The Asia Television Forum (ATF), Asia-Pacific?s largest TV programming market, opens its second presentation tomorrow at Shangri-La?s Rasa Sentosa Resort, Singapore. The ATF - open to registered buyers and sellers only - will run till 7 December and will also debut Asia Animation, Asia?s first exhibition dedicated to animation as well as a one-day top-level industry summit involving government participation from the region.

The full-day ATF summit will discuss the strategic direction of the Asia-Pacific TV industry and the major trends expected to shape business across the region in the year ahead, an official release said. Areas of discussion range from financing and content creation for a new environment to regulations and government involvement. The summit is organised by Television Asia, which will also present nine conference sessions during the three-day market. The conference track will address technological trends such as digital animation and special effects for the new media, which will complement the exhibition.

Among those making presentations at the conference are AK Madhavan, senior V-P international business, Crest Communication Ltd and Nandini Vaidyanathan, COO, UTV Toons.

ASIA ANIMATION: Asia Animation 2001, Asia?s first ever exhibition dedicated to animation, will take place in conjunction with the ATF.

Asia Animation will provide a technical and creative showcase for an international pool of creators, producers and distributors. This is in line with the rising popularity of programmes employing animation techniques. Asia Animation will serve as a showcase for the technology that lies behind animation programmes, many of which will be transacted at the ATF.