The Korean animation industry is rapidly transforming itself from a services-for-hire business for U.S., European and Japanese producers, to a creative hotbed producing original content in its own right and in co-productions. The Korea’s toon industry is the third largest behind the U.S. and Japan, according to the Korea Culture and Content Agency (KOCCA). Aided by agencies such as KOCCA, the industry in Korea has been overhauled and the demand for original Korean animation is on the rise. The domestic industry’s rising productivity and its international connections were on display at the 11th annual Seoul International Cartoon & Animation Festival (SICAF), which ran May 23-25 at SETEC and drew 130,000 visitors. The stats were impressive: • The SICAF Promotion Plan (SPP), which includes a project competition pitching, international conferences, business forum and networking events, attracted 360 companies and 270 buyers from 21 countries including the U.S., Canada, Spain, France, Japan and China; this is up from around 100 buyers and 220 companies last year.