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India's Toonz makes US push

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, India – Indian animation firm Toonz said Wednesday it has set up a new distribution division in the United States as part of plans to make inroads into world film markets.

The new venture, Toonz Entertainment USA, will specialise in sales and distribution of animated feature films, direct-to-video content and television series, it said in a statement from its base in southern India.

Chief executive of the Singapore-based Toonz Entertainment parent company P. Jayakumar said the new distribution arm would allow the firm 'to grow as a full fledged media house.'

Since its creation in 1999, Toonz Animation India has worked with some of the biggest names in global animation, including Marvel, Hallmark, Paramount, Disney and Cartoon Network.

Animation and special effects are a growth market in India as the domestic film sector, including the popular Bollywood Hindi-language movie industry, turns to more modern production methods.

Specialist companies are being increasingly used by Hollywood and other foreign studios because of their lower costs.

India's animation and special effects industry is expected to be worth 23.3 billion rupees (505 million dollars) this year and is expected to grow to 39.4 billion rupees by 2013, consultants KPMG said last year.

The animation sector is projected to grow by almost 22 percent in the five years to 2013, it added in a report on the media and entertainment industry for the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry.