@siggraph
u misunderstand me, indeed u r the one dat needs an open mind.
Check d facts, ure advertsisng animation not modeling, and u posted your site as a source for information.

Dat means it should have at least an animation sample clip or link to a demo. I am not suggesting u put all your work online, dats absurd. But why would i come all the way to ur office to assess ur relevance, what if i live outside ur location/state or even country.

u r marketing a service, so u should make your target audience get as much info as possible with minimum effort on their part.

Besides, those are my opinions and at best, regard it as client feedback and do with it what u will.
Contrary 2 your opinion i have no interest in running u down, why wld i?

Reread my post objectively

ure advertising training in animations and u dont have a single clip showcasing your ability on your site, or a link to a demoreel anywhere.
even most of d still pics u used arent original, dat doesnt inspire confidence.

way to go, guys!
Ur clearing d path for a lotta artists.

wot r they saying are d specific areas of challenge?
were all d reviews negative?

i have quit using pirated software and cant afford 3500 usd at d moment.
i hope 2 upgrade from my 2011 version for about half d price as soon as i can.

my research has given me no cause to hesitate.

simply put, its worth getting if u can afford it!

all of the kinks of 2011 have been improved (going by the announcements) but its still fairly new, so its still early days.
too soon to give final verdict, but it has great reviews and awesome new features!

check em out for yourself at autodesks 'the area'.

@grandtener
lol. Sure ur on d right bus?

Suggest u start a new thread with ya tots, u totally missed d point of this one.

@jide
lol.have been in and outta lag a dozen times since dat post.

Am in town at d mo, but will be travelling outtatown again 2mrw for about a week.
Use d digits 2 know my itinery wheneva u r free.

Animation as a field is vast, wot type of animation interests you?

@Aphek
AdamuW's original comment was that '2d CAN be a more spontaneous way, '
in the course of the discussion it has been misquoted as '2d IS a more spontaneous way, '

they mean different  things.
'CAN' implies that it has the capacity to be (prolly depending on his unique scenario)
'IS' implies an absolute statement of fact (irrespective of any considerations)

besides he is speaking from his experience and based on his project preference, so i dont even get the need for debate. he has even owned up to its being subjective.

spontaneity doesnt imply ease or superiority, it just suggests ability to employ a more intuitive approach- the same way fk animation gives way to more spontaneity as opposed to ik. it doesnt mean there arent artists who are able to be spontaneous or more intuitive with ik. there are really no absolutes in creativity.

in the industry, however, because in 2d u are almost working and seeing the almost finished render at the same time, it makes for rapid feedback which makes for a more spontaneous approach to work. this is a global view- u cld research that (but like i said, a generally held opinion doesnt imply there are no dissenters)

@kamcom
hey bro, sounds like wot u seek, is a good paying job and not particularly one in the 3d world.

I know our economy doesnt seem to encourage this, but my only advice would be:
seek training in a field u have a flair/knowledge of, and in a line of work that u ENJOY! U sound clueless and not particularly passionate about ur proposed field at d moment.

Employment is not guaranteed in any sector, so that shouldnt be ur focus when searching for a field of study.
Let ur interests, abilities, skills and the certainty of job fulfilment guide you in making the choice of a career path, or u may end up as professionally frustrated inspite of any cash in the bank. This is d case for millions in our workforce.

Sori, not quite d response u expected, aye?lol

if however, u are certain that this is ur chosen career path, i shall share my thots on ur questions.

.

@mr cork
enough to correct your tenses and spelling.

dude, let d client decide, or r u d client?

@AdamuW
well said.
i too, will be interested in opinions to ur questions.

my thots, repeated frequently (lol), r simply that when we start to turn out good stuff- the public will notice and private sector participation will increase.
as animators, few of us are known nationally or internationally- hence, are unacceptable risks to investors, as at yet.
we can change that by either affiliation to known bodies, or by putting out our work out there n letting it do the work of attesting to our skills!

if ppl pay to watch some nollywood movies, then i think any well packaged edutainment program will be a hit. reception to your Bino & Fino series shoulda answered that one.lol

@all
we keep talking about our cultures and values, wot exactly r they?
how many of us, as parents have actively sought to instil those perceived values- beyond hauling our kids off to the village during festive seasons.
wot level of patronage do our musuems, historical sites enjoy?

in our techno age today, information has to be documented n processed appropriately for it to be passed on in any form.
bottomline is, our cultures/values as we call them rarely exist in a packaged and readily useable form.
try n seek a book that documents life in your rural area before the colonial era and u will understand my drift.
that is also a reason for the misrepresentation of africa in movies n stuff by the west- we havent effectively informed them.

hence, on a level we are ALL to blame.
government is a faceless entity more interested in propagating its own survival, woteva d cost,sadly.

as concerns this topic and the Childrens Television Workshop, now Sesame Workshop- since inception back in the 60's, Sesame Street has sought to promote multicultural values. it is one of their core aims and great care has been taken to live up to it.

it has been produced for over 20 countries and they always create new content for each region. note, i said 'produced', not just 'translated'.
a translation would have entailed selling the same content, irrespective of the local values- this goes against wot d show stands for.

those of us that talk of 'westernising' our kids, cmon- even our very democracy is fashioned after western models. we cant be guilty of double standards here, even 'progress' is measured by how much like the westerner we can live!
quit buying the pair of jeans n teeshirts for ya kids and revert to akwette and local wrappers (an inappropriate joke, i know).

ignoring other cultures doesnt really guarantee development/knowledge of your own culture, especially when the culture u r trying to downplay happens to be the pioneering force in global development.

we definitely need a balance, and time will tell if this is a source of western indoctrination, but i know that, as a show it definitely teaches kids a lot of non-culturally biased stuff, so the risks r acceptable to me.

@ all
i think d topic may b abit misleading. I think d poster is talking of d impact from d point of view of fellow animators not consumers. (i stand 2 b corrected, Adamu)

as consumers, as long as it benefits our kids it could be made in Tibet for all i care. As fellow practitioners tho, its a different matter.

@

AdamuW

as an individual- im professional
as a studio- i am not.
Dis doesnt mean i cannot produce output, but d process is rarely as professional as it should or could be.

As u know, the industry requires various support services to produce d final output. Our work ethics r such that at some point down d pipeline, u will definitely encounter some sloppy chap(s) dat screw ur schedule.

If u r fortunate enuf 2 have moulded a blend of professionals in ur studio, then u r d exception. I havent been as fortunate and several projects have suffered as a result.

I still think, d rub off of seasoned professionals working in our environment and utilising local talent, while a blow 2 our artistic pride, will benefit us.

@ AdamuW
good thought provoking post.

The followin r my opinions born outta my experience(s).
Most nigerian firms, even if given funding still lack d discipline 2 deliver consistent quality. Our work ethics still lacks professionalism, money doesnt change dat!

Sesame street/ Childrens Television Workshop have been around for decades, n have paid massive dues- so as a brand, its bankable. Few studios here enjoy similar status.

Theres bound 2 b spillover to our local studios, so in dat sense its a good thing. It also serves as a wake up call of some sort.

As we keep putting out our stuff, recognition will come, as will increased funding. I fear it will be a slow process tho

@okuiso
u can download d learning editions of maya since ur aim is to learn. I know our economical challenges, but we need 2 cultivate a habit of shunning piracy (software or otherwise)

sure u can. U may need a card to pay tho.
Google d software. I think its made by reallusion.
I downloaded the free trial version of an earlier release once- just wasnt in the class of the heavy hitters for me.

good job guys.
It can only get beta.

@biodun
any chance of u posting a sample file?
U cld get a commish from other parties.

good job man.
The industry needs loads of talents.

A clip of the kind of output ur protege will be able to create may also help inspire them to sign on faster.

Goodluck.

why not just dload it.
The PRO is about 30k but the Standard is about 15k.
Or do u mean pirated copies?

lol.
just click on it.
its an animation clip.
i uploaded it on youtube.

[flash=425,344]
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7vjcqPh0rWk?hl=en&fs=1"[/flash]

google 'digital billboard images' and post the link to any suitable board type, so interested artists will have reference images to work with.
There are different types of digi display units.

i have a few issues.

Do u want an animation of d text, or an animation showing a billboard depicting the text?

if this is simply proof of the animators ability to create d concept, then it doesnt matter what d billboard displays. It could display - INSERT MESSAGE HERE.

Besides the job is so basic, that viewing d artists previous works should give u an indication of the artists ability to deliver or not.

No offense meant, but this could just be a 'smart' way to get a clients sample done for u for free.

U also need 2 clearly state d benefits to the animator
ur idea of 'nice pay' may differ from mine.

well, beta . . .

imagine a breakdown like this:

GRAPHICS
1. (list topic 1) state software(s) to be used
2. (list topic 2) state software(s) to be used

and so on.

Do the same for video editing, that way, u show professionalism and one can see at a glance if u have a course/software training relevant to him/her.

At the end of the day, u are marketing a product/ service- and u should make it as easy as possible for your target audience to sign on with minimum effort/expense on their part.

Just my opinion, mind.

Goodluck.

dude, i know about freedom of speech n all- but its just plain wrong to give the impression that u can learn 3d Max in 2 sessions (moreso if u have no prior 3d knowledge)
if prior knowledge is required, it should be stated.

is there any allowance for the individuals unique learning curve.
U cant even cover/get comfy with all the basic functioms of the interface in that period- and ur class is more than a 'getting started' thing judging from ur post- correct me if i am wrong.

U talked about saving time by going to the core of what u need to know, if thats d case, then modify ur topic thread to reflect ur area of focus, something like 'advanced speed modeling and rendering using 3d max'.
So prospective trainees know exactly wot they r getting.

The way it is currently is very ambiguos and misleading, or u can include an outline of ur course topics.

Spending 80k on self development is not a big deal, but feeling ripped off/dissatisfied, after a training is!

Goodluck.

yeah, ur friend is right. But its for the special fx not d visual fx that d american crew worked on
.
The special fx team was a 7-man crew all from Legacy Effects, a US firm thats worked on major budget flicks like Iron Man2, Terminator, Avatar.

The visual effects was a 67-man crew dominated by japanese/Chinese and a buncha indians.

The director S.Shankar also wrote d movie.
I could find only 2 other movies that hed directed n written as well.

Wot i dont get is why d americans get all d limelight when they clearly arent d most deserving.lol
IMO the japanese rock!

i reallly dont get why people post selective  info about services they render.

If your going public, why not go all d way.
Post d cost of d training, why do i have 2 call 2 get basic info?

I can call for, say, a personal discount or a custom training session, but not 2 know d basics 4 d program. U might as well have posted "i have something to say, call me if u wanna hear!" lol

just my opinion, and its not just aimed at d OP

dats sad n pretty unfair, if true.
But then again, good plots have never been bollywoods strong suit,lol

i think both nolly n bolly r in d same boat on dat.

Will take time out n research d movie prod cast.

yeah. Def a major improvement from the days of inserting vfx clips from other movies. Great concept!

D poor acting is still very evident tho, n d fx were a bit 2 protracted for my taste.
I would prefer fx spread thru out d movie in smaller doses; not a long sequence that allows u detect 'flaws'.

Anyway, i assume its d fx/concept we r commenting on, not d movie direction- in that, apart from a coupla shaky dynamics issues, i would say its pretty kool. Dunno wot budget or time constraints they had tho, so cant give a balanced assessment,

D snake fx was my fav. Cant imagine an indie flick without a reptile or two.lol

4get nigeria, fx wise we r stone age n likely to stay there -as long as we keep celebrating mediocrity!
We are not even where india was twenty years ago, n d know-how is readily available (and has been for atleast a decade)- pitiful!

I once had a pointless conversation with a 'famous' nollywood director who was actually bragging abt being able to shoot any movie with just one cam!

Scene 1, take 5003, action!