Expotoons hosts and co-organize the proposal CARTOON CONNECTION, an Encounter for European and Latin American Animation Producers, programmed along with CARTOON, European Association of Animation Film.

Maggie Stagnaro explained that ‘they have chosen EXPOTOONS as a strategic partner in Latin America to organize CARTOON CONNECTION with. This is the first Encounter for animation professionals from both continents; it will take place within EXPOTOONS and will be sponsored by MEDIA Programme from European Union, a programme for supporting European audiovisual industry, aiming to promote the developing of cinema, television and new media projects’. The concept of this alliance was described at the Press Conference by Gerardo Michelín, (Press Manager for CARTOON - European Animation film Association). ‘It will be a really important first step for both Latin America and Europe’, among other reasons, because of this being the first time MEDIA Programme projects beyond European borders. CARTOON, the 20 years-old Animation Association ‘is looking to create an appropriate environment for animation to flow, to be produced, to be seen, to be distributed’, and G. Michelín assured that ‘European animation’s growth over past 20 years obviously owes a lot to this kind of activities and actions’. This special activity has as an objective ‘to tighten bonds and to encourage relations among producers, animators, distributers and broadcasters from Latin America and Europe’, in order to ‘encourage circulation and distribution o animation work between both continents’. To this matter it’s been decided to hold a complementary activity: pitching, for Latin American projects ‘so a few Latin American producers would get a chance of an early feedback, a first comment on how they can reach and win over European market’. Pitching sessions will require previous accreditation in EXPOTOONS, and some other requirements explained at www.expotoons.com. Michelin pointed that without any doubts, EXPOTOONS is growing to be the established “annual point of meeting, where Latin American and European animation can develop common projects’. ‘We got really well impressed by EXPOTOONS growth as a festival. The world is being populated with more and more film festivals and animation professional activities, but in only three years EXPOTOONS has been able to assure its place inside the tight schedule of events. We hope it gets even larger, and we’ll get to make Buenos Aires the Latin American capital of animation’, closed Michelín. Rosanna Manfredi reinforced the idea of CARTOON CONNECTION creating ‘a bridge to European Economic Community and its animation industry. Through EXPOTOONS we’ll open a possibility (...) for growth, exchange and collaboration for many countries, where they can look at Argentina not only as a market, but also as a gate to whole Latin America’, said R. Manfredi referring to the emphasis they’ll put in making EXPOTOONS a seat for this region’s animation, understanding that growth must be regional, ‘humbly taking Asia as an example, and what other regions did about animation, even the European development, which has years of articulations with institutions and governments’. ’This is a point we must work on, in order to have national politics that accompany this activity’s growth’. Know more at www.cartoon-media.be and http://ec.europa.eu/information_society/media/index_en.htm