Agglomeration of the Animation Industry in the Shanghai–Wuxi Region, China

Abstract

This chapter examines the agglomeration structure of the Chinese animation industry in Shanghai and Wuxi, two industrial cities located in the Yangtze Delta region. Like the South Korean animation industry, the Chinese animation industry has developed as a subcontracting industry that serves other countries. The focus of the investigation in this chapter includes the transactional relationships among studios and the combined labor market formed in the two cities. China’s agglomeration structure is different from that of South Korea because of aspects such as state involvement in development and industrial distribution, the size of the domestic market, and the role the industry plays within the international division of labor. The productivity of the animation studios in the Shanghai–Wuxi region is also sustained by transactional relationships, which help to ensure that complementary skills and labor are mutually dispersed among studios. Workers in Shanghai find work and learn skills through their personal networks. Wuxi is a major investment city in China because of its industrial promotion policies and its moderate labor regulations. Each worker in Wuxi receives work only from the studio to which he or she belongs. The two cities have different agglomeration structures, but certain factors promote the industry’s agglomeration in both cities.