For the first time ever, Augusta University’s animation program hosted two week-long camps for 30 high schoolers this summer to engage them in the growing industry and learn the basics of creating a dynamic story.
Encouraging campers to turn ideas into action, AU’s Director of the Animation Program A.B. Osborne said participating campers were introduced to the secrets of animation from experienced instructors while creating their own simple story and an animated video.
“I think a lot of people think they know what animation is, but trying it out for yourself is a lot of fun,” he said. “This is definitely a skill, because it’s a lot of labor, a lot of work … and it takes a while to get good at it.”
After first creating a handpainted, minifigure at the beginning of the week, Osborne said students then learned how to use motion capture to animate their creations in a “simplified and streamlined” model.
“I just hope that they remember the variety of options in 3D animation, because it’s not just drawing characters,” he said. “It’s sculpting, it’s painting things, and you’re making these characters move for the first time. You’re setting up lights and playing around with motion capture data. There’s a lot of different specialties in this.”
By introducing students to various artistic tools while in high school, Osborne believes that many can explore the multitude of career paths the industry offers and identify an area they might want to focus on developing, prior to pursuing further education.
“Getting in there early kind of lets you test the waters,” he said. “A lot of people know how to draw – they’ve been drawing since they could hold a pencil – but very few people have ever accidentally 3-D modeled something.”
Describing the week as a complete a “blast,” Osborne said he was thoroughly impressed with the students’ creativity and interest, as well as their ability to quickly draw stunning creations.
“They’re fun. They’ve been goofing off and drawing crazy things, creative ideas that they spark off of each other,” he said. “Because we’re not trying to make perfection here. We’re trying to have fun while learning these skills.”
Following the start of the animation program in 2019, Osborne said he hopes inviting local high school students from all around the CSRA will excite them early-on to consider attending AU’s expanding art college.
“Animation is not going away. If you noticed, during COVID, what did we do? We sat around watching movies and playing video games. So these industries have been booming, especially in the Atlanta and North Carolina market,” he said. “There’s a lot of opportunities around here and it’s easy to work remotely.”
Madison Ali-Hale, a rising ninth grader from the Georgia Cyber Academy, said she learned a lot of skills from attending the camp, met several accomplished artists and loved the overall experience.
“I think it beat my expectations honestly,” she said. “It was a lot of fun stuff that I didn’t expect, and I’m glad that we learned it … it’s good just to get a sense of what you like and what you want out of a career, so you can be more prepared for the job field.”
Ali-Hale said her favorite part had to be seeing her efforts come together at the end of the week to create a finished product, as the process takes a lot of patience.
Thea Cui, a rising junior at Augusta Preparatory Day School, said he attended the camp to further his knowledge of the industry and its required skill sets.
“I believe it’s really important for people my age to open their world view and understand the different types of animation that aren’t just limited to 2D. I find it very fascinating,” he said. “[The camp] teaches a lot of fundamental stuff, but it’s very fun anyways, and you’ll get out of it a completely new understanding of animation.”
Cui said he was enthralled with the animation field throughout their childhood, because seeing the potential of visual creations to become captivating characters inspired their own art’s development.
“I believe it has the potential to tell stories and express things that live action cannot,” he said.
Following the camp’s end, Cui said he will most remember how much effort rendering animation can take, as it is a much lengthier process than most realize.
Both Ali-Hale and Cui said the summer animation camp has made them consider later attending AU following high school.
With both summer camps filling very quickly, Osborne said he hopes to host more animation experiences for high schoolers to meet their increasing interest.
“[The animation department] has been growing like crazy, and one of the biggest requests we had was hosting these animation camps,” he said. “So we just wanted to showcase what we’re doing here.”
For more information on Augusta University’s animation program and future artistic camps, visit: https://www.augusta.edu/pamplin/art/degrees.php#animation
