Animation Council of the Philippines
Definition
Animation Council of the Philippines
The Animation Council of the Philippines is the industry body for Filipino animation studios, and it is usually shortened to ACPI. Its members work mostly for export, making series and feature work for the studios and broadcasters that are based overseas.
Its registered name carries the corporate suffix — Animation Council of the Philippines, Inc. — which is what appears on formal documents and government listings.
Animation sits inside the country’s outsourcing sector by classification, even though it behaves nothing like a contact centre. Work is priced by asset or episode, judged on a portfolio, and won on craft rather than on seat cost.
The council exists partly because that difference needs explaining — government programmes designed around seat-based services fit animation studios badly, and a single body can argue the point.
Key takeaways
- ACPI is the trade body representing Philippine animation studios.
- Member work is overwhelmingly export-facing, serving overseas studios and broadcasters.
- Animation is priced by asset or episode, not by seat, unlike most outsourcing.
- The council’s main value to buyers is as a route to credible studios.
How it works
The council operates as a membership body for studios rather than for individual artists. It represents the sector to government, supports training pipelines, and gives overseas buyers a starting point for finding studios with real production credits.
Its membership includes long-established names. The council lists studios such as Top Draw Animation, Toei Animation Philippines and Toon City among its members, several of which have produced for international broadcasters for decades.
Government partnership is visible in its affiliations. The council displays partnerships with the trade, ICT, culture, film and intellectual property agencies, and its office address sits alongside the national outsourcing federation in Bonifacio Global City.
| Work type | What the studio delivers | How it is bought |
|---|---|---|
| Series production | Episodes to broadcast specification | Per episode, against a season order |
| Pre-production | Storyboards, design, animatics | Per package or retainer |
| Clean-up and in-between | Frames finished to a lead studio’s style | Per frame or per shot |
| Feature support | Sequences within a larger film | Per sequence, on a fixed schedule |
| Original content | Studio-owned formats seeking distribution | Co-production or licensing |
The sector’s economics sit inside a larger picture. The International Trade Administration records the Philippine digital economy at $38.8 billion, or 8.5 percent of GDP, in 2024, of which creative services are a small share.
The honest limitation is that the council is a representative body, not a broker. It will not vet a studio’s schedule reliability for you, and portfolio quality varies widely across its membership.
Examples
Philippine animation work spans everything from full series production to frame-level support, and the council’s membership reflects that spread. The cases here were observed, not constructed to make a point about capability.
A US broadcaster commissions a full animated series from a Manila studio. The studio handles production end to end and delivers to broadcast specification.
A European feature production contracts clean-up and in-between work. That is classic animation outsourcing, where the lead studio keeps design control and exports the labour-heavy stages.
A game publisher buys cinematic sequences from an animation studio rather than from a game art house, because the brief calls for character performance rather than asset production.
A streaming platform co-produces an original format with a Philippine studio, which shifts the studio from service supplier to rights holder.
Related terms
Creative outsourcing uses several overlapping labels, and the entries below fix what each one covers. Each entry sets a single meaning and marks the point at which it stops applying.
- animation outsourcing: the contracting of animation production stages to an external studio.
- creative services outsourcing: the wider category covering design, video and content production.
- graphics outsourcing: still-image and asset production, distinct from moving-image work.
- design outsourcing: visual and product design work, usually upstream of production.
- CECP: the broader Philippine creative industries council sitting above single sectors.
- IBPAP: the national outsourcing federation the animation body affiliates with.
- Philippines BPO: the national industry that formally contains the animation sector.
FAQ
What does ACPI stand for?
Animation Council of the Philippines, Inc. The corporate suffix appears on its registered name and in government listings.
Does the council produce animation itself?
No. It is a membership body representing studios. Production is done by its members, each with its own capacity and credits.
Is membership a quality guarantee?
No. It indicates the studio participates in its sector. Judge production capability on credits, schedule history and a reel, not on membership.
Why is animation counted as outsourcing?
Because most Philippine studios deliver contracted work for overseas clients. The classification follows the export service relationship rather than the creative content.
How is animation work priced?
By episode, sequence, frame or package, depending on the stage. Seat-based pricing, standard elsewhere in outsourcing, rarely applies.
How do I find a credible studio?
Start from credits and a current reel, confirm the named team is available for your dates, and ask which stages are done in house.
Browse source partners in the Outsource Accelerator hubs directory and judge studios on credits and a current reel.
Independent
