Third parties may have outsourced animators from North Korea to provide artwork for the two series.
North Koreans animators seem to have worked on Amazon and Max's animations in violation of the sanctions and without either US studio having knowledge of this, according to a recent from the report.
Respected North Korea monitoring website 38 North has found evidence that third parties may have outsourced animators from reclusive North Korea to provide artwork for, among other things, a series on the Amazon Prime Video streaming service Invincible and to the series of the Max streaming service Iyanu: Child of Wonder.
North Korea is the target of several international sanctions for its banned nuclear weapons and ballistic missile programs and human rights abuses.
North Korea has a well-established animation industry, which it has previously relied on as a source of income. The giant SEK Studio, which produces animations run by its administration, was especially subject to US sanctions in 2021.
38 North discovered a cloud storage server operating in North Korea earlier this year, where several images related to Western programs, instructions for animators and feedback on their work were uploaded daily.
“There is no evidence that the companies featured in the images had any knowledge that part of their project was subcontracted to North Korean animators,” the site's report says.
According to the report, the evidence highlights the difficulty of enforcing current US sanctions in such a global industry, as well as the need for US animation companies to be better informed about all the companies involved in their projects.
Amazon Studios did not respond to AFP's request for comment. Warner Bros. Discovery-owned Max declined to comment. Max is still known as HBO Max in Finland, but the name of the service will change to a new one in May.
A source familiar with the “Iyanu” project told AFP that a South Korean animation studio had been hired to work on the animation. It was no longer involved after suspicions emerged that it was outsourcing some of its work.
in North Korea has long been a major animated film industry.
For decades, the country used cartoons to instill socialist ethics in the nation's children. However, foreign cartoons have also been shown in the country, such as Tom and Jerry.
In the early 2000s and before the current sanctions, SEK's most important clients included studios from France, Italy and China. SEK Studio is believed to have previously been a subcontractor for Disney The Lion King– and Pocahontas-related to those drawn.
North Korea relies on thousands of highly-skilled IT workers from around the world to generate income for its impoverished nation, according to a recent report by the US administration.
According to the investigation, the employees in question may, for example, present false identities in order to obtain freelance contracts and payments in violation of the sanctions. According to the US administration, the individuals in question would also be connected to cyber attacks.
US companies are advised to carefully check the resumes and identity of freelancers. For example, fingerprints or biometric login data can be used here.
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