Report 2025 | Cartoon Business

Talking Business in European Animation

Cartoon Business is a seminar event dedicated to business models of the animation industry. The European animation industry is going through a period of unprecedented change (general market recession, new technologies, new players, growing ecological awareness, etc.). It has never been so important to provide answers to the questions raised, particularly on the financial and commercial aspects that are worrying the industry. The 2025 edition of Cartoon Business was organised from 12 to 14 November in Brussels.

Belgian animation as the golden thread

The 2025 edition of Cartoon Business turned the spotlight on animation in Belgium. Demonstrating a strong ambition for co-production, both within Belgium and internationally, the country’s cultural and economic funds have joined forces to put together a programme dedicated to the Belgian animation industry, with a focus on local studios/companies and talent. The cultural and economic funds are very active in animation. Please find more information on animation in Belgium here.

Networking opportunities at the heart of the event

For the second time at Cartoon Business, on the afternoon of Wednesday 12 November, a Job Day featuring regional companies was held at the NH Berlaymont Hotel, offering young talents a chance to connect with local industry professionals and explore career opportunities.

© CARTOON 2025

7 companies presented their works: Amplo, Vivi Film/Studio Souza/Creature, Submarine, The Pack, nWave Pictures, Dreamwall and Walking the Dog.

The presentations were followed by networking sessions (during 1 hour) between young talents and company representatives within the NH Berlaymont Hotel.

40 young talents were registered for this Job Day and in total 28 meetings took place. This initiative was highly appreciated by professionals and talents and had multiple goals: to break the ice on the first day between young talents and regional professionals, to connect to the new generation of graduates entering the job market, and to create employment opportunities that benefit both companies and young talents seeking work.

After the Job Day and a first coffee break within the room at NH Berlaymont Hotel, for the fourth time during Cartoon Business, CARTOON organised One-to-One meetings between all the participants attending the event. During these speed dating sessions, participants started their first exchanges on possible collaborations. This opportunity enabled participants to break the ice and get to know each other from day one, and to exchange ideas not just at a local level but also at an international level.

130 meetings took place in two hours with 61 participants (20 minutes per meeting).

© CARTOON 2025

BUSINESS CLINIC

Last year we introduced a new feature: the Business Clinic. This consultancy opportunity has the purpose to connect participants attending the event with specialists during coaching sessions on business issues they are facing and trying to find a solution, or at least some ideas on how to fix it.

7 consultants from 3 countries were chosen before the event for the Business Clinic depending on the needs of the market. To allow the participants and the consultants to take advantage of the first networking afternoon, we decided to organise this Business Clinic in parallel with the Job Fair. More than 30 inspiring meetings took place between 7 consultants and 30 participants.

This initiative was a success and highly appreciated by the participants.

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As this year’s edition took place in Brussels, we had the opportunity to put Belgian’s animation in the spotlight within the programme.

The first session was dedicated to discover the key business milestones happening in animation in Belgium. During this session, the focus was on unveiling cool, new technical advances, fueling innovation in creativity and production in Belgium companies. A small overview of the Belgium’s year in animation was presented. The presentation was followed by two local case studies with the companies The Pack and Waooh.

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This year, two screening of 2 short local films were organised before the lunch breaks on Thursday 13 November and Friday 14 November to highlight local creations. The following 2 short films were screened:

“Beautiful Men” by Nicolas Keppens (Animal Tank, Ka-Ching Cartoons & Miyu Productions)
“In Thousand Petals” by Louise Bongartz (Camera-etc & OZÙ Prod)

The 2025 Programme

Cartoon Business was officially launched on Thursday 13 November at 9:00 am at Autoworld (conference venue for Thursday and Friday, another emblematic place in Brussels) with the Welcome Words of the Head of Content of the event, Vanessa Chapman. After presenting the history of Cartoon Business and explaining the content selection process based on the current market trends, she warmly thanked all partners who were actively supporting the event: Creative Europe - MEDIA Programme, and of course Screen Flanders, screen.brussels, Wallimage, Flanders Image and Fédération Wallonie-Bruxelles.

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KEYNOTES, PANELS AND CASE STUDIES

Committed to its mission of anticipating and responding to new developments in the sector, CARTOON has dedicated two days to the evolution of animated industry especially at a financial scale, through panels of professionals from all over Europe. Cartoon Business focuses on key strategies for companies’ growth and business development in European animation.

Cartoon Business proposed a set of 16 conferences from European experts working in different fields (private equity, financing, broadcasting, production, law, distribution, video game, etc.).

TOPICS & TRENDS FROM CARTOON BUSINESS 2025

In addition to the highlighting of Belgium, the hot topics discussed during the event were:

In the footsteps of women in animation: The panel dedicated to the women in animation was a tremendous success! Filled with laughter, heartfelt stories and valuable insights, the discussion offered a refreshing and inspiring look at the journeys of women who are shaping the world of animation. Kristine Knudsen (DE & NO), Marta Alonso Lisbona (ES) & Perrine Gauthier (FR & BE) shared their personal experiences with honesty and humour, offering thoughtful advice to anyone aspiring to enter the field.
New models reshaping the industry: challenges are nothing new in animation. What’s remarkable is how its creators continue to reinvent themselves, time and time again, and this has never been truer than in 2025. By reshaping distribution models (through new platforms such as gaming, mobile apps, social media and UGC content), rethinking creative methods, and deepening their understanding of audiences, professionls are paving the way for the next global animated hits.

Focus on European key players: representatives of multiple countries were presenting their animation industry. Several European companies such as Mediawan Kids & Family (FR), VRT-Ketnet (BE), & Submarine Animation (NL) seized the opportunity to explain their newest strategies to create new IPs, attract new audiences and expand their reach.

The quality of the seminars organised by CARTOON is primarily due to the high-level quality and prestige of the speakers. This year in Brussels, CARTOON gathered 30 key animation professionals from 13 countries to fill its keynotes, panels and case studies (the «Speakers»). The level and diversity of our 30 panellists contributed to a wide scanning through innovative animated contents, distribution and financing.

ABOUT THE SPEAKERS

The participants of Cartoon Business 2025

The Cartoon Masters are aimed at all professionals wishing to undertake high-level training in animation skills or for professional updates on industry developments. The number of participants this year shows a high interest in the event. 205 participants registered at Cartoon Business in 2025, almost the same than the number of last year (207). This year’s participants came from 23 different countries. This shows the importance of the event worldwide for professionals.

KEY FIGURES

Some figures for all the participants:

This reflects a large diversity of profiles who attended the event.

A sustainable approach

Regarding our sustainable policy, CARTOON is trying to make Cartoon Business greener than ever! On the one hand, we aimed at showing the professionals of the industry that a path to more sustainable productions is possible. On the other hand, a 100% vegetarian lunch was organised to reduce our carbon footprint. We have encouraged participants to travel to Cartoon Business 2025 by train wherever possible. We chose the event venues according to their location, to ensure that they were easily accessible by public transport and on foot (BELvue museum, Autoworld, etc.).