by Tony Collingwood

There are four main places to pitch an animated show. In the relative quiet of an executive’s office; fighting the ambient noise at Mip or Kidscreen; or finally, if you are European, you can pitch to close to 200 people, all at once, at Cartoon Forum.

Back in the nineties and noughties, Cartoon Forum was a nomadic event, raising its tent every year in a different European location. Santiago de Compostela, Inverness, Arles, Cordoba… I went to them all. Bus tours were arranged to take us to local attractions; lasting friendships were forged. It was like a package holiday for creatives. I wasn’t quite sure if I went to Cartoon Forum so I could pitch shows, or if I created shows so that I could go to Cartoon Forum. Whichever way round it was, it worked. It gave a focus and a deadline to the nebulous process of coming up with a show. I loved Cartoon Forum.

In September I pitched a show at Cartoon Forum again (see page 37) after an absence of 13 years. (I’d been away coproducing with the Americans and Canadians. Sorry). Was Cartoon Forum still the same? Well, quite frankly, Cartoon Forum has put on weight. I’m not judging, just pointing it out.

This year 950 people attended, compared to under 700 when we last met in 2004. It’s become too big an event to skip around Europe now. So I understand why Cartoon Forum has had to settle, for the foreseeable future, in Toulouse. Its size and stable location has made the event more professional and more of a ‘market’ on the calendar. It’s become more grown-up. The organisation is flawless. Sessions run like clockwork with great technicians behind the scenes. All a result of continuity of venue.

The next change I noticed was the appearance of advertising on the walls; they were adverts for some of the shows being pitched, paid for by major broadcasters, I assume. All very Mip. A necessary form of finance I’m sure, even if it does skew the previous egalitarian approach of Cartoon Forum to give each show pitched equal prominence.

However, I discovered that the most important moment for every producer at Cartoon Forum has not changed at all. The lights go down, the phones are off, and you have the complete attention of the main broadcasters and financers in Europe, all in the same room.

That is the big point of difference that continues to define Cartoon Forum, and it’s worth repeating. They are all in the same room. Ours is an insecure business, filled with buyers who have to perfect the talent of saying “no” to most shows, without completely de-motivating the creatives on whom they ultimately rely. Their jobs however, are defined by the few times a year when they say “yes.” Unfortunately, a single “yes” does not green-light a show. You need a chorus. Having everyone in the same room helps to build that chorus, as an unspoken consensus is reached by an audience who sense when a show has worked beyond its home territory.

One of the enduring quirks of Cartoon Forum is that producers are able to watch each other’s pitches. The basic need to fill your room up before your pitch leads to any sense of privacy being thrown to the wind. Camaraderie takes over and we all cheer each other on. Each of us happily proclaiming our budgets and business plans to our competitors from the stage.

Any producer or creative new to the business should take advantage of this and head to the next Cartoon Forum. It used to be that producers could only go if they were pitching a show that year, or had pitched the previous year.

Now, you can go as an observer. In that respect alone, Cartoon Forum remains a great snapshot of the industry in any given year and a chance to learn how to – and how not to – pitch a show. (Only rule: be succinct!)

And, in case you were wondering, yes, I am still in love with Cartoon Forum. It’s bigger, and doesn’t move around as much; but I think that just comes with age. It’s still beautiful in my eyes, and I’ll be back again next year. See you there.

Kidstalk – C21 Kids/Fall 2017