Taiwan Brings New Animated Projects and a Whole Lot of Music to Annecy

Taiwanese companies eye global success. 

“There are many talented people in Taiwan – the problem is that our market is really small. Over the past few years, and with the support of TAICCA [Taiwan Creative Content Agency], so many projects have become a reality. That’s why ‘YaYa’ could be here,” Chun-chien Lien, director of “YaYa’s Band,” told Variety. 

His series, competing in the TV Films section at Annecy, was also presented at a Taiwan Spotlight Showcase at the mega French animation festival on Wednesday. 

“It’s a very special project for us,” he said, recalling being approached by a charity rising funds for orphaned children.

“They asked us to create a poster for them – we created a whole world.”

In the world of Notevana, “music is part of everyone’s DNA” as a four-year-old YaYa plays music with her friends. The dialogue-free show will officially launch in August. 

“Taiwanese animation is really unique. Take ‘Puringau,’ which references our indigenous culture. But we’re also still growing and many people aren’t aware of us just yet. We want them to know that Taiwan will be a good partner for international co-productions,” said TAICCA’s Gillian Lu.

“Puringau” (aka “Sorceress”) also features indigenous songs in the story of two sisters who grow apart. Mostly because one of them is possessed by a dark spirit. 

“We want to create a whole universe. We are ambitious,” noted producer Danielle Yen (Mk Origin Studio).

This sentiment is echoed by Hsin-i Chen, general manager of Lusasa Animation, responsible for “Hi Kids! Sing and Dance with Lusasa Family” – another project embracing its musical component and aiming to “grow with children through different stages of their life.”

The company is currently developing season two, hoping to build “the next generation of preschool IP” also thanks to its international collaboration with Go-N Production and Federation, handling global distribution.

With “Flamie Rangers,” Tintin Li (Brilliant Animation Studios) is attempting to “connect Taiwan to the world,” too. The company is also behind “Deer May,” about a sister taking care of her little brother, and “Husky” about a single father and his son. 

“Do you think things will go smoothly for them? No, they won’t. European distributors are really interested in this one.”

The same could be said for “Beelu’s Yum Yum Time,” a hit series now in its third season, “combining adventure storytelling with food exploration.”

“We have proven that this format works,” said Jia-Jia Chan of Taiwan Bar Studio, admitting the story has already reached families in 60 countries. This number is likely to grow, as the new season bets on international treats such as pizza and pasta, devoured by the show’s “unstoppable food collecting crew” – one that includes a magical food truck. 

“It expands into multilingual formats with music and interactive elements for global co-production. We are ready to take our viewership to the next level,” she noted, mentioning a brand-new English-language channel with a new song, waiting to be discovered. 

“Taiwan can bring IPs and financial opportunities. But how can we collaborate with international companies to increase the value [of these stories] instead of just doing it ourselves?,” wondered Jia-Jia Chan.

She added: “We have the technology, and there are lots of creative people in Taiwan. But we don’t think about an international scope, and we haven’t opened up our market yet. We need to work harder to make our characters go global.”