"Our city has been successfully hosting the festival for five consecutive years," says Ye Ming, deputy Party secretary of Hangzhou.

"The festival is intended to establish Hangzhou as the comics and animation capital of China and give the city's cartoon industry a strong boost both in quantity and quality."

More than 1 million visitors are expected to attend the festival featuring noted animation studios and enterprises from 43 countries and regions.

Participants include DreamWorks Pictures, kids' TV Nickelodeon and Japan's S-manga.net, a major comics publisher.

The festival is an opportunity for visitors to get into the Chinese cartoon and animation market.

Organizers say the festival has expanded in scale and influence.

Last year more than 300 enterprises and institutions from China and abroad set up exhibits. More than 780,000 people took part in many kinds of activities, including the cartoon trade mart, Monkey King Animation Award, animation summit, cosplay show and opening parade.

This year the trade mart will feature around 120 recent animation films from around the world. The talent fair for cartoon companies will run for two days, providing more than 1,000 positions for talents.

The cosplay show will feature more than 40 professionals from the United States, Japan, Italy and South Korea.

Another highlight of the festival is the Monkey King Animation Award. This year, the competition has received around 1,000 entries, including "Up" by Pixar Animation Studios in California.

The current state and future of the industry will be discussed at the Cartoon and Animation Summit Forum gathering veteran cartoonists, film producers and media critics. Guests include Taiwanese cartoonists Ron Chu, Tsai Chih-chung and cast members of the Hollywood 3D film "Avatar."

The animation industry in Hangzhou has been booming. Last year the city produced 27,409 minutes of animation, or 16 percent of China's total. Eight animated works were honored with state-level commendation, including the highly acclaimed historical cartoon series "Zheng He's Voyages."

The city has more than 140 animation enterprises and 10,000 cartoon professionals. Last year, Hangzhou's animation revenues hit 438 million yuan (US$64.4 million), a 19.6 percent increase from a year earlier.

The Hangzhou Municipal Government has strongly supported the animation industry. Last year it allocated 70 million yuan to support original animation projects. It has also set up an office providing expert advice and information on funding and protection of intellectual property.

Attracted by the city's policy incentives, relaxed setting, beautiful scenery and culture, many famous cartoonists and companies have opened studios in Hangzhou. The city plans to build what it says will be China's first major cartoon and animation museum, giving visitors a look at the industry's history, achievements and technology.

Need-to-know

Cartoon fans can log onto www.iepiao.com or www.cicaf.com/ticketing to reserve tickets. The price is 35 yuan (US$5.13) for adults and 25 yuan for children under 1.3 meters.

Tickets can be booked via the hotline (0571) 8780-6755 and 8770-3888-2205.

Tickets are available at local Wo Ai Wo Jia convenience stores, and some other venues.

Visitors can take six free bus lines to get to the World Leisure Expo Park. They are No. 981 starting from Wulin Square, No. 982 from Huanglong Sports Center, No. 983 from Da Guan Bei, No. 984 from Wushan Square, No. 985 from Wener Road W. and Yile Road, and No. 986 from Qingchun Square.

Buses running to the World Leisure Expo Park are also available in Xiaoshan Town. They are No. 1 from Xiaoshan Sports Stadium, No. 2 from the north government parking lot, No. 3 from the Hangzhou Railway Station, No. 4 from the Wenyan Passenger Center, No. 5 from Guangren Community, No. 6 from Jidi Ocean Park, No. 7 from Linpu and No. 8 from Luguali.

Source: Shanghai Daily