The Most Dangerous Game Literary Analysis free essay sample

The Most Dangerous Game, a short story by Richard Connell, follows the suspenseful events as the hunter becomes the hunted. Set in the 1920’s The Most Dangerous Game concerns the expert hunter and main character, Rainsford, whenever he falls overboard at sea and swims to the nearest body of land, known as â€Å"Ship Trap Island†. It is on this mysterious island that Rainsford stumbles upon the magnificent home of General Zaroff, a fellow hunting enthusiast, although of a different sort. The Most Dangerous Game by Richard Connell features conflict, style, and imagery. Upon meeting General Zaroff, a tall older man with white hair and a dark mustache, Rainsford also meets his large assistant, a deaf and dumb Cossack, named Ivan. General Zaroff’s appearance and language parallel the fineries of the lavish home, which Ivan’s appearance and lack of language parallel the enormous size and chaos of the jungle surrounding the home. We will write a custom essay sample on The Most Dangerous Game Literary Analysis or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Rainsford is given a well-tailored suit to wear and invited to an exquisite dinner in Zaroff’s lavish dining hall, the walls adorned with animal heads. During dinner General Zaroff and Rainsford rush into a detailed conversation about their mutual fondness for hunting. Rainsford points out that he believes the Cape Buffalo, an animal upon Zaroff’s wall, is the most dangerous of animals to hunt. Zaroff presents foreshadowing, by disagreeing with Rainsford and saying the Cape Buffalo is not the most dangerous animal. Zaroff then invites Rainsford to hunt on the island with him, and then begins to tell the story of his past and how he came to the island. It is during this conversation that the climax of the story is reached as Zaroff admits to having to â€Å"invent† a new animal to hunt. Although it takes some time Rainsford slowly realizes that Zaroff is referring to hunting humans. This is an ironic situation as Rainsford is sitting before the most gracious of hosts, who has just admitted to a â€Å"sport† which Rainsford equates as cold-blooded murder. Zaroff continues to explain the rules of the game; the men are given a head start under the cover of night, and if Zaroff has not caught them within three days’ time than they have won. If the men refuse to be a part of the game then they must suffer at the hands of Ivan. Zaroff asks Rainsford to hunt men with him, and Rainsford refuses adamantly. As Rainsford tries to sleep that night he stares out the window and remarks that he feels â€Å"enveloped† by the darkness of the night, an example of Connell’s imagery to the color black. The next day at lunchtime Rainsford announces to Zaroff that he would like to leave the island. Zaroff leaves him two choices, to face Ivan or partake as the hunted. Rainsford chooses to play Zaroff’s twisted game, and is given a two hour head start, as well as hunting clothes, food, and a knife. Rainsford dashes into the island jungle madly, running without cause. Eventually Rainsford chooses to get a handle on his emotions, and begins to use his own hunting skills to evade Zaroff. Over the next forty-eight hours Rainsford rigs two separate traps in attempts to outsmart Zaroff, although both times he comes close it is not enough to conquer the General. The following day Rainsford, who is sleeping atop a tree, is woken by the fast approaching Zaroff, Ivan, and a pack of hunting dogs. Rainsford is able to think quickly, and uses a trick he learned in Uganda to attach a knife to the end of a young sapling and aim it towards his pursuers, only managing to take down Ivan. Rainsford rushes to the nearest cliff’s edge, and leaps into the dark ocean water below. Zaroff comes shortly after, and unable to find Rainsford he returns home and mourns the loss of his faithful servant, Ivan. As he walks into his bedroom and turns on the light Zaroff finds Rainsford behind the curtains, and congratulates him on his victory. The two men agree that the game is still ongoing, and the winner will sleep in the bed, as the loser will be fed to the dogs. Connell’s short story is concluded with Rainsford remarking on how comfortable the bed was that evening. Connell has written an intriguing story which features several different types of conflicts. There is the physical man versus man conflict, which refers to Zaroff and Ivan versus Rainsford. A man versus nature conflict is also present as Rainsford faces the jungle in his attempt to escape from Zaroff. A man versus self conflict is also featured in this short story, as Rainsford wrestles with himself internally over Zaroff’s madness as well as fighting his own bubbling emotions in a time of panic. Connell’s major style throughout the story is no doubt irony. There is irony busting out at the seams of this short story, for the fact that Rainsford is acclaimed hunter who states that animals which are hunted have no feelings, and then Rainsford himself ends up being hunted and is able to experience firsthand the fear and desolation. Richard Connell uses conflict, style, and colorful imagery to convey this suspenseful story to his readers. It is no doubt that The Most Dangerous Game will continue to impact audiences with its’ thought provoking plot line for years to come.

Sample Argumentative Essay For the The Grade

Sample Argumentative Essay For the The GradeWriting a sample argumentative essay for the The Grade is definitely something that will take some time to get into. In fact, as a high school student who is in the process of writing one, I did not expect it to be so difficult. However, as I have come to realize, there are many guidelines to follow, especially when starting out.When composing your sample argumentative essay for the The Grade, it is necessary to consider the entire theme and purpose of the assignment. What you want to say is something that relates back to what the teacher is asking about. The goal of the essay should be to communicate the theme of the lesson or assignment in a way that does not distract from the main point of the topic. This means that you need to really think about what you want to say in the essay and what you want to accomplish.You may have all of the answers to your questions on what you want to say, but you need to think about what the message that you want to impart in your argumentative essay for the The Grade is going to be. Is it going to be how good a student you are, the importance of teamwork, or even how much of a student you are? These are all questions that you can try to answer while you are writing your essay. Your answers will help you plan how best to relay your message, and this is an important part of the writing process.It is also important to think about what type of essay you are going to write for the The Grade. Are you going to have a personal essay, one about yourself, or one that tackles the problems of other students in the class? Again, this will depend on your own particular style and agenda for the assignment. If you are looking for support from your teacher, then one that addresses some specific problems would be ideal. The more you discuss your own experiences, the more chance there is of your writing being something that will inspire the other students to improve.It is also important to plan your wri ting strategy for your The Grade essay. You will need to make sure that you do not use any or more than one of the five basic argumentative styles: argumentative style, descriptive essay, factual, eloquent, and persuasive. Keep in mind that using more than one style may leave you open to criticisms.You will also need to plan out how you are going to write your essay. If you are doing this for the first time, it may be helpful to spend some time watching a video or reading an outline of your essay before you begin writing. This way, you can get a better idea of what you will be writing. Or, if you have a really good idea, you can jot down your thoughts and ideas as you plan out the essay.As you prepare for your sample argumentative essay for the The Grade, make sure that you are focused and clear about your own goals and your arguments. Then, start writing. You will be surprised at how much effort you will put into the task, and you will not only enjoy the results, but you will also come away with a great idea about what you want to say in your essays. You will also be able to learn how to communicate clearly and persuasively.

90 Idioms About Tools

90 Idioms About Tools 90 Idioms About Tools 90 Idioms About Tools By Mark Nichol Hand tools have inspired a tool box full of metaphorical words and expressions. Here’s a list of many of those handy idioms. 1–5. angry/mad enough to chew nails/spit nails or ready to eat nails: enraged 6–7. another/final nail in the coffin: one of/the last of multiple factors that contribute to a failure 8–9. ax: a guitar or other instrument a musician might play while making a chopping motion (noun), or fire, reduce, remove, or terminate (verb) 10. ax to grind: grudge or motive 11. bed of nails: difficult or unpleasant situation 12. between the hammer and the anvil: facing a dilemma 13. bury the hatchet: end a dispute or feud 14. chisel (someone) out of: cheat to get something away from someone 15: chisel in: deceive or manipulate to get a share of something 16: chiseled: toned or well defined (as in facial features or body) 17. clamp down: impose controls or restrictions 18–19. coffin nail/coffin tack: a cigarette (or, rarely, a drink of liquor) 20. crowbar: insert or remove with force 21. drill: hit or propel with force 22. drill down: investigate or get to the root of 23. for want of a nail: abbreviation of a proverb illustrating that the lack of an insignificant part can have significant consequences for the whole 24–25. hammer (something) out: argue or negotiate toward an agreement, or play a piano loudly 26. hammer and tongs: with great determination and energy (as in â€Å"going at it hammer and tongs†) 27. hammer away: discuss something excessively or tediously 28. hammer home: press a point 29–30. hammer: a vehicle’s accelerator (noun), or do something with great force or persistence (verb, as in â€Å"I tried to hammer it into his thick skull†) 31. hard as nails: unfeeling or unsympathetic 32–33. has a screw loose/with a loose screw: is eccentric, mentally unbalanced, or strange/has eccentricities or is mentally unbalanced or strange 34. has one’s head screwed on right: is capable or sensible 35. hit the nail on the head: be accurate or right, or explain perceptively 36–37. nail: arrest or identify (or have sex with, but this sense is vulgar) 38. nail (one’s) colors to the mast: express opinion publicly (from the idea of attaching a flag to a ship’s mast to identify one’s national origin) 39. nail (something) down: agree on or accomplish something 40. nail (someone’s) ears back: severely scold someone 41–43. nail (someone)/nail (someone’s) hide to the wall, or nail (someone) to a cross: see â€Å"nail (someone’s) ears back† 44–45. nail (something) down: discover, or make certain or final or win decisively 46–49. nail Jell-O/jelly to a tree/the wall: try something futile (akin to â€Å"herd cats†) 50–51. on the nail: in full (as in â€Å"pay on the nail†), or under discussion (both British English) 52–53. put a wrench/monkey wrench into: disrupt or sabotage (the British English term is spanner) 54. put a nail in the coffin of (something): cause something to end or stop 55. put the hammer down: accelerate a vehicle 56–57. put/tighten the screws on (someone): pressure or threaten someone, or make something more difficult for someone 58. saw away at: move one’s arms as if in a sawing motion 59. saw wood: snore loudly 60. sawed off: short (said of a diminutive person or a shotgun with part of the barrel removed) 61–64. screw: cheat or deceive, or a jailer (also, copulate, or someone to copulate with, but these senses are vulgar) 65–66. screw around/off: waste time or act aimlessly 67–70. screw (someone) around/screw around with (someone): bother or harass (â€Å"screw around with (someone)† also means â€Å"copulate with† or â€Å"be promiscuous,† but these senses are vulgar) 71. screw around with (something): fiddle or play with 72. screw (one’s) courage to the sticking place: have courage or resolution 73. screw (someone) out of: cheat or deceive to deprive someone of something 74–75. screw (one) over: betray, or see â€Å"nail (one’s) ears back† 76. screw the pooch: make a significant mistake (vulgar) 77. screw up: make a mistake 78. screw up (one’s) courage: force (oneself) to be brave 79. screw up (one’s) face: make an unpleasant expression 80. screwed: in trouble 81–82. screwed up: made a mistake (verb phrase), or flawed or ruined (adjective) 83. take a hammering: suffer a severe attack or loss 84. tool: an unlikeable or easily deceived person 85. tool around: drive quickly but aimlessly 86. tools of the trade: whatever is associated with, or required to do, a job 87. tough as nails: determined 88. turn of the screw: an action that worsens a bad situation 89. under the hammer: for sale (alluding to an auctioneer’s hammer) 90. wrench: mechanic Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Expressions category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:Yours faithfully or Yours sincerely?34 Writing Tips That Will Make You a Better WriterHow to Address Your Elders, Your Doctor, Young Children... and Your CEO

Social Emotional Learning Competencies

Social Emotional Learning Competencies There are many different ways students experience stress in schools, from standardized or high stakes testing to bullying. In order to better  equip students with the emotional skills they will need while they are schools, once they leave school and enter the work force. Many schools are adopting programs to help support  Social-Emotional Learning (SEL).  Ã‚  The definition of  Social-Emotional Learning or SEL is:   (SEL) is the process through which children and adults acquire and effectively apply the knowledge, attitudes, and skills necessary to understand and manage emotions, set and achieve positive goals, feel and show empathy for others, establish and maintain positive relationships, and make responsible decisions.   In education, SEL has become the way schools and districts have coordinated activities  and programs in character education, violence prevention, anti-bullying, drug prevention and school discipline. Under this organizational umbrella, the primary goals of SEL are to reduce these problems enhancing the school climate, and improve students’ academic performance. FIVE COMPETENCIES FOR SOCIAL EMOTIONAL LEARNING: Research shows that in order for students to develop the knowledge, attitudes, and skills described in SEL, students need to be  competent,  or have  abilities, in five areas: self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, relationship skills, responsible decision making. The following criteria for these skills could serve as an inventory for students to self-evaluate as well: Collaborative for Academic,  Social, and Emotional Learning (CASEL)  defines these areas of ability as: Self-awareness:   This is the students ability to accurately recognize emotions and thoughts and the influence   of emotions and thoughts on behavior. Self-awareness means that a student can accurately assessing his or her own strengths as well as limitations. Students who are self-aware possess a sense of confidence and optimism.  Self-management:  This is the ability for a student to regulate emotions, thoughts, and behaviors effectively in different situations. The ability to self-manage includes how well the student manages stress, controls impulses,and   motivates himself or herself. The student who can self-manage can set and work toward achieving personal and academic goals.Social awareness:  This is the ability for a student to use another lens or another persons point of view. Students who are socially aware can empathize with others from diverse backgrounds and cultures. These students can understand diverse social and ethical norms for behavior. Students who ar e socially aware can recognize and know where to find family, school, and community resources and supports.   Relationship skills:  This is the ability for a student to establish and maintain healthy and rewarding relationships with diverse individuals and groups. Students who have strong relationship skills  Ã‚  listening actively and  can communicate clearly. These students are cooperative while resisting inappropriate social pressure. These students have the ability to negotiate conflict constructively. Students with strong relationship skills can seek and offer help when needed.Responsible decision making:  This is the ability for a student to make constructive and respectful choices about his or her own personal behavior and social interactions. These choices are based on consideration of ethical standards, safety concerns, and social norms. They respect the realistic evaluations of situations. Students who exhibit responsible decision making respect the consequences of various actions, the well-being of themselves, and the well-being of others. CONCLUSION The research  shows that  these competencies are taught most effectively within caring, supportive, and well-managed learning environments.   Incorporating social emotional learning programs (SEL) in school curriculum is considerably different than offering programs for math and reading test achievement. The goal of SEL programs is to develop students to be healthy, safe, engaged, challenged, and supported beyond school, well into college or career. The consequence, however, of good SEL programming,  is that the research shows that it results in a general improvement in academic achievement. Finally, the students who participate in social emotional learning programs offered through schools learn identify their individual strengths and weaknesses in dealing with stress. Knowing individual   strength or weaknesses can help student develop the social emotional skills they need to be successful in college and/or career.

Benjamin Franklin and the Economy of the Colonies Essay

Benjamin Franklin and the Economy of the Colonies - Essay Example Reacting to the advocates of the Stamp Act who claimed that the Seven Years War had been waged to the detriment of Britain to protect the interests of Native Americans, Franklin referred once again to the fur trade subject: â€Å"The last war was begun, not ‘for the immediate protection’ of all Americans, but for the protection of British trade, carried on with British manufactures among the Indians in America† (Greene 1995, 261). Franklin also commented on the dispatching of Braddock’s army by the Crown to America as a way to safeguard British trade and that the â€Å"trade with the Indians, though carried on in America, is not an American interest† (Greene 1995, 261). The war had been waged to create new markets for English producers and traders, and, as argued by Franklin, should justly shoulder the burden of maintaining the army (Isaacson 2003) that at the time inhabited the colonized lands. Economic Structure of the Colonies In a working colonia l economy, the capitalist interconnectedness of the colonies and the mother country generally resulted in a colonial imbalance of trade. The colonies pay for the products of the mother country and are pushed to produce those unprocessed materials needed by the colonial capitalists. In this process they are backed up by the new capital and investment of the balances of the mother country (Beer 1958). Hence, in the southern settlements, tobacco mostly was being generated to supply revenues for the British products the plantation owners needed; yet, since the trade left the British with a positive balance, its capitalists had by the 1770s at least ?4,000,000 spent in southern planting activities (Wahlke 1962, 1). To pay for the fees on these arrears, according to Wahlke (1962), southern planters were forced to continuously broaden their agricultural activities and to take part in the secondary operations of the fur trade and land assessment. Evidently, the northern colonies were a sour ce for iron, whale products, furs, and lumber, and these Britain greatly required sustaining her autonomy of European supplies. Through payments, the loosening of trade limitations and the rewarding of preferred places in the main market, Britain tried to persuade these businesses, in part because it needed these materials and in part to deflect northern capital from reaching into manufacturing, shipping, and shipbuilding (Greene 1995). Yet, the policy was a failure. The northern colonies were purchasing more and more volumes of British products and services, and were hence heavy debtors in the direct trade (Greene 1995). Obviously, these economic systems only benefited the British capitalists and merchants in terms of favorable balances. The colonies in turn were increasingly buried in debt. In the system of mercantilism, colonies were obliged to support the mother country in gaining an export surplus, economic independence, and favorable balance of trade. Colonies were obliged to provide supplies which would otherwise have to be acquired from non-colonial reservoirs, produce exports by the manufacture and trade of goods in high demand in other markets, and supply a market for the exports of the mother country (Greene 1995). In return, the mother country would furnish the settlements with military protection, and centralized regulation of the economy. But mercantilism was ‘not an American interest’

Historical analysis of recent events Research Paper

Historical analysis of recent events - Research Paper Example Once the protests were successful in Tunisia, all other North African Countries in the vicinity of the Arab League joined protests in their nations to protest over similar demands. Specifically, the demonstrators were successful to remove from office presidents in countries such as Libya, Egypt, Algeria, Yemen, Tunisia, Morocco, Kuwait, Jordan and Iraq. Strong protests had since been recorded in areas such as Syria, Sudan, Palestine and Oman. It is safe to mention that there was some coercion and influence in the way in which people strove and joined the protests. It is important to contextualize the causes so as to understand the reasons which made the countries take up arms against their governments. Firstly, it was held and believed that there was some level and degree of dissatisfaction by young people and labour unions due to disparities in the levels of incomes and poverty. The youths were the backbone of the protests due to unemployment and the varying gap that existed between the level of wealth between them and the ruling class. Equally of interest was the issue of mass or grave violations of human rights, monarchy and exclusivity of power concentrated to the hands of a few people and corruption or misuse of public resources. The youths and the Arabs nations by extension were particularly concerned by the extravagance of the ruling elites yet they did not have even jobs or any meaningful source of income. Equally unsettling to the protestors was the fact that there was no room for dissent or difference of opinion from the ruling autocrats. The word of the ruling autocrats became rule and law without following any due process of legislation or constitutionalism. A practical case and instance in this respect and line of thought was the Libya case where there so many political prisoners. The prisoners in Libya

Business environment of indian entertainment industry

Business environment of indian entertainment industry The liberalization efforts by the Indian government have resulted in the emergence of numerous sectors, which offer great possibilities for Indias development. One such recent sector was interactive media and entertainment, along with information and communication technologies (ICTs). The entertainment and interactive media industry in India has been making headlines of late, not so much for its impact on the domestic market, but as a premier outsourcing destination for western entertainment companies. This was paper examines the growth and development of the interactive media and entertainment industry in India. It discusses Indias position and Indias advantages in the global entertainment industry, the challenges that India faces in this was industry, the path ahead, and opportunities for international collaboration in this was sector. The global film and entertainment industry was expanding fast. The Entertainment Council of Philippines estimates that the revenues from entertainment industry worldwide have been growing annually at 20% to 30% over the past few years. According to Indias National Association of Software and Services Companies (NASSCM), revenues from the global entertainment industry will amount to US$50-US$70 billion by end-2005. Today, entertainment products are increasingly used in films, TV programmes, commercials, games and online education. Following Walt DISNEY 1988 production Who Framed Roger Rabbit, worldwide interest in entertainment feature films has been raising. Four major entertainment movies released in 2004 collected record revenues. Childrens channels across the world have seen their numbers rising ever so rapidly in the last few years. Entertainment products also have applications in the medical, architecture, and legal fields.1 the global non-entertainment entertainment industry, i ncluding work in scientific and medical entertainment, now accounts for revenues worth $15 billion. ENTERTAINMENT INDUSTRY The Entertainment Industry in India though a late starter, was considered as one of the fastest growing segments of the entertainment and media industry. The Entertainment Industry in India gained significance as an outsourced destination for entertainment work due to low cost, skilled labour as its many advantages. In the recent past Indian entertainment companies and entertainment studios have been moving up the value chain to create their own intellectual property rights with Hanuman, Roadside Romeo, etc. and partnering with international studios to produce animated properties for the global audience. Though a majority of the work done by the entertainment industry in India was outsourced work, this was was expected to change in the future with increased demand from the domestic entertainment industry. This was industry can be categorized into four different components: Entertainment, education, content development and multimedia/web design. The entertainment market in India was r elatively new compared to some other Asian countries. But it was among the fastest-growing in the Indian entertainment sector. With approximately 200 entertainment studios, India has emerged as a global outsourcing hub for entertainment technology services. The key drivers for the entertainment industry are the increasing domestic demand for entertainment movies and the increase in entertainment studios and training centers across the country. MEANING OF PESTLE ANALYSIS P-Political E-Economical S-Social T-Technological L-Legal E-Environmental Political factors are how and to what degree a government intervenes in the economy. Specifically, political factors include areas such as tax policy, labour law, environmental law, trade restrictions, tariffs, and political stability. Political factors may also include goods and services which the government wants to provide or be provided (merit goods) and those that the government does not want to be provided (demerit goods or merit bads). Furthermore, governments have great influence on the health, education, and infrastructure of a nation. Economical factors include economic growth, interest rates, exchange rates and the inflation rate. These factors have major impacts on how businesses operate and make decisions. For example, interest rates affect a firms cost of capital and therefore to what extent a business grows and expands. Exchange rates affect the costs of exporting goods and the supply and price of imported goods in an economy Social factors include the cultural aspects and include health consciousness, population growth rate, age distribution, career attitudes and emphasis on safety. Trends in social factors affect the demand for a companys products and how that company operates. For example, an ageing population may imply a smaller and less-willing workforce (thus increasing the cost of labour). Furthermore, companies may change various management strategies to adapt to these social trends (such as recruiting older workers). Technological factors include ecological and environmental aspects, such as RD activity, automation, technology incentives and the rate of technological change. They can determine barriers to entry, minimum efficient production level and influence outsourcing decisions. Furthermore, technological shifts can affect costs, quality, and lead to innovation. Legal factors include discrimination law, consumer law, antitrust law, employment law, and health and safety law. These factors can affect how a company operates, its costs, and the demand for its products. Consumer protection laws are designed to ensure fair competition and the free flow of truthful information in the marketplace. These factors can affect how a company operates, its costs, and the demand for its products. Environmental factors include weather, climate, and climate change, which may especially affect industries such as tourism, farming, and insurance. Furthermore, growing awareness to climate change was affecting how companies operate and the products they offerit was both creating new markets and diminishing or destroying existing ones. POLITICAL ANALYSIS OF ENTERTAINMENT INDUSTRY Government Support Mr. Kapil Sibal, Minister of State for Science and Technology, identified entertainment industry as one of the important sector for Indias export oriented growth.10 However, compared to governments in other countries; efforts by the Indian government to encourage the sector have been very minimal. The government of South Korea funds entertainment ventures on a partnership baswas.11 Bangladesh has a World Bank-funded support programme for the entertainment industry. In contrast, there have not been many initiatives from the Indian government to promote the entertainment industry, at least till the past one year. The Indian government signed co-production treaty with France about 20 years ago and efforts are on to reactivate it. A treaty was signed with the Italian government, which in turn sent a delegation to Goa. Efforts are also on to sign similar agreements with Britain, Japan, Brazil, Canada, Netherlands and China. These treaties will lead to sharing of costs by partner nations and also the dispersion of technical know-how amongst the partner nations. New Government Initiatives A 25-acre Special Export Zone (SEZ) was going to be constructed in the outskirts of Thiruvananthapuram exclusively for the entertainment industry. The commerce ministry was said to have approved the creation of the SEZ within the Film and Video Park (FV Park) set up by the Kerala Industrial Infrastructure Development Corporation near Thiruvananthapuram. The state government was said to have created a 15,000 sq meters entertainment facility to welcome entertainment houses to create their bases. The FV Park made a good start when the Chennai-based Prasad Labs has made it its base to process all Malayalam films for the next two years. Kerala has been making efforts at convergence in the areas of information technology and cinema. The Entertainment Production Association of India recently suggested to the Information and Broadcasting Ministry of India that all TV channels must ensure 10% reservation for local animated content. The government can further encourage investments and particip ation in this sector by providing tax benefits. It can provide grants to Indian animators for participation in international conference and for taking up training programs abroad 2. ECONOMICAL ANALYSIS OF ENTERTAINMENT INDUSTRY Indias attractiveness as an entertainment hub lies in the presence of an English-speaking workforce, high-quality software engineers, a large pool of creative talent, good studios and low costs. The cost of producing a 30-minute 3D entertainment programme in India was US$60,000 compared to US$250,000-400,000 in the United States and Canada. India has a cost advantage compared to the Philippines, which was another low cost producer of entertainments. The average monthly salary of an entertainment professional in India was US$600 compared to US$1,000-US$1,200 in the Philippines. The cost of outsourcing one hour of entertainment work to India was estimated to be 30% to 40% of the corresponding costs in leading entertainment centres in Korea, Taiwan and the Philippines. Indias advantages in low costs have been exploited by many multinational firms and production studios. The advent of digital entertainment coincided with the liberalization of the Indian economy and India offered the benefits of lower production costs, strong creative and technical skills and a large English speaking population. This has led to the development of state of the art entertainment studios in several Indian cities, and these studios are collaborating with global entertainment companies. FACTOR THAT AFFECTING THE ECONOMIC GROWTH OF ENTERTAINMENT INDUSTRY Lack of Finance Indian entertainment firms cannot match their western counterparts in financial strength. It was pointed out that state support in the form of tax holidays was crucial for success in the entertainment business. Canada, for example, offers major incentives to its studios for developing entertainment products. However, financial institutions in India have not been much forthcoming in funding projects in entertainment and interactive media. The long gestation period before fruition of projects discourages potential investors. This can be a major hurdle, and it has, in fact, led to the stoppage of a few production ventures. For example, Jadooworks had to stop production of animated epic of Krishna due to technical problems and lack of funding. The firm was supposedly on the verge of bankruptcy and this has led to the retrenchment of about 250 workers.7 Interestingly, Jadooworks was the same firm which drew appreciation from Thomas Friedman in an article in February 2004 for employing tra ditional artistes and transforming their skills to computerised digital painting he was arguing that globalisation can have beneficial impact on traditional artwasts.8 The experience of Jadoo works underlines the fact that it was still too ambitious for Indian companies to single-handedly enter into entertainment projects. Even a small project in the entertainment industry entails a budget of US$30 million, which was not affordable for Indian firms. 3. SOCIAL ANALYSIS OF ENTERTAINMENT INDUSTRY Entertainment Products for Illiterates The interactive media and entertainment industry in India has a large domestic market too to tap on. A field-study based research conducted by one of the authors in July-August 2004 on the diffusion of ICTs in Indias rural areas offers some interesting results in this regard.6 The study showed that televsion was a highly popular medium as a source of information in the Indian countryside, as it combines visual and audio effects and was less demanding of the cognitive skills of the user. Almost 35 per cent of Indias over 1 billion population was illiterate. There was great demand from this segment of Indian population for an innovative medium that facilitate communication and information sharing, while at the same time, being easily accessible to the masses via the television. Products of interactive media and entertainment can fill this demand gap to a large extent; they can be great tools for education, entertainment and awareness among illiterates in Indias rural and urban areas. SOCIAL FACTORS AFFECTING FILM AND ENTERTAINMENT INDUSTRY The Indian Entertainment industry: Facing the manpower challenge Despite the impressive growth forecasts, the Indian Entertainment and Gaming industry will account for less than two percent of the worldwide market in 2010. Obviously a much larger opportunity exists beyond what was currently being envisaged and the potential remains high. India can participate in a more significant way in the global Entertainment market, provided the country has built up requisite manpower, with the relevant expertise, to fuel its growth. According to analysts, India has the potential to grow its Entertainment industry to around US$ 1 billion by 2010, but will remain restricted to US$ 869 million on account of a looming demand-supply gap in the area of employable human resources.   A similar situation exists in the gaming segment as well, which has the potential to achieve revenues of US$ 732 million by 2010, but was expected to touch only around US$ 424 million by that period, owing to the paucity of skilled manpower.   The employment statistics for the Indian  entertainment  and gaming industry during 2006 were as follows: Around 16,500 professionals were employed by the Indian Entertainment industry during 2006. This figure was forecast to increase at a CAGR of 14-15 percent and exceed 26,000 by 2010. There were nearly 150 gaming companies in India, employing about 2,500 people. This number was forecast to increase at a CAGR of over 50 percent to exceed 13,000 by 2010, with the industry revenue forecast to grow nearly ten-fold and reach US$ 424 million. 4. TECHNOLOGICAL ANALYSIS OF ENTERTAINMENT INDUSTRY While it was true that Indias entertainment industry was growing at a remarkable pace, the fact remains that this growth was largely a result of the mushrooming of studios-for-hire. In entertainment feature films, for example, while Indian companies carry out the technological entertainment work, character design, and storyboarding are done abroad. India was yet to become a successful player in concept creation, the high value-adding segment of the industry which remains a preserve of western firms. Indias advantages of low costs in this industry will be too short-lived, and sooner rather than later, the country will have to start developing new technologies. Skills The entertainment industry was still young. Indian cinema was yet to make its mark on the global stage. The booming entertainment outsourcing industry was constantly demanding new skills and fresh infusion of new talent into the industry. As such, it was imperative that we have a healthy pipeline to supply talent to the industry. Skills required in the entertainment field can be clubbed under two broad categories, mainly technical skills and soft skills. Programming expertise, analytical ability, and proficiency on the software are basic requirements for technical skills. The number of professionals joining the entertainment industry has been growing at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 18.2 percent and was expected to grow at the same rate. Though India possesses the manpower with the requisite skill set, what remains an area of concern was the education imparted to this manpower from the quality perspective. This has resulted in mushrooming of multimedia institutes. What was interesting was that quite a few reputed organizations have come forward and started a chain of multimedia institutions for two reasons. One, they can use the trained professionals for in-house entertainment development and secondly, use this education channel for market diversification and penetration. However, companies need to invest considerable time and money in bringing these students up to the levels where they start earning revenue for the organization. Need For technological training to employees There are no academic institutes like Indian Institutes of Technology, Regional Engineering Colleges, Polytechnics, etc., churning out animators by the thousands. What we have are only fine arts schools which teach the fundamentals but not the technical skills required for production, points out K. Chandrasekhar, General Manager, Media Works, and Tata Elxsi. According to him, this was a major drawback for the industry in India. Education in new media has to be embedded into the mainstream curriculum. Students have to realize that they can have a lucrative career as animators, and the governments as well as educational institutions have to start programmes for their career development. The entertainment sector will benefit greatly by giving encouragement to the community of traditional artists as much as to technically trained professionals. In other words, integration of the rural and urban talent will prove highly beneficial. Also, NASSCOMs President Kiran Karnik believes that there was a need for an entertainment academy to build a steady inflow of entertainment professionals in the industry. NASSCOM extended its help to the government for framing the curriculum and also work with the industry players to enhance the academic-industry interface. 5. LEGAL ANALYSIS OF ENTERTAINMENT INDUSTRY Intellectual property Outsourcers have always been concerned with the protection of their intellectual property in India. India was one of the few countries which have failed to take stern action against its infringement. India needs to strengthen its IP policy and ensure that companies operating in the outsourcing sphere take stringent steps to take care of clients IP rights. International Cooperation in the Entertainment industry The Indian government was signing co-production treaties with other countries. Professional organisations too are trying to promote the Indian entertainment sector abroad. ASIFA, India, organises film festivals, conducts workshops and entertainment film competitions at the international level. Kahani and Entertainment Bridge have showcased their entertainment shows at Cannes Mipcom (a summit where mobile, broadband and interactive professionals from 95 countries interact with broadcasters, producers and distributors) in October 2005. X-media Lab has been floated to help local, independent digital media producers reach their ideas successfully to the market with assistance from outstanding international new media professionals, who act as mentors to the companies and project teams. The second lab held in Singapore from 17 19 November 2005, Creating Successful Computer Games, attracted worldwide response. Indian developers have also been invited to interact with eight of the best games people in the world. There was also a plan to do a lab in India next year.14 According to Mohit Anand, Country Manager, Microsoft Entertainment and Devices Division, Microsoft India, Gaming in the last 7-8 years has really come a long way but it still has a long way to go. Critical factors like PC penetration, organised retail, broadband, and gaming hardware need to be addressed to help the industry. Those factors are gradually changing and the future definitely looks bright. India was the youngest country in the world, and the new generation was completely tech savvy. We believe that gaming was definitely here to stay and evolve.15 What are the opportunities for engagement between India, Singapore and other Southeast Asian countries in the field of interactive media and entertainment industry? To begin with, Singapore and Southeast Asia will be an important market for products from Indias entertainment industry. Singapore has significant expertise in telecommunication and media industry. Harnessing the favourable trade and investment climate offered by the Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement between the two countries, firms in Singapore should consider investing in Indias entertainment and media business. Maya Academy of Advanced Cinematic, a leading player in the Indian entertainment industry, was planning to extend its operations to Singapore. It was currently working on a project for BBC and has also been involved in the video games division. Entertainment was one of the fastest growing sectors in India-ASEAN relations. The entertainment industry was expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 20 percent from 2002 to 2007. The entertainment industry, with total revenues of US$3.6 billion in 2002, was projected to grow up to US$8.7 billion by 2007. ASEAN was a big market for Indian films. There are tremendous collaboration opportunities between India and ASEAN in the area of 3D entertainment, graphics, etc. The Philippines was, until recently, a fast growing entertainment industry, rich in creative talent, and it was a major destination for outsourcing by entertainment firms in the United States. However, with rise in costs, the entertainment industry in the Philippines has begun to decline, and Filipino workers in the industry have been migrating to India and Singapore in search of jobs. India, the Philippines, Singapore and even China must realize that there was little to be gained in the entertainment industry in the long run by competing with each other on costs. Rather, they should seek avenues for cooperation, and direct their efforts at acquiring intellectual property rights in this creative industry. 6. ENVIRONMENTAL ANALYSIS OF ENTERTAINMENT INDUSTRY Ability to scale operations. Indian firms are facing a talent shortage which affects their ability to scale up their operations based on client demands. This also affects the clients confidence in off shoring large chunks of work. Though Indian companies have put in place huge expansion plans, these are often marred by various reasons. Tie-ups with educational institutes are helping overcome thwas difficulty. Opportunities in Collaborations Indian companies are trying to improve quality and making attempts to compete globally with the market leaders in the industry. It was said that the year 2004 was a watershed for the Indian entertainment and gaming industry (according to the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry [FICCI] report on the Entertainment Industry). The year was marked by increased use of entertainment in the Bollywood segment. According to the FICCI report, the increasing demand for downloads of games on mobile phones will enhance the opportunities for gaming companies and bring in new entrants. Several Indian companies are entering into collaborations with foreign new media companies, which outsource their work to the Indian companies. Recently, Toonz Entertainment floated a joint venture with First Serve International LLC, a global media company which aims to produce and distribute top-notch entertainment programming for the world market. The new venture will be headed by former Walt Disney executive Ed Bordering. In 2004, a Chinese company also invested in India Games Ltd. Toronto-based entertainment Products Company Kahani was collaborating with Mumbai based Entertainment Bridge. In this venture, Kahani was expected to invest US$30-US$40 million over the next three years to engage in film production. The storylines and scripts will be completed in Canada whilst product development and promotion are expected to be done in India. The company was also planning to tie up with Bangalore and Hyderabad-based studios. Zees entertainment arm, Padmalaya Telefilms, has signed a US$14 million contract with Italian producer-distributor, Mondo TV, to co-produce four new animated series. Padmalaya also has collaborations with British entertainment companies Mallard Media and Ealing Entertainment. CONCLUSION The Indian interactive media and entertainment industry has seen tremendous growth in the last year or so. It was fast emerging from being an outsourcing destination for western entertainment companies to develop and showcase its own capabilities and potentials. The emergence of various industry-related organizations and companies, and the availability of affordable and talented expertise, point to tremendous potential this sector has to offer. Whilst there are internal challenges to the Indian interactive media and entertainment industry, given the efforts being undertaken by the government and like-minded organizations, it will be sooner rather than later, that India lays a strong claim as a major international player in this industry. It was thus opportune for Singapore and countries in the region to identify potential opportunities for collaboration so that we are able to ride on the waves of the Indian interactive media and entertainment industry.