Gaming, animation sees high demand for talent

By Kanchana Dwarakanath, Timesjobs.com Bureau

With a grow rate of 22 per cent CAGR, the career prospects in the animation and gaming industry are extremely upbeat.
Many global players have entered India in the past few years in the Animation & Gaming industry and have tapped into India's talent pool for offshore delivery of services.

Manpower crunch

"Though a fresher may earn a mere Rs. 12,000 to 15,000 per month, in a matter of a short time one can expect to earn about Rs. 35,000 to Rs. 40,000 per month," says Hanif Mohammed, director - Corporate Affairs, Asian Institute of Gaming and Animation, Bangalore. "And this is irrespective of whether he is a programmer, a game artist or a designer."

However, the industry is plagued with a serious talent crunch. Lack of trained manpower, professionals who have the skill-set to develop end-to-end games and have worked in advanced Next Generation Network (NGN) pipeline are almost a rarity.

"The talent requirement is so high, that institutes like ours that provide training and a focused one-year diploma for programming, art and design are able to cater to the requirements of just the Bangalore-based companies," says Mohammed. "Although there is heavy demand from markets like Chennai and Mumbai, we actually have to turn them down."

This despite the fact that the industry doesn't require a specific degree.

"A BE drop out or a +2 and at times even a tenth pass, with a diploma and a technical/programming/design or artistic bent of mind is enough assurance for the companies to hire," says Mohammed.

Big money

The presence of big names like Toonz Animation India, Silvertoon Studio, Crest Communications, Jadoo Works, Heart Entertainment, Technicolor and Maya Entertainment, and increased funding has given the much needed impetus to the industry.

As an industry too, the segment has undergone a metamorphosis in the past two years. The industry has spread its influence across platforms and evolved new business models. In gaming alone, the mobile and console segments have contributed extensively to domestic consumption; while the animation entertainment segment has taken early steps towards domestic box office success. The services market, which was primarily an outsourced one, on the back of successful project deliveries has moved up the value chain. All these factors have resulted in bringing in more business and with it a higher degree of professionalism and processes.

"As of now we are a 30 to 35 thousand people strong industry in this country," says Biren Ghose, country head, Technicolor India. "This is expected to grow to 45 to 50,000 in the next 4-5 years. If these 30,000 could be better trained, or can be leveraged to grow to say 70,000 more, we will have at least 12-13 per cent market share. We could have almost five times the growth in 10 years then."