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creative workers association from Cimahi city in West Java is optimistic about the prospects for the creative business and is anticipating large growth this year.

The Cimahi Creative Association (CCA), an association of some 1,300 creative people from various fields ranging from filmmaking and advertising to animation, is confident of achieving a 40 percent increase in earnings this year.

'€œWe earned about Rp 11 billion [US$870,000] in 2014. This year we have a target of Rp 15 billion,'€ CCA chairman Rudi Suteja told reporters over the weekend.

Rudi said the market for the creative industry was related to information technology and multimedia.

Since it was established in 2009, he said, the association had enjoyed a steady increase in its annual revenue.

In its first year, following various training sessions it had held, the association had earned Rp 400 million. After working on sales, revenue increased into Rp 3.5 billion in 2011, Rudi said.

The figure increased again to Rp 4.5 billion in 2012 and to Rp 7 billion the following year, representing accumulated earnings from 12 animation studios, 11 information technology studios and six film studios. All are based in the same building where the CCA'€™s headquarters is located.

'€œIt'€™s project-based earning,'€ said Rudi, adding that an advertisement project from a particular ministry could be worth up to Rp 2.2 billion, requiring at least 60 people to complete.

He offered another example of an animation movie teaser project with a duration of three minutes, which he said could be worth up to Rp 850 million.

Rudi was optimistic that the target for this year could be achieved because market demand continued to increase.

He hoped the government could create a supportive atmosphere for the development of the creative industry and pointed to Malaysia, which he said had invested the equivalent of billions of rupiah in funding animation projects such as the Upin & Ipin and Boboiboy series, which were well known to the Indonesian audience.

'€œSimilarly, the Singaporean government offers free printers to information technology companies. This could be a very meaningful stimulant,'€ Rudi said.

He appreciated the Cimahi city administration providing a five-story building in the Baros region for creative communities like the CCA, following the administration'€™s pledge to develop Cimahi into a so-called city of animation.

Cimahi administration industry, trade and tourism division head T. Megawati said the city had been developed as a region with human resources as its competitive advantage.

'€œWe used information technology and multimedia as a way of developing the region back in 2009,'€ Megawati said.

As such, she said, apart from providing space for the creative community, the city administration had also tried to use the work of creative people in its varied programs and activities.

'€œWe also opened the BITC [the Baros Information Technology Center] for all people wanting to learn,'€ said Megawati, adding that support from many parties was required to develop the creative industry.

'€œFor us, animation is the locomotive for [developing] other creative industries. Presently, we are entering the food and beverage packaging industry,'€ she said.

As part of the support, training workshops were offered to creative industry practitioners. Other support includes the organizing of the Baros International Animation Festival in November 2014, presenting noted domestic and foreign animators.