After months' discussions and negotiations, Suzhou Golden Cartoon Company and Virgin Comics and Animation Company signed a cooperation agreement at SIP Creative Pump Station on March 10. The act cause great repercussions in the animation industry here.

Golden Cartoon was founded in May 2007 in SIP to engage in animation designing and market promotion with focus on original creation and the development of derivative products. Last year, the company started the creation of ink wash cartoon and related derivatives based on the famous painting "Thriving Suzhou" by artist Xu Yang of the Qing dynasty, which attracted the interest of well-known international animation industrial enterprises like Virgin Comics LLC.

Virgin LLC was established in 2005 and in a few years created a famous brand name characteristic of Virgin's rebellious, innovative, and free enterprise concept. Virgin LLC has produced cartoon stories with new ideas, new sound, and new characters through the blending of Western and oriental cultures. Virgin regards China as a great fountainhead for animation creation. The long history, rich culture, and fairy tales of China opens up an ideal source for creative work of originality.

At the signing ceremony, representatives of both companies express warm expectations for the prospect of their cooperation. Mr. Suresh Seetharaman, representative of Virgin LLC, gave high praise to the supportive policies for animation industry in SIP and the creativity of Golden Cartoon. He said that the cooperation would inspire his company to shift the focus of original creation and market development onto Suzhou.

It is agreed that at the initial stage of cooperation, Golden Cartoon will mainly collect, sort, and categorize the Chinese history and fairy tales, and design the characters and structure of Chinese stories and their background, and provide these artistic elements to Virgin LLC, which will create cartoon books, films, games, and other animation products to supply the market. The cooperation shows that the Chinese animation enterprises, instead of being limited to service outsourcing, has taken an important step towards the international market.