This will benefit Chinese animators by creating more job opportunities and making it easier for them to work with major US studios, according to Dowrick. However, it could also push up costs and lead to China losing its price edge in the industry.

Dowrick is critical of many Chinese animation schools, which he says only teach the basics.

"The expectations of the audience have gone up with the advancement of technology and they expect better animation, but the teaching levels of schools have remained the same," he says.

He adds Western animators have a different mentality than their Chinese counterparts.

"In the West, an animator will have to work for more than 10 years to become a supervisor, then work as a director, and then start their own studio. But in China, some will start their own studio right after six months of work. The time frame is much shorter, and the expectation of a fast return is higher in China," he says.

Dowrick began creating art and animation when he was 5 years old, drawing when he was in a bad mood, and often making flip-books using his mother's notebooks to create a moving image. When he applied for university, he chose to go where his interest lay - in animation.

"There are very few people out there in the world that would say that they love doing what they are paid to do," he says. "And to be among that unique small group, is a privilege. I would not want to trade it."

Contact the writer at [email protected].