Business View Caribbean - February 2016 17
market for animation content.”
In noting that animation is considered one of the
fastest growing industries globally, the state minis-
ter said the outsourcing of content development by
North American film and television producers is a
significant emerging trend and “positive indicator”
that presents entrepreneurship and employment
opportunities for young people. Robinson said the
island’s close proximity to North America and the
fact that both are English-speaking countries, “ideal-
ly positions Jamaica to serve (their) animation indus-
try.” He further argued that “our rich culture makes
us a great source for original and innovative content
that is in high demand globally.”
In addition to the United States, other major mar-
kets outsourcing a significant percentage of their
animation content development include: Canada,
China, France, Germany, and Japan. Robinson noted
that, since 2011, the global industry has been grow-
ing at an annual compound rate of 12.94 per cent,
with most segments growing at a rate of seven per
cent “year over year.” He pointed out that the gov-
ernment foresees further growth as “consumers
will continue to demand more realistic video games,
movies and television special effects, as well as
newer computer hardware.”
Robinson said as the administration takes aim at
positioning Jamaica as a center for animation de-
velopment, production houses, such as video game
studios, will require multi-media artists and anima-
tors to meet the increasing demand for content.
Additionally, he said the high demand for computer
graphics for mobile devices could also potentially
result in a spin-off of other careers, while pointing
to possible opportunities away from mainstream
animation, such as education, journalism, medicine,
engineering, and forensics.
