A group of 30 students aged 13 to 18 years old have participated in an online summer studio organised by 3Dami and supported by ScreenSkills’ Animation Skills Fund.
Students, in groups of ten, faced the task of creating every part of their own 3D digital animated short film, using the open source software Blender. On the final day of the week-long summer programme the Pixar-style projects were premiered via live stream.
“Bringing young people from everywhere together and have them experience what it is like to create an animation from start to finish is a great way to introduce young talent to our industry,” says Abigail Addison, ScreenSkills Animation Production Liaison Executive. “We are very pleased we were able do this by funding 3Dami to deliver the ScreenSkills 2020 Summer Studio.”
The summer studio, which has been organised annually since 2012, was adapted this year so that it could go ahead in spite of the challenges posed by Covid-19. Unlike in previous years, students were working from home and assisted by industry experts and programme alumni via an online platform.
At the end of the course one students said: “I liked how we worked together as a team…I also enjoyed listening to feedback and asking questions to people who are currently working the film business.” Another participant said: “It was fun, it felt professional and it has prepared me for working collaboratively on projects. I’ve felt a real sense of achievement.”
The three animated films that were created during the summer studio can be seen here:
The summer studio was part of a larger initiative, the Summer of Animation, which included a UK-wide competition and video masterclasses supported by animation and VFX studios to help 13 to 18-year-olds in the UK to learn how to create 3D animations.