Apr 23, 2024

North Korea May Animate Major U.S. Series for Warner Bros. and Amazon

An eye-opening report by the Stimson Center's "38 North" project provides evidence that American studios may have unwittingly used North Korean labor for high-profile productions. However, the Washington, D.C.-based think tank is almost certain that American studios were not involved in sending work to this heavily sanctioned Asian country, and that their work may have been subcontracted out by South Korean studios hired to produce the work We concluded.

This issue was brought to light when independent U.S. researchers who regularly scan the North Korean Internet discovered a treasure trove of production artwork for American television shows like Prime Video's Invincible and Max's Iyanne: Child of Wonder Production files from a Japanese studio that produces anime were also found on the same server.

Here's a link to the 38 North report; the CNN article has more details. Let's dig into what we know so far.

What was found on the North Korean server: undisclosed, but apparently quite a few drawings and videos were found. It is not known if production files were also found. The Stimson Center released several drawings to the media, including two on this page: one is a layout drawing of Iyanu and the other is a video screenshot of the Invincible animation production file with timing chart.

Wait, North Korea is producing animation - most North Korean animation is produced through the Pyongyang-based government-run studio SEK (aka April 26 Animation Studio). The studio's current size is unknown, but at various times in the past it reportedly employed between 900 and 1,600 people. Additionally, European producers have often used SEK in the past.

What is the connection to China - the documents contain Chinese instructions translated into Korean; SEK has a satellite office in China; and the Chinese language is not a major source of information for SEK. However, both "Invincible" and "Iyanne" appear to have been produced by Korean studios, and there is still no explanation as to why a Korean studio's film would have Chinese instructions.

Warner Bros. and Amazon may be sanctioned by the U.S. government - Currently, there is no evidence that these U.S. companies were aware of North Korean involvement. However, the U.S. government has issued a warning about conducting due diligence, specifically citing animation as an area to watch (download a PDF of the U.S. government's recommendations). The U.S. government takes sanctions violations seriously: two years ago, the U.S. imposed sanctions on seven individuals and companies found to be working with SEK Animation Studios. [Skybound Entertainment, the producer of Amazon's "Invincible," said it is investigating why this happened. Company spokesperson Hannah Cosgrove told CNN:

Our contract clearly prohibits us from outsourcing to third parties without prior express written consent, and such consent was not sought or given. [The company] takes this matter very seriously and has initiated an investigation with third-party counsel to get to the bottom of the matter. [Warner Bros. Discovery, YouNeek Studios, and Lion Forge Entertainment either declined to comment or did not respond to requests for comment. However, the CNN article adds more details about Lion Forge's troubles with the South Korean studio:

Sources familiar with the matter told CNN that Lion Forge Entertainment had signed a South Korea-based animation studio The company had signed a contract with the South Korean-based studio. Late last year, however, Lion Forge learned that the Korean studio had outsourced the animation production of "Iyanu" to another Korean company without authorization. Lion Forge said it severed ties with the Korean animation studio in January. The South Korean studio told Lion Forge that it outsources its work only to South Korean companies, not to any organization in North Korea, the source added.