If you are into Animation, VFX, and Gaming, this festival is for you. India’s first-ever international festival for Animation, VFX, XR, Gaming and Comics, called AniMela, was launched by the Aniverse and Visual Arts Foundation (AVAF) in partnership with Annecy International Film Festival, France, earlier this year.
AniMela aims to provide a platform for Indian talent from the AVGC-XR (Animation, Visual Effects, Gaming and Comics – Extended Reality) industry to exhibit their work to a large international audience, while simultaneously giving them the opportunity to get exposed to some of the best work that is being done internationally.
This three-day festival will be held in Mumbai in November 2023.
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We talk to Kireet Khurana, Director of AVAF, to know more about AniMela. Here are the excerpts:
How did you come up with the idea to start AniMela?
Born in a family where my father- Bhimsain was an Indian animation pioneer, I naturally gravitated into the field and started my career as an animation director. While working in the Indian industry, I always felt the dire need for an international film festival where Indians could interact with the best of the world and learn from them. But starting a festival is a daunting task. Last year around April, I met with Anne Doshi and Neha Jain, who come from a festival curation background. Subsequently, the missing link - Archana Trasy, a leading events person too joined us. So along with Tehzeeb Khurana, who is among India’s leading animation educationists, the five of us formed a not-for-profit company to give the country its first International Animation, Gaming, VFX, Comics and XR film festival – AniMela.
How do you think this festival will impact the animation and gaming sector in India?
When we talk about India being one of the leading countries producing a lot of animation, VFX and gaming for international companies, in the same breath we also talk about how India hasn’t been able to produce indigenous original content which has succeeded internationally. That’s mostly because we are a service-driven economy in the AVGC space. For us to succeed in this space internationally, we need to create opportunities for exposure for our emerging talent to the world’s best creators, filmmakers, storytellers, game developers and technologists.
Most movies are now dependent on animation and VFX. Do you think it will consume the entertainment industry in near future?
Technology is becoming more and more integral to creative storytelling and filmmaking and will undoubtedly be increasingly employed. However, they won’t replace great storytelling and stories, which is the core of any successful content. Technology like VFX will simply extend human imagination in telling stories in different realms and possibilities.
Where do you think India is, right now, in the AVGC-XR industry, as compared to the rest of the world?
The world's global pie for Gaming and Animation is at an estimated $800 billion. In comparison, the Indian AVGC size is at a mere $1.45 billion, less than 0.5% of the total world market. This is despite the fact that the AVGC industry is growing at between 22-30% year on year. In its recent AVGC policy, the government is looking at scaling up the number from the current 2,50,000 people to 2 million and its revenue share to 5% of the global pie to $40 billion by 2030. This can only happen so rapidly if we diversify from being a service-driven economy to an IP creation model too.
One futuristic innovation in the industry you are looking forward to…
I personally think the rapid advancement in AI is a huge step for the AVGC industry. AI tools like the ones offered by Wonder Dynamics are game changers. For pre-visualisation Dall.E 2 and Mid Journey among many others are unbelievably remarkable. And this is just the beginning, so AI is going to be a big disruptor. It remains to be seen whether India benefits from the availability of such tools.
You have gained recognition for your work not only in India but internationally too… How do you feel when you look back at the work you have created?
Growing up in a home where I learnt the art of animation was rare in the 70s in India. Then after graduating from Sheridan College, Canada, I could’ve settled back in North America and had a great life working in one of the top studios, but I chose to come back to India and a non-existent industry because there was much to build here. As for my career, it has been a mixed bag like everyone else’s. Along with the success also came a sense of responsibility that I had the privilege to share a lot with others – the knowledge and information that I had acquired in my travels. And therefore I started building a strong community the moment I came back from Canada so that everyone had a platform to share and grow. I think that has been the biggest satisfaction for me.
Which one of the films or documentaries holds a special place for you?
Even though I’ve had many successful films including one of them on Netflix, the one that I feel is my best piece of work is ‘The Invisible Visible’ which is based on the 70 million homeless in India which I produced and directed last year. It’s a story that no one wanted to hear, but a sordid reality that needs a voice and a solution. For India to be a strong nation, it's important for the most stifled voices to be heard and their concerns addressed. And it changed my perspective making me a better person. The film has also won three international awards.
If not this, what would be your alternate career option?
None. I started animating at the age of six. I no longer animate myself for the past 15 years, but have managed large teams. I see myself increasingly as a genre and format-agnostic storyteller and director at heart, dabbling in features, shorts, documentaries and ad films. I can’t think of anything I can be of worth if I am ceased to be a visual storyteller.
Kireet Khurana has made over 25 award-winning short films on myriad social causes, including films for the National Film Board of Canada, UNICEF, Childline, USAID, John Hopkins, and Save The Children India. He has also produced 550+ ad films for leading brands and agencies.
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