Insight >
LOCUS opens Shanghai branch office | LOCUS设立上海分公司

LOCUS showreel 2017

The set up | 落户上海

 

LOCUS is one of the biggest post production companies in South Korea with a combination of over 300 artists and VFX specialists on hand.  They have already experimented with the China market, producing work for commercial projects, museum shows, and high quality special effects for cinematic video games.  Enticed by the growing size of China’s advertising and film market, along with an appetite for global expansion, in August this year LOCUS set up a branch office in Xintiandi’s towering SOHO skyscrapers.

LOCUS是韩国规模最大的后期制作公司之一，有着300多名制作人员和特效师。此前，LOCUS已经涉足过中国市场，做过商业项目、博物馆表演、也做过电子游戏特效。中国广告市场和电影市场不断壮大，对LOCUS颇具吸引力，再加上公司欲拓展全球市场的计划，今年八月，LOCUS上海分公司落户新天地办公大楼。

Compared to the office in Seoul, which occupies eight floors, their Shanghai is small but no less impressive.  The building’s futuristic all-white elevators and hallways are a perfect entrance to the post-house’s 27th floor office, currently managed by LOCUS founder Jiyoun Lee.  Lee splits her time between Shanghai and Seoul while she is particularly focused on getting the Shanghai office off the ground.   Lee started as a 3D animator and started a post house in 1996 called Independence.  By 2008 there were new investors and the company was renamed LOCUS.

首尔公司有整整八层楼，相比之下，上海公司规模较小，但同样充满活力。穿过新天地大楼颇具未来感的白色电梯和走廊，就来到了坐落在27楼的LOCUS办公室。LOCUS创始人Jiyoun Lee现在负责上海公司的管理，她经常往返于上海和首尔之间，但主要精力现在都专注于上海，以促进上海公司的起步。Lee最初是一名动画师，1996年创建了后期制作公司Independence。2008年，新投资者加入，公司更名为LOCUS。

The Shanghai gang | 上海团队

 

The current team of ten is a combination of local hires and South Koreans.  There is a coloring room, two flame rooms and a world-class video conference room so the two teams can be in constant and instantaneous communication.  Some of the projects for clients in Shanghai require support from South Korea, so a room dedicated to video conference calls can become essential.  Eventually, the goal is for the Shanghai office to be more independent but Lee stressed it will take time for them to build a quality team.  For Lee, it is more about finding the right people than ramping up quickly.

上海团队共有10人，既有在中国招募的人员，也有从韩国调过来的人员。公司有一间调色室，两个flame合成室，还有一个顶配视频会议室，便于首尔和上海团队经常沟通。有时上海客户的项目也需要韩国团队的支持，如此看来，专门设立视频会议室是非常重要的。公司最终的目标是让上海公司更加独立，但是Lee也表示，搭建优质的团队需要一定的时间。她更看重的是找到对的人，而非一蹴而就。

The difference | 与众不同

 

LOCUS prides itself in the company’s combined sensitivity to technology and art.  They have invested in an R&D center and also an animation center, which has launched its own IP and will put out its second animated film “Red Shoes and the Seven Dwarfs” some time next year.  As a foreign company entering China though it can take more than high quality work or talent to survive.  LOCUS’s strong reputation in South Korea and previous project experience in China gives them the confidence to believe they are already one of the best post production houses in China.  “We understand Chinese culture and how business is conducted here” Lee said. In an increasingly competitive advertising and film market, LOCUS is optimistically eyeing the future.

LOCUS对科技和艺术都很敏感，二者兼顾正是公司引以为傲的地方。公司投资了一个研发中心和动画中心，已经启动了自己的IP，并且将于明年推出第二部动画电影《Red Shoes and the Seven Dwarfs》。外国公司进驻中国市场，要想生存，需要的可不仅仅是高质量的作品和高品质的人才。LOCUS在韩国声名远扬，再加上此前的中国项目经验，所以他们非常有信心，公司已经位列中国最好的后期制作公司。Lee表示，“我们了解中国的文化，也懂得这里商业之道”。广告市场和电影市场竞争日趋激烈，LOCUS保持着乐观的心态，放眼未来。