Related special on the First International Cultural Industry Fair Shenzhen>>>

The largest display at the cultural industry fair was for the animation industry, occupying three exhibition halls at the China Hi-Tech Fair Exhibition Center.

Hall F1 displays cartoon books. Many people, mostly children, spent much time leafing through the books. According to a woman surnamed Zhang who was in charge of the section, most books were recent works created by cartoonists on the Chinese mainland. But there are also books from Japan, South Korea, Taiwan and Hong Kong.

Hall F2 has rows of posters featuring different animation characters. In the center is an area for flash (Internet animation) exhibition, with a big screen showing different flash programs. This hall also has booths selling clothing accessories, ornaments and toys with animation characters on them.

Hall D has booths of different animation companies from China and abroad. Jeffrey Cappleman, a Canadian serving as director of Shenzhen-based Flashflame Digital Vision Co. Ltd., was at his company's booth.

"The artworks and animations on display at the cultural fair rival and in many cases excel what's being produced in the world animation industry. With a little more knowledge and inspiration from the more mature animation industry in Hollywood, Chinese artists could potentially unleash their creative talent that has evolved through the ages into this new medium."

The animation section also featured some of China's most renowned artists, such as Lei Ting, Liu Wei and Zhao Peng. They demonstrated their skills as well as signed autographs for visitors.

Cosplay contest is part of the animation industry many local children have participated in. Cosplay means combining the words "costume" and "play" that accurately describes the hobby of having fun by dressing up as one's favorite characters.

So far, Shenzhen has more than 50 animation companies with more than 1,000 employees. The industry's current annual revenue is about 200 million yuan (US$24,000 million).

Editor: Catherine