The South Korean government has earmarked around US$1 billion (KRW1.5 trillion) to strengthen its animation sector over the next five years, starting with US$140 million this year.

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism outlined this significant investment yesterday in a “Basic Plan for the Promotion of the Animation Industry,” which was covered by local news outlets including The Korean Herald.

One of the plan’s key initiatives is to implement cash rebates for international animated co-productions that are primarily made in Korea and meet a number of other criteria. Overall, the Ministry wants to diversify the country’s output and expand into high-potential formats like YA animation, shorts (designed for dedicated bite-sized content apps) and webtoon adaptations.

The investment will also be used to address what are seen as “structural” challenges in the animation sector, which could translate into more government-supported localization efforts via dubbing/subbing and improved production conditions. And building a bigger international presence through joint pavilions at Southeast Asian animation markets and global marketing is on the agenda, too.

The timing for such an initiative seems perfect, with Asian animation having a big global moment this year, thanks to strong-box office performances by China’s Ne Zha 2 and Indonesia’s Jumbo. More locally, faith-based film King of Kings, which was produced by South Korea’s Mofac Studios, has already made US$53.6 million since premiering on April 11. And last fall, South Korean pic Heartsping: Teenieping of Love (pictured) from SAMG became one of the region’s top-grossing CG-animated films of all time, selling more than a million tickets.