Module II
- StoryTelling II
- Fundamentals of Movement II
- Anatomy for Visual Development II

Date: May 8th, 2010
Time: 10am to 5pm
Venue: Karma Hall, Whistling Woods International, Film City, Goregaon (East), Mumbai

To register, visit: www.ramsinghkumaresh.com

AllAboutAnimation.com interviewed Vivek Ram, Ranjit Singh & Vaibhav Kumaresh just before their debut session - read it here.

Sadly, I missed the first module held on 24th April due to unavoidable circumstances but our friends at CGTantra have a detailed report here.

AAA will be present at the second module so you can expect a detailed report for sure.

Here is a little bit of information about the Masterclass - It aims to bridge the gap between Animation Training and Education and covers the following:

StoryTelling
Discussion on the basic building blocks of a story. How do you take an idea that sounds good, and actually construct a meaningful and captivating story out of it? A look at some interesting animated short films across various mediums with interactive discussions on their use of specific techniques to aid the storytelling process. Understanding different genres of film and the advantages of animation as a medium of expression. We will simplify story construction by discussing successful film plots and why they worked and in simple terms understand how to translate ideas into visual scripts for animation.

Fundamentals of Movement
Introducing the participants to the fundamentals of movement in animation. Whatever be the medium of animation, the fundamentals of movement remain the same. Covering the basic principles like stretch, squash, timing, spacing, anticipation, follow through and much more, the importance of each of these in creating convincing animation will be illustrated. Live demonstrations, homework and exercises for the participants as well as review and analysis of their work.

Anatomy for Visual Development
A study of the various anatomical structures in the human body in detail, and how each is translated into believable structures that make up the creatures and characters that we see on screen today. Emphasis will be given on those structures that are essential for an artist to understand balance and rhythm in characters created for both a realistic as well as a toony visual.There will be assignments so that the audience has a chance for a complete hands-on experience on the subject.

TASI Model Making Workshop

TASI is organizing a full day Model Animation Workshop conducted by none other than all-time-favourite Vaibhav Kumaresh of Vaibhav Studios. It will begin with the screening of some puppet animation film clips. After that, the process of stop motion/puppet/clay animation will be demonstrated live. This will include techniques like displacement as well as replacement animation. Topics like lip sync and character performance will also be touched upon. The participants will be guided to create their own wire frame armatures for stop motion.

The workshop will demonstrate the following:

1. Translating a 2d character design into an armature diagram
2. Building the armature
3. Shoot setup
4. Action planning
5. Lip sync with replacement lips
6. Stop motion shoot and playback
7. Q&A with the audience

Date: 22nd March, 2009
Time: 10 am to 6 pm
Venue: P C Saxena Auditorium, IIT Powai, Mumbai
Fees (includes the cost of materials for armature creation):
Students - Rs.300/-
Professionals - Rs.500/-
TASI Members - Rs.200/-

ONLY 100 SEATS!

To register, contact the following TASI committee members:
Devang - 9870006181
Devika - 9821319058

REMEMBER: There is no online registration for this workshop and registration is against full payment only. Registrations close on 19th March.

Masterclass with the Master himself!

A REMINDER: TASI is organizing an interactive workshop on Character Design, Concept Development and Production processes on 5th December, 2008 from 3 pm to 6 pm at Whistling Woods International, Goregaon, Mumbai.

The Father of Indian Animation, Ram Mohan or ‘Sirjee’ as he is fondly called will be conducting the workshop and this is a session which should not be missed.

Ram Mohan needs no introduction. Any Indian animator who has not heard of him should not be doing animation!

So make sure that you are there with your sketchpads and pencils to learn from the Master himself - for details of the workshop and to register online go to the TASI website (click here)

For Creative Minds, students are required to design an advertisement to promote an original brand, either for print or in a multimedia format - Interactive CD Rom Presentation, Animation or Web design. The students have to do their R & D, select their target audience and come up with an original creative concept. Awards will be given to the best three entries in each of the two categories.

The Placement Expo has a seminar and aptitude test be conducted by Rhythm & Hues Studio, India. Besides this, top e-learning companies, Television channels and other reputed studios and companies involved in Web Animation, 3D walkthroughs as well as Medical Animation would be participating in this expo. Students will be allowed to interact with HR-personnel of these companies and present their resumes and show reel. Selected candidates would be offered placement on the spot.

It would be nice to have “placement expos” on a pan-Indian basis and open to all students. CGTExpo by CGTantra was a step in that direction but a little limited in what it had to offer. There were more institutes at the expo than studios, the focus being more on education than careers. Hopefully, next year they will take care of that as well.

The Session dates are 4th July, 11th July and 18th July 2008. Each Session is been scheduled to be held at 12.00 noon at the Graphiti School of Animation.

The workshop will deal with basic issues like:
- What is animation? What are the steps involved in making an animation film?
- Is animation a formula for successful career?
- What are the Job opportunities in Animation?
- Can anyone animate or is it limited to only a particular group of people?
- Where and how should I learn Animation?

Registrations details for the workshop are given below :

Pre - register for the workshop and book your time slot, call Graphiti on 022 24440107 or 022 32448544 or sms at 09833841580. You can also visit www.graphiti.net

The address of the workshop is
Graphiti School of Animation
404, Udyog Mandir No 2
Mogul Lane, Mahim West,
Mumbai 400016
Phone No: 32448544 / 24440107
training@graphiti.net
www.graphiti.net

The workshop will deal with basic issues like:

* What is animation? What are the steps involved in making an animation film?
* Is animation a formula for a successful career?
* What are the Job opportunities in Animation?
* Can everyone do animation or is it limited to only a particular group of people?
* Where and how should I learn Animation?

To register for the workshop and book your time slot, call Graphiti on (022) 24440107 or (022) 32448544 or sms at (+91) 9833841580 or visit their website: www.graphiti.net.

What triggered this tirade? I just read this press release announcing Aptech’s global expansion:

Aptech Global Learning Solutions announced today that it will open its first animation training academy in Brazil in May.

“The centre in Brazil will start functioning within three weeks. We have decided to open 35 new centres in countries like Kenya, Ethiopia, Russia and Vietnam this fiscal. These centres will be a combination of Arena Animation Academy and Aptech Computer Education training institutes,” Aptech executive director R. Krishnan told IANS.

“We will also be expanding nationally. New centres will be opened this year at Cuttack, Rourkela, Bhubaneswar, Durgapur, Guwahati and Dibrugarh,” he added.

The course content for the two academies is also going to change from May.

Krishnan said: “With animation and computer training institutes mushrooming everywhere, we are focussing on how our students can get faster and better jobs. We will introduce some new modules and methodologies.”

…focus on faster and better jobs? How about focusing on creating better animators? How about exposing our budding animators to world class global animation? How about giving them more well-rounded training in every aspect of the animation business? Getting the job is NOT the be all and end all of it. How about being prepared for and performing well on the job?

“We have introduced a specialised demo reel making module in the syllabus this year. Earlier, the demo reel was just a part of the curriculum. Now this demo reel will act as the portfolio of a student.”

The Demo Reel seems to be the Holy Grail of all aspiring animators. You get that right and a glorious job will fall into your lap, is what most animation students are led to believe. Sadly, it isn’t enough. Yes, a demo reel will get your foot in the door but then what?

Our Animation education system only seems to be churning out robots. We are mass producing tool-wielding technicians, not creative artists who are masters of their tools. Where are the visionaries? Where are the wildly creative artists who will push the envelope and breach boundaries to come up with original ideas and imaginative visual styles?

All companies need to grow and expand, so it isn’t surprising that our training institutes are also branching out globally. But when our own system is so sorely lacking, are we equipped to go teach the world?

This week’s special-

The Online Animation School - AnimationMentor.com is giving away a free e-book called “Animation Tips & Tricks” by Shawn Kelly. All you need to do is sign up. The book is the first collection of all the tips and tricks that appear in the Animation Mentor monthly newsletter. Judging by their high standard of teaching and the calibre of the ‘mentors’, the book should be informative and extremely useful for all animation students.

Written in a witty, tongue-in-cheek manner, the book covers a wide range of topics including ’spotlighting expressions’, ‘contrast in pose and timing’ and ‘transitioning your style’. Learn what ‘randomblinkitis’ is. ‘Rise above the snobbery’, ‘impress the recruiters’ and ‘recharge your animation batteries’. If all this has piqued your curiosity, head over to their download page and sign up.

Shawn Kelly is one of the co-founders of AnimationMentor.com. He is also the winner of the 2008 VES award for The Best Single Visual Effect of the Year for his work on Tranformers and he continues to work full-time at Industrial Light & Magic as an animator.