All Entries Tagged With: "Animation"

RamSinghKumaresh Animation Masterclasses in Mumbai : Report

The 3 part Animation Masterclass by RamSinghKumaresh debuted in Mumbai on April 24th, 2010. AAA was to cover all the 3 modules but due to unavoidable circumstances, I missed the first one. So the report extensively covers Modules 2 & 3 while for Module 1, we have a photo slideshow (courtesy @RamSinghKumaresh) and feedback from some participants.

Although the coverage is in great detail, it in no way makes up for the masterclass itself. There is a lot more to be gained from actually attending such educational workshops and learning first-hand from these veterans and benefit from their experiences during their long, illustrious careers.

Therefore, my heartfelt advice to all those who are serious about making careers in the field of animation, please do not miss such masterclasses and workshops. If you have the opportunity to learn from someone who has been in the field for a while and made a name for himself/herself, please make the most of it. You will learn much more than any school or institute can teach you.

REPORT LINKS:

Module 1: click here

Module 2: click here

Module 3: click here

RamSinghKumaresh Animation Masterclass Module 1

A visual tour of Module 1 of the RSK Animation Masterclass.

Sorry folks, I missed this one due to bad health, so there’s no detailed report to accompany the pictures but I promise to make up with the next 2 modules.

Also for a quick review from a participant’s perspective, head over to Kshiraj’s blog. Kshiraj is an upcoming artist and animator based in Delhi who travelled all the way to Mumbai just to attend the RSK Masterclass Module 1. What dedication! If more of our aspiring animators would have this kind of enthusiasm for learning, our animation industry would see far greater progress. He couldn’t stay for the other two and had to head back home, so the reports of Module 2 and 3 are specially dedicated to Kshiraj and many other rising stars of Indian animation.

Other Reports:

Module 2: click here

Module 3: click here

RamSinghKumaresh Animation Masterclass Module 2

Having missed Module 1 of RamSinghKumaresh’s Animation Masterclass, I wanted to ensure that I attend the remaining two modules. Braving crazy Mumbai rush-hour traffic, I reached the venue - Whistling Woods International’s Karma Auditorium, only to find myself 15 minutes late!

Luckily for me, Vaibhav (KUMARESH) was just doing a recap of the last module. The auditorium this time was much smaller and better suited to the size of the audience. It felt more intimate - like an actual classroom - and this was reflected in the way the participants were sitting in rapt attention.

“A walk is controlled falling.”

Vaibhav began Module 2 by explaining the basic dynamics of a frontal walk. “Babies have no control over their limbs and keep falling. Once they learn to control falling, they learn to walk.” Using drawings of skeletal structures, he illustrated the twists and turns the body goes through while walking, the changes in volume that the body experiences, the movement of the head and the torso and so on. The same up and down bounce that you notice when you observe a walk sideways is seen when you view it from the front. (continued…)

RamSinghKumaresh Masterclass: Module 3

The third and concluding module of RamSinghKumaresh’s Animation Masterclass began with a forty-five minute session of live sketching. A volunteer stood on stage, changing his pose after every 5 seconds and the participants had to rapidly keep sketching. After sometime, Vaibhav instructed the participants to sketch without looking down at the paper. The idea is to train the brain - when you look at the page and draw, your left brain immediately begins to judge and, more often, criticize the drawing, so you end up focusing on beautifying the drawing. Instead, what you should actually be doing is trying to capture the form and the structure of the model. When you don’t look at the paper, your brain focuses on just capturing the lines - somewhat like a plotter would do. The aim is to capture the attitude of the pose.

“Scribble - Scribble - Throw Away!”

Sketching is a very important exercise. It trains the brain to really SEE and the hands to DRAW what the brain sees. Your observation skills improve. As you keep sketching, the brain begins to store the data, so that when you draw from memory, the brain retrieves this data. Vaibhav reiterated that what was being done here was just a warm up, and that too a brief one. When sketching, one must take it seriously - focus, not fool around, joke or get distracted. 10 minutes isn’t enough to sketch. One must practise for at least one hour daily. Another point he made was to not get too attached to the drawings. Use them for practise. He called it “Scribble - Scribble - Throw away!” (Continued…)