China has joined hands with the Republic of Korea (ROK) to develop the country's fledging animation industry.

At the ongoing 4th Changsha Cartoon Art Festival (CCAF) in Changsha, capital of central China's Hunan Province, an agreement was signed on Sunday to make the CCAF and Seoul International Cartoon & Animation Festival (SICAF), the largest animation festival in the ROK, "sister festivals."

The animation industry in the ROK has witnessed remarkable changes in recent years, especially in the field of digital technology, and has provided invaluable experience for the Chinese animation industry, said Wang Feng, secretary-general of China Television Artists Association.

The exchanges and cooperation between China and the ROK will help promote the creation, development and management in the industry for both countries and bring mutual benefits, he said.

"I'm deeply impressed by the passion towards animation of our Chinese counterparts and will bring it with me back to the Republic of Korea," said Shim Sang-Ki, chairman of the SICAF Organization Committee.

Changsha is one of the pioneering bases for China's animation industry, with 15,000 minutes of animation film produced here every year, bringing a revenue of 1.3 billion yuan (about US$158 million). The city is home to two of the nine "national animation bases" firstly approved by the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television (SARFT).

Last year, the SARFT set up a number of national animation bases and approved three TV animation channels to encourage the development of animation products.

(Xinhua News Agency November 7, 2005)