A scene from The Incredibles, one of the highest-grossing animation films. (Reuters)

Even as the rush to set up animation schools in the city continues, some early starters are planning their next step.

RTG Animate, which started its first batch last year, is setting up centres in Bangalore and Chandigarh, and making a foray into animation production.

?We started with Bengal because of the talent. The quality of students we have received and the great work done by them has proved us right,? said Arjun Jindal, director of RTG Animate. The current student strength of 150 at the institute will be doubled in October when the second batch begins.

By the end of this year, RTG Animate plans to have its training centres in Chandigarh and Bangalore ready. ?Chandigarh is typically a student town and we also have some land there. Bangalore is the IT hub from where we can cover the entire south Indian market,? Jindal explained.

The Chandigarh set-up, spread over 10,000 sq ft, would be similar in size to the Calcutta school while Bangalore will be a slightly bigger affair, at 15,000 sq ft. The Garden City will also host RTG Animate?s production facility, scheduled to take up ?20,000 to 30,000 sq ft? and employ around 500 people.

?We thought of production as we have access to such good faculty and students,? Jindal offered. The core team would start production work in Calcutta while the bulk will be done in Bangalore.

?We have tied up with studios and individuals in the US for contract and co-production work. It?s a tough industry but there is good money, too,? Jindal added.

Production work should begin by October and Jindal hopes to absorb ?around 80 per cent? of the pass-outs from the training institute.

The good times are just starting for the animation industry in India and Bengal. According to NASSCOM, the size of the Indian animation market was estimated at $285 million in 2005. It is expected to witness a CAGR of 35 per cent from 2005-2009 and grow to $950 million by 2009.