Cartoon Network Asia's Snaptoons Finalists announced!

Cartoon Network Asia’s SNAPTOONS, a program designed to identify the next generation of cartoon heroes, announced three finalists from Singapore and the completion of two animated shorts from Malaysia. Shortlisted finalists are chosen based on the originality and creativity of the concept while fulfilling the Cartoon Network criteria of being fun, funny and character driven.

“Original content lies at the heart of Cartoon Network and we’re seeing some refreshingly awesome ideas emerging from animators in Southeast Asia that have incredible potential,” said Silas Hickey, Regional Creative Director of Animation, Turner Broadcasting System Asia Pacific, Inc. “With the amazing support of both Media Development Authority of Singapore (MDA) and MDeC from Singapore and Malaysia respectively, Cartoon Network is committed to nurturing local talent and bringing SNAPTOONS to even greater heights in this region.”

The three Singapore shortlists are 101 Ways: The World by Sabreena Shanu; Maxine Starr Last Vanguard of the Zodiac by Kane Wheatley-Holder; and DNA - Definitely Not Animals by Dreamforest Animation - with production of shorts expected to be completed by 2014. The completed shorts from Malaysia are Blox Brigade by Unizaru; and Ziro The Wizard…In Training by Tomato Animation. Both shorts, four and ten minutes long respectively, took a year to complete.

Said Yeo Chun Cheng, Director of Broadcast, Animation, Film and Music, MDA, “Turner’s commitment to source for original content from Singapore is commendable, and in line with our strategy of nurturing and showcasing the next generation of media talents on an international platform. Indeed, we were pleasantly surprised to receive more than 40 entries from budding and professional animators, three of which have been selected by Turner for further development. We certainly hope to see more of these homegrown ideas blossom into popular content with strong global appeal, in time to come.

Speaking about the program, Kamil Othman, the Vice President for the Creative Multimedia Department at MDeC said, “Programs like SNAPTOONS provides an excellent opportunity for members of the local creative fraternities to convene and share their knowledge, insights and ideas with their regional, and even global, counterparts. This will in turn inspire the birth and growth of a new generation of animation studios and talents who can lead Malaysia’s creative content and ideas to critical international acclaim. Beyond that, programs like SNAPTOONS also provide local budding animators with the opportunity to meet with renowned international animators and studios and develop international partnerships and collaborations.”

SNAPTOONS (Short New Asia Pacific Cartoons) invites animation industry professionals, individual animators and animation studios to submit their pitches with the potential to see their ideas come to life alongside Cartoon Network’s lineup of iconic characters including Ben 10, Gumball and Darwin, Chowder, The Powerpuff Girls andJohnny Bravo, which developed as a result of the SNAPTOONS initiative.