Next week (1/25) the Canadian Consulate General in tandem with the New York City Economic Development Corp. (EDC) and the Quebec Government House is presenting the CanApple Animation Forum, an event designed to showcase the talents of Canadian and New York-based companies with expertise in design, digital effects and animation.
Executives from New York-based ad agencies, film studios, broadcast networks and the new-media community have been invited; roughly 300 are expected to participate, according to Canadian Consulate representative Tony Raposo. At press time, roughly 17 Canadian companies and about six New York-based companies had committed to participate at CanApple, Raposo reported. Danny Bergeron, president/director of Tube Image, a Montreal-based digital animation and effects studio, is scheduled as keynote speaker for the event. And, along with Sheridan College, a top animation school based in Ontario, CanApple is presenting Sheridan Animates Manhattan, which will include an evening show-and-tell presentation by several Sheridan alums, including Steve Spaz Williams, an Oscar-nominated visual effects supervisor who is repped as a commercial director by Complete Pandemonium, San Francisco.
Raposo called CanApple, which is sponsored by the Quebec Government House, the EDC and Silicon Graphics Canada, a win-win situation for both Canada and New York. Our goal at the consulate is twofold: raise awareness of animation expertise in Canada and forge cross-border relationships, he explained.
The involvement of the EDC as a co-sponsor, however, has raised some eyebrows in the New York community. It seems ironic that our tax money is going to promote offshore competition that will realize no tax benefits for the city of New York, commented one New York-based industry insider, who requested anonymity.
Morty Dubin, who chairs the newly formed New York Production Alliance, said his organization told the EDC it feels their support of a group clearly looking to bring work to Canada is inappropriate. He said NYPA urged EDC not to repeat the action.
The EDC did not respond to repeated requests from SHOOT for an interview.
Even before CanApple was scheduled, U.S. work escaping to Canada had become a growing concern in New York and other parts of the country. Canadian government subsidies and the buying power of the U.S. dollar in Canada are frequently mentioned by New Yorkers as reasons projects have been going north.
Richard Winkler, board member of the East Coast Digital Consortium (ECDC) and executive producer at bicoastal Curious Pictures, said ECDC and Curious were invited to participate, but both declined. We are all for establishing relations in new areas, he said, adding, however, that neither saw a benefit in supporting an event aimed at its existing New York customer base.
Click 3X New York, however, is participating. President/ creative director Phil Price said the reason is to make a presence for New York companies and to show that there is plenty of great talent in town. Price added that he would like to see New York sponsor an event promoting the benefits of keeping work in the city.
