China regulator brings in US 3D advisor

Kevin Geiger

China’s media regulator has appointed a former Disney animation expert to the board of its 3D Film & TV Association.

Kevin Geiger, president and CEO of Beijing’s Magic Dumpling Entertainment, will be resident foreign consultant at the association, which is commissioned by the State Administration of Radio, Film & Television (SARFT) to set standards for stereoscopic 3D production.

Geiger, who spent 12 years in the Disney animation department, is hoping to “shape the quality of the world’s second-largest and fastest growing stereoscopic market.”

Speaking to C21, Geiger was critical of some aspects of animation production in China, saying that a “lot of disrespect” had been shown towards IP and original content in the past.

The appointment comes as SARFT continues its campaign to “provide a favourable environment for the innovation of China’s cartoon industry.”

As part of this strategy, the regulator banned foreign cartoons from Chinese primetime TV in 2008, in order to boost home-grown animation.