week.

Alison Latchman, head of the 10-member Jamaica Animation Network, describes the local industry as a "fledgling" one right now.
"You have people starting to come out of the woodwork as there are more opportunities on the world stage," she said.

Latchman is co-founder and CEO of Alcyone Animation, the company behind the popular Cabbie Chronicles animated series on local cable television. She and her husband started doing animation while offering advertising services, and received their big break after winning a Best Caribbean Animation award in Trinidad & Tobago in 2010.

"We have been in advertising for about 10 years and there has always been some sort of animation," Latchman said, noting that the couple began character animation just two years ago.

"Cabbie basically saw the light of day because we got the attention of the animators in Trinidad," she acknowledged.

Corretta Singer, one of the more recognisable local animators, who produces the popular Kina Sky animated series, admitted that "It's fairly early in the game to say we have an industry" but noted that there is undeniable talent in the country.

"What we do have is a pool of unsung, talented animators and individuals with the spark of imagination and drive of ideas who need guidance and most of all, support," Singer said.

"There is still a lot of ground work to do in terms of training and the creation of a national 'body of animation work'. However, the potential for a thriving industry is irrefutable," she said.

According to Spence, Jamaica has innate competitive advantages in that it is an English-speaking country and is close to the lucrative North American market.

"In the same way with BPOs (business process operators), where you see a movement from being really far away to being closer to the core market, there is also a wish to be closer to the North Amercan market," she said.

However, Spence and other industry stakeholders say that, before any other initiative right now, training is the priority.
The latest initiative from the Film Commission on November 19 was the hosting of Animae Caribe Jamaica, the 10-year-old Trinidadian animation festival that, for the first time, had a satellite staging of the event to complement the main festival held from October 30 to November 6 in Port of Spain. Held at Jampro's New Kingston head office, Animae Caribe Jamaica involved workshops by experienced international animators James Parris and Kristin Solid.

Parris, a visual effects artist and animator, was a part of the award-winning visual effect
s team that worked on The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. He is head of his own production firm, Paper Tiger Films, and has worked on movies such as X-Men, I Robot and Transformers.

Solid is a senior animator at the Academy-Award winning studio Rhythm and Hues, and has supervised animation teams on the films Yogi Bear and Alvin & The Chipmunks, among others.

Through the Animae Caribe Jamaica workshops, Jamaican animators were introduced to the variety of contemporary 2D and 3D animation styles that are widely used in the animation industry.

They also had got to see the line animation short The Muscular Princesses by Julia Farkas.

Animae Caribe Jamaica was organised by the Jamaica Animation Network and sponsored by Flow. Latcman lauded both organisations for the valuable support.

SOurce: http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/business/Animation-takes-flight-in-Jamaica_4114803#ixzz1fdNA8TAs

Watson Triumphs at Extreme Table Tennis Flow sponsored Men's Open

Kane Watson, who recently returned from representing Jamaica at the Caribbean Senior
Championships in Guyana, receives a  powerful serve from club mate Kareem Flowers in the Flow sponsored Men's Open at the eXtreme Table Tennis Tournament. The duo battled spiritedly in the  final match which saw Watson walking away with the title, trophy and a cash prize of $60,000.00.

National Table Tennis Player Kane Watson put in one of the most spirited performances ever witnessed in a local table tennis match, as he came from behind to beat UTech Knights club mate Kareem Flowers to take the 2011 Flow sponsored Extreme Spin Men’s Open table tennis final at the YMCA Auditorium.

It was Flowers who got off to a hot start claiming the first two sets 11-9, 11-8, however, the former Kingston College player, Watson, who recently returned from representing Jamaica at the Caribbean Senior Championship in Guyana, dug deep to claw his way back into the match with an 11-4 third set win.

As the seventh and deciding match got underway, Flowers took an injury time out after trailing 3-4.  Watson capitalized on Flowers injury and topped the set with an 11-5 score to claim the Flow Men’s Open trophy and the $60,000 winner’s cheque.

“I must say this is one of the hardest victories for me, going 0-2 down I had to dig deep, I knew I could come back and beat him so I adjusted my game and closed him down and it paid off for me in the end,” said Watson.

For his effort Flowers took home the second prize cheque of $30,000.  Both Flowers and Watson are coached by Collin McNeish.

Witnessing the exciting final was Nicole Campbell Public Relations Executive at Flow who praised the efforts of the organizers.

“What a final, I could not find a better way to bring down the curtain on an excellent tournament.  Flow was extremely pleased to have supported the Extreme Spin Table Tennis Championship for the second year in a row. The tournament facilitated a display of great passion for the sport by participants,” said Campbell.

 The sponsorship is part of Flow's continued investment in sports and sports development which seeks to provide opportunities for all Jamaicans.

The Extreme Spin Table Tennis tournament was held at the YMCA on November 12-13 with over 147 participants in over 18 events.

Big Name Animators booked for FLOW sponsored Film Festival

The local animation industry is set to get a major boost from international experts at the tenth staging of the Flow sponsored Animae Caribe Film Festival.

Headline presenters include award winning animator, James Parris whose work includes  The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Lion King, Spiderman, X-men, I Robot and Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen; and Kirstin Davis, Senior Animator who has worked on films such as Alvin and the Chipmunks, Yogi Bear, Transformers, Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End and Night at the Museum.

The event, which is slated to be held at JAMPRO on Trafalgar Road on Saturday, November 19, will provide a forum for local producers and international animation professionals to discuss the best ways to boost the development of animated productions locally.  The festival will also feature screenings of over 24 award winning short films.

The international animation sector is a trillion dollar industry, and though Jamaican animation is at its inception, the island has great potential for development especially as major players such as Disney look to outsource work.  Over the years however, Jamaicans have made an indelible mark on the film industry.  In 2001, Adrian Lopez earned the BWIA award for Best Animation for his short film Roots.  Coretta Singer nabbed two awards for her animation work when she ran away with the People’s Choice Award for Voyajah in 2006 and later earned the award for Most Outstanding Animation in 2007 with Deeper: Shadow Song.

Through the Jamaican-leg of the festival, young animators will have an opportunity to examine the gap between Jamaica and other film industries across the world.

According to Alison Latchman, Co-creator of Cabbie Chronicles and Festival Director of Anime Caribe “The festival will undoubtedly provide local animators with a unique opportunity.” She also added that “When you have an Oscar Award winning film maker imparting knowledge, its invaluable especially as their presence also provides local animators with great networking possibilities.” The opportunity is even greater as the festival is free.

Title sponsor Flow, through its brand Flow TV, did not hesitate to jump on-board for this year’s event.   Michael Look Tong, Director, Media Services at Flow and a presenter at the festival expressed his Company’s commitment to the local film industry. “Flow is always looking for platforms to improve and diversify the content available to Jamaicans through innovation and creativity,” said Look Tong. “The company remains committed to investing in the development of a dynamic film and television sector in Jamaica,” he added.

Latchman also expressed her sentiments on Flow’s endorsement of the Festival.  She pointed out that Flow has provided great support for both the festival and the television series Cabbie Chronicles. “Flow has really been ultra-supportive from day one,” she explains. “I’m very glad that they have come on board with this project as well.”

The main Anime Caribe film festival takes place annually in Trinidad and Tobago. The festival seeks to promote the development of animation in the Caribbean. Anime Caribe Jamaica is being staged in commemoration of Anime Caribe’s 10th anniversary and the organizers hope to have an even larger event in 2012 as a part of the celebration of Jamaica’s 50th year of independence.

AISK/FLOW partnership brings together regional schools in sports competition

Michele English (L) President & COO of Flow presents a donation to Brian Horvath, Principal of the American International School in Kingston (AISK) to host the SportsFeva Invitational Tournament on November 11-12 and 18-19. The presentation was made at a press conference at the school on Tuesday November 1, 2011.

Three hundred (300) students and parents representing schools from Jamaica, Aruba, The Cayman Islands, The Bahamas and Curacao will compete in a series of sports competitions as part of the AISK hosted 2011 SportsFeva Invitational Tournament to be held in Kingston on November 11-12 and 18-19.  The teams will compete in football, tennis, golf and sporting clays events over the 4 days of the tournament.  The American International School of Kingston (AISK) has partnered with FLOW, Jamaica’s triple play service provider, to stage the tournament. Local schools Campion College, Immaculate Conception High School, Hillel Academy, St. Hugh’s Prep and host AISK, will compete against intramural teams from other member schools of the Caribbean Area International School Sports Association (CAISSA).

The initiative, whilst unusual at this level of competition, provides great opportunities for participating teams.  Jeanette Lewis, Public Relations Manager of Flow believes the move will provide a valuable competitive experience for secondary and preparatory school students that will assist in their athletic development.

“We believe that healthy competition at an early age builds a strong, focused and successful athlete. This is evidenced by in the many successful national athletes whose journey began very early in their development. This event provides an opportunity for Jamaican students to field competition from students at their level from different cultures, it’s a tactic used by senior athletes to compare their skills and gain insights into their sport,” she said.

Dr. Brian Horvath Head of School of AISK sees the initiative as a tactical approach to providing a wholesome education.  "AISK is becoming the premier K-12 school in the Caribbean and Central America.  So it makes sense that we've created the most ambitious high school sports event in the region.  Keep in mind that we have a one-to-one laptop program, the IB Diploma Program, and the absolutely best teachers in the Caribbean.  SportsFeva is just another example of who we are.  We want to blow everyone away with this event.  And that's the way we approach learning in general - we're not resting on our reputation or some tradition.  We are here every day, offering great experiences to not only our students, but the entire community."
AISK’s SportsFeva Invitational includes the sport of Sporting Clays among the events, giving sports enthusiasts in Jamaica exposure to a new and dynamic event. Sporting Clays, a marksman challenge, is an individual event in which clay pigeons are presented to a gunner in ways that mirror the flight pattern of game birds, or occasionally rabbits, in their natural habitats.

Lewis commented on the decision to include sporting clays, as being consistent with the move to expand the national capacity to compete at international games. “This presents our young athletes with another opportunity to represent our country in a non-traditional sport. We already have a bit of history of outstanding performances in sports where we are least expected to participate. I am pleased that AISK is actively enabling our youth in this regard,” Lewis explained.

Flow continues to demonstrate strong support for sports at the school and national levels; investing in several programmes to boost the development of young athletes. The three year partnership with the National Basketball League as has also seen a remarkable improvement in the national tournament with players benefitting significantly in addition to increasing the public’s interest in the local competition. Flow’s support of football’s National Champions’ Cup tournament marks two years of solid growth of the competition.

The triple play service provider also continues to support grass-roots football. Through collaboration with international sports cable giants ESPN, Flow kick started Whole Life Ministry’s football clinic in Jamaica, the second staging of which takes place on November 3-5 at the Greenfield Stadium, Trelawny. The event will see football greats Robbie Earl and Shaka Heslop hosting the two-day clinic to assist in strengthening the football skills of coaches and young players.

Flow/ESPN Football Clinic: Embracing growth through technology

Last November 19 and 20, a team of retired football professionals including World Cup-winning Frank Leboeuf of France, and Jamaica's Robbie Earle were led by Bernard Stewart, vice-president of ESPN Caribbean & Maritime Media to Jamaica.

The purpose of the trip was to initiate a two-day training programme for coaches and youth footballers that would allow them to develop their overall skills and facilitate a football transformation within the island. This initiative was the Flow/ESPN Football Clinic which was held at the Trelawny Multi-Purpose Stadium.


The venture was the brainchild of a gathering of corporate executives, including Flow's vice-president of marketing Sharon Roper and ESPN's Totlyn Mason, director of business operations and development — both of whom have Jamaican roots and a desire to give back to the country.

With the overwhelming success of last year's event, main sponsors, telecommunications giant Flow, and the world leaders in sports coverage, ESPN Inc battled financial constraints to ensure a second staging which was held last Friday and Saturday. Totlyn explained: "The plan was to make the project a long-term investment as too often ventures like this lose the drive after a year, so we never gave up on it."

Back to support the venture was Whole Life Ministries through executive director Andre Virtue and the Western Football Confederation, who organised the technical workings of the event.

The Western Confederation, which constitutes the parishes of Westmoreland, Hanover, St James and Trelawny, had each of these parishes providing 10 coaches and 25 youth footballers, the same format of last year's clinic. This year the training sessions were conducted by ESPN analysts Robbie Earle, Shaka Hislop and Verron Haynes, as well as Ballaz International directors Paul Alexander and Sherrick Williams.
Shaka Hislop said: "We felt it was very important to have a grassroots programme to develop the game of football. As a region we are progressing slowly, so we are just playing our part." In direct reference to this year's venture he added: "They (coaches and children alike) seem to be very excited about the clinic. The reception is much better than last year."

There was a distinct difference between last year and this year's running order and that was the introduction of the iSoccer/iFootball development programme. The programme has been around for some time, but was incorporated into the clinic by Robbie Earle following its successful execution in his youth academy in Orange County.

The programme tests players on 16 basic football skills that they participate in within a 5X5 grid before logging the results into the website online. From there, individuals and coaches can track not only their skill level and their progress, but also the statistics of persons around the world who use the programme so as to make comparisons and drive their desire to improve.

Director of sales, Steven Shows, during the demonstration session last Friday, said: "The 'i' in iSoccer stands for the individual. So the onus is upon the individual to enhance his skills (through discipline and dedication) by extracting his full potential with the use of the website."
These sentiments were backed up by Andre Virtue, who in speaking to the philosophy of the project, declared: "We are not coaching a sport, but we are developing a life through sports."

Earle, the scorer of Jamaica's first World Cup Finals goal in France in 1998, summed up the two-day event. "The second year is definitely another big step towards helping and supporting the growth of football within the island. The introduction of the iFootball element is key, as it sits perfectly between the practical football sessions and the ability to utilise the internet and technology."

As the clinic grows from strength to strength each year, these two elements will be of critical importance.

Source: http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/sports/Flow-ESPN-Football-Clinic--Embracing-growth-through-technology_10097459

ESPN, Flow Partner For Two-Day Football Clinic

More than 40 local coaches and 100 young footballers will benefit from this year's ESPN/Flow Football Clinic at the Trelawny Multi-purpose Stadium over the next two days, with a number of the US-based sports network's on-screen personalities expected to take part.

This marks the second time that the multi-platform media outlet Flow is partnering with the globally recognised sports broadcasting giants in a football clinic, and everything is said to be in place for what is expected to be another successful staging.

Robbie Earle, the man who scored Jamaica's first goal at the FIFA World Cup Finals, when he rose highest to head a Ricardo Gardner cross in a 1-3 loss against Croatia during the 1998 finals in France; former Trinidad and Tobago goalkeeper Shaka Hislop and fellow ESPN commentator and Super Bowl champion Verron Hayes, will all be on hand to lend their expertise to the group today and tomorrow.

This year, the coaches and ballers will have the added benefit of the latest in I-Football technology - an Internet-based assessment tool used to measure a player's overall technical ability and identify areas of improvement.

Support Development

The clinics, presented for the first time last year by Flow and ESPN in association with Whole Life Ministries, are designed to support the development of football in Jamaica. Some of the 40 coaches and 100 young footballers who participated in 2010 will also be involved in this year's programme, as Flow and ESPN seek to build on the foundation laid in year one.

Today's clinic will focus on the coaches and will run for some five and a half hours. Also on the slate today is a demonstration of the I-Football platform, while the youngsters, age 12-15 years, will bring the weekend activities to a close tomorrow with a two-hour session.

Source: http://jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/20111104/sports/sports6.html