CGTalk - www.animationmentor.com

anthea

09-29-2005, 08:22 PM

this is my first post here at cgtalk, but i've been reading the AM thread for quite some time. i must say, it's quite and entertaining and informative read. in fact, reading this thread directly contributed to my decision to apply to AM. until recently, i had been working on a masters degree in cg and animation at depaul university in chicago. depaul's program in cg isn't very stong, imho, and i felt that i wasn't heading in the right direction. so, i decided to take the fall quarter off to take some drawing classes, and apply to AM. i recently received my acceptance email and will start down the path to enlightenment this winter. i am really looking forward to getting started, and being part of the AM community. see you this winter!

congrats on your acceptance jason diahl, glad we could help shine a path to your animation future. see you in the winter term!! its so fun to see how excited all you future students are!!

welcome to the club!

jiminy, abt the improv idea, i think you have a good thing going with that and should persue it! i saw your post in the forum, too, makes me wish i was a NoCal'er instead of a SoCal'er

i wish the LA kids could throw something like that together. in the improv class i took in nyc we had to give a performance at the ubc theatre when we were done, and that would be cool to have an all AM cast performance!! wow.

if any LA peoples want to do something like this let me know, I'd be into it. There are some cool improv places here, like second city, bang, and there's even a new ucb LA theatre too, so lots of places to choose from.

mikep1980

09-29-2005, 10:59 PM

The acting classes sound like an incredible idea! Count me in! :bounce: :bounce:

anthea

10-01-2005, 08:39 PM

The acting classes sound like an incredible idea! Count me in! :bounce: :bounce:

mike P, you have time for AM, AAU, AND an acting class??!!

you amaze me!

btw, do you miss derek as much as i do :(
who do you have this term?

StapleGun

10-04-2005, 07:35 AM

i am so jealous of you bay area mentees, gosh getting to to an improv class w you would be so fun. i took classes at the Upright Citizens Brigade in NYC when I lived there and it was sooo fun. Now I am taking some acting classes, Rebecca is coming along w me tomorrow. But I miss improv and comedy.

Jealous of Bay area? You are in LOS ANGELES! HOLLYWOOOOOOD!

anthea

10-04-2005, 06:17 PM

good point, i really need to get out there and explore more of the fun stuff LA has, i haven't even been to an improv or comedy show since i arrived.

sternio

10-04-2005, 06:43 PM

good point, i really need to get out there and explore more of the fun stuff LA has, i haven't even been to an improv or comedy show since i arrived.

Anthea is big into the VIP club scene. untz...untz....untz...untz...

Kimotion

10-06-2005, 04:45 AM

Anthea, are you finding more camera acting in LA or stage acting? I'd figure there's be more camera acting there.

agreenster

10-06-2005, 07:23 AM

Anthea, are you finding more camera acting in LA or stage acting? I'd figure there's be more camera acting there.

Depends on what you count as 'acting'

;)

anthea

10-06-2005, 07:29 AM

hey jeff,
the place i fianlly decided on is called the carter thor studio. they are apparently pretty hard to get into with a long wait list, but tell them you're an animator and they'll slip you right in. turns out the school owner cameron thor taught acting classes to the animators on iron giant and loves animation, so i was sold!

one other place i audited did mostly stage acting, using only scripts from plays. cameron thor using mostly film with some plays and tv scripts. all different genres, and comedy. so i think it will be a good choice.

right now i am just auditing, sitting in on the "real " actors. i will probably start my own class in a few weeks. really nervous.

btw, this acting assignment is kicking my butt, i am so confused about how to make bishop act. this is hard!

Kimotion

10-06-2005, 07:36 AM

Depends on what you count as 'acting'

;)

eerr??

I imagine that stage acting is more useful to the animator because it's all about presentation, clarity and focus. I have no experience with camera acting so I can't say it's not so for that medium. However, on stage you have to be totally focussed on everything: your emotion, your thoughts, your poses and timing---and at the same time allow yourself to let go an be spontaneous.

What was my point? I imagine that with cameras, it's more about the subtlety, the cam. angles and how they can rotate and dolly to follow the actor to a certain extent. And with the camera it's more about the look than the whole body pose. Of course the actor needs to play to the camera too. However on stage it more about you and the other actor, you and the audience who's sitting right there, live. It's on stage where you feel the emotional urgency to communicate with one take.

Anyway, if anyone is to take an acting class, they all start with the stage in mind cus it's the foundation of acting.

Kimotion

10-06-2005, 07:40 AM

btw, this acting assignment is kicking my butt, i am so confused about how to make bishop act. this is hard!

I emphathise. A lot of people commented how my assignments look "stagy" but that's how I act in real life I think!

AjaBogdanoff

10-06-2005, 02:12 PM

We've been watching old Newsradio episodes on DVD this week, and wow, wherever they learned to act, I want to learn it too! Good sitcom acting (Seinfeld especially) is so cartoony and crazy when you frame-by-frame it, but when you just sit back and watch it's totally believable and appealing. :)

aijoe

10-06-2005, 05:14 PM

This past summer me and a few friends of mind we went to one of those free or donation outdoor Shakespeare on the park plays. and I have to tell you it's GOLD for us animators. What I've noticed in the acting were the stuffs that we are taught like anticipation and strong poses. For example if one person talk then the rest of the cast stood still in the attitudes of his/her character. They just don't stand there, but everyone shifted their body weight according to their character. So every pose is different and the audiences can read who is who on stage. And once it's time for another actor to say his/her lines he/she anticipate his/her movements before saying the lines. My guess is because they were on stage and in order for the audience to know who is going to speak next they have to anticipates first. Film or T.V. actors don't have to anticipates first to say their lines as much is because they have the luxuries of the director jsut cuts to them speaking. (Or if they do then we don't see it becaused of the edit.) The ways the actors moves on stage are so exaggerated that you will see all the principles of animation clearly being used then you would from film or t.v. performances. Again the reasons I guess is so that the audiences in the back rolls can see what they are doing. This is not to take away from films or t.v but it's another sources to look into for improving our animation skills. So, if you get a chance to see live performances don't walk but RUN to see it.

agreenster

10-06-2005, 06:31 PM

eerr??

I imagine that stage acting is ...What was my point? I imagine that with cameras, it's more about ...And with the camera...However on stage blah blah blah

Hahahaha Jeff! I was just making a joke about all the "actors" on "camera" in LA...."depends on what you consider acting," there is FAR more "on camera" "actors" in LA than anywhere else on the planet....get it?

Sheesh, read between the lines, Sang-Hoon! It was a joke!

Golly, never mind

Kimotion

10-06-2005, 07:11 PM

Hahahaha Jeff! I was just making a joke about all the "actors" on "camera" in LA...."depends on what you consider acting," there is FAR more "on camera" "actors" in LA than anywhere else on the planet....get it?

Sheesh, read between the lines, Sang-Hoon! It was a joke!

Golly, never mind

You...you.....you CHANGED my QUOTE! YOU CHANGED MY QUOTE!

OK Adam Richard Green, you crossed the line!

*Taking out my pitchfork*

"Shiver me timbers!"

agreenster

10-06-2005, 09:16 PM

I didnt "change" your quote, I editied it down, blabber-mouth!

You still havent gotten my joke though. IM me or something and Ill spell it out for ya! ;)

Kimotion

10-06-2005, 09:34 PM

I didnt "change" your quote, I editied it down, blabber-mouth!

You still havent gotten my joke though. IM me or something and Ill spell it out for ya! ;)

Yes I did and it was NOT funny! True. But NOT FUNNY!

*Okaaaay... time for another Dayquil...*

Kimotion

10-06-2005, 10:06 PM

Depends on what you count as 'acting'

;)

OH!! I get it NOW!

OpenUrEyes

10-10-2005, 07:52 AM

Hello everyone!

I have a quick question. About what percentage if Animation Mentor spent on learning Maya and what percentage is spent on learning animation theory? The school I am at now teaches us all about Maya but I have still yet to learn animation, even after almost 2 years or so. I am worried because my parents already spent so much money and only briefly learned a bouncing ball so far.

Thank you for any answers :)

My Fault

10-10-2005, 08:27 AM

There are a few hours of lectures for getting you up to speed in Maya but the majority of the time is spent on animation (90%+). You will be learning about animation pretty much from the get go and it only gets more intense each and every week.

LIGHTYEAR

10-10-2005, 08:28 AM

Hey OpenUrEyes, AM is a pure animation course, and as they keep reminding us, the computer (or whatever hardware/software/pencil/paper/clay etc) you use is merely a tool. They have taught us a small amount of Maya, and there are some short tutorials for those who havn't used it before, but from day one its been all about weight and movement.

It sounds like the course your doing is weighted more towards the software, but if you want to be an animator, you need to study on a course where it doesnt matter what your using. That's what makes AM so cool.

Bentagon

10-10-2005, 09:46 AM

Basically, they've given us two Maya lectures, which you can view at any time... together, they're just over 1 hour of Maya. Then, for each character you get to animate, they explain some more about what you can do with it. But that's basically it. Everything else about Maya happens on the forums, between students.

- Benjamin

AKS

10-10-2005, 10:30 AM

OpenUrEyes, you should check out some of the AM blogs that people have going. Look at the progression of their work since they started the course. I think that's a great way to judge what's being taught at AM. The course is really ALL focused on animation. The maya stuff is just enough to get you so you can work the program & move on.

OpenUrEyes

10-10-2005, 05:57 PM

Thanks for all your answers guys! About the blogs, is there a central site where it lists all the blogs?

mgarward

10-10-2005, 06:21 PM

Thanks for all your answers guys! About the blogs, is there a central site where it lists all the blogs?
The webring is here http://p.webring.com/hub?ring=animationmentorb and most people are probably listed there.

sternio

10-11-2005, 01:23 AM

Hahahaha Jeff! I was just making a joke about all the "actors" on "camera" in LA...."depends on what you consider acting," there is FAR more "on camera" "actors" in LA than anywhere else on the planet....get it?

Sheesh, read between the lines, Sang-Hoon! It was a joke!

Golly, never mind

c'mon.... adult film..Erotic Cinema.
didn't you guys see Boogie Nights?

Kunanimation

10-11-2005, 03:31 AM

I got my online test email today, it was too bad I didn't finish the whole test, ---shame on me.......I thought that I had 15 mins to complete the test, but the actual time was like 10 mins or less, don't remeber................don't know if I will still got accepted............ :(

ttesla

10-11-2005, 04:46 AM

^8 minutes sharp! ;)
Don't worry so much about the test. Keep your focus on the essay and hopefully will see ya on the board soon. :)

Kunanimation

10-11-2005, 05:47 AM

Thank you. I did write an about 450 word essay telling about my personal background, my passion of being an animator, and guarantee of money to pay the tuition. Hope that works.

DigitalToon2

10-11-2005, 01:12 PM

Don't worry to much about the test, I don't think many people really finish it. I didn't finish it and I got in.

anthea

10-11-2005, 09:54 PM

i'm not even sure if you can actually finish it, it might be one of those never ending question tests, just to see how many you get right in a certain amount of time.

Bentagon

10-11-2005, 10:08 PM

i'm not even sure if you can actually finish it, it might be one of those never ending question tests, just to see how many you get right in a certain amount of time.I finished it :)

- Benjamin

aijoe

10-11-2005, 10:16 PM

I didn't finished too. I think if you can finished the quiz then you have the brain to be a scientist and finding a cure for cancer or something and not be an animator. :)
Like Nicole(hey classmate) and Anthea said don't worried too much about it. Just remember in your essay to write down why animation is your passion.

I finished it :)
EDIT: My bad. We do have a scientist in our school. :)

My Fault

10-11-2005, 10:19 PM

I finished it :)

- Benjamin

Answering "All of the Above" to every question doesn't count Ben! :D

Bentagon

10-11-2005, 10:22 PM

EDIT: My bad. We do have a scientist in our school. :) Djeez. Don't remind me. I was supposed to be studying for civil engineer right now. I'm SOO happy I found a passion early enough to avoid those THOUSANDS of pages which are tormenting my brother right now.

- Benjamin

Nitefyre

10-11-2005, 11:08 PM

Haha, I'm with you Ben! I had two years of electrical/computer engineering already under my belt and just couldn't take it any longer. Had to finally switch to animation, aaaah, true love! :love:

Oh yea, didn't have enough time to be able to answer the last question on the quiz :p

Kimotion

10-12-2005, 12:33 AM

Well I finished it in 5 minutes STILL had time to do it over!

...just kidding. Actually I only got up to question 22.

UnderwearNinja

10-12-2005, 12:39 AM

I finished with 45 seconds left over! They tell you to take the additional time and review your answers. I think there's 30 questions total...

But, they still haven't let me in yet!

Waiting...

DigitalToon2

10-12-2005, 04:42 AM

I finished with 45 seconds left over! They tell you to take the additional time and review your answers. I think there's 30 questions total...

But, they still haven't let me in yet!

Waiting...

Patience young grasshopper...patience

Kunanimation

10-12-2005, 07:00 AM

The questions slowed me down were the vocabulary identifications, others were pretty esay, because English isn't my first language, I really need to work on that. V_V.......

ThePredator42

10-12-2005, 01:30 PM

Am I through? Am I REALLY through? *puts on suspicious look and hits F5*

I went through those 420(!) freakin pages in the past days. Gosh this is amazing! It´s been more informative than a gnomon dvd and almost as entertaining as watching the simpsons!

Thank you all for drawing a more than lifelike picture of AM. Especially Brian, Aja, Kim, Ali and the Matts.. and everyone else from the AM vetaran clan that I forgot. You made me laugh so hard.

Actually I had my mind 90% set on attending AM, I just needed a little more insight than their catalogue.. I figured this forum would be one of the places to get that, and by starting somewhere around summer last year, it was like sneaking into someones diary hehehe.. going thru this entire thing, evolving.. that memorable application-night (I was actually biting my NAILS reading those 50 pages, no kidding!).. thru the first lectures up to now. You got me around page 10 I think :)

The ideology of the school had me at first glance, not to mention the mentors! But you all drew a picture of the atmosphere there, and that fixed my decision another 10%.. no.. 60%.. so.. where do I sign!

ThePredator42

10-12-2005, 01:39 PM

hehe old trick..start a new reply so that it doesn´t look like a huge bulk of text :D

I won´t be able to sign in before fall next year.. too much other stuff to sort out. And I want to hit the AM ground running, not with 100 different things to-do on my back. Ahh crap.. this will be such a long time.

I´m filling out the application form every now and then just to cancel when I´m through.. feels relaxing and makes the air sizzle with expectation *g*

Anyways, there´s a heap of books on my shelf I planned on reading in the near future, The Illusion of Life among them. That might shorten the time at least a little. I´ll also work on my time management capabilities, gather a huge pile of coffee (maybe try the "homegrown approach"), and satisfy my urge to animate with stuff like this http://forums.cgsociety.org/showthread.php?t=243461. Not too great, but I think doing stuff like this is the most fun one can have by himself. And you won´t get blind.

So much to my initial "Hello guys", now I´m off reading some blogs...

Micha.

SkyZero

10-12-2005, 02:31 PM

Looking forward to seeing your work next fall Predator! :thumbsup:
For your AM fix, check out this interview (http://www.strutyourreel.com/forum/feature/) that came out last night!

Bentagon

10-12-2005, 02:41 PM

You went through all 420 pages :eek:??
Good god, I can't wait to have you aboard! :beer:

- Benjamin

ThePredator42

10-12-2005, 03:06 PM

Ow yeah! thanks *bookmarking in VIB folder - Very Important Bookmark*

I´m still going thru the 2003 interviews now. That is.. again. Read them back then already, but at now I KNOW what that "we have another project going on but can´t talk about it right now" project is :D . AND I´ve seen The Incredibles, the other project they kept talking about. Those were the days! hahaha

Hey Benjamin, thanks.. twice the hour I play with the idea of starting this winter. So tempting, damnit! But... I... must... not... ! .. gotta... be... patient *starts drawing to distract himself*

Hey btw., I checked your website. I was hoping I´d be able so see some of your work. I´m curious about that 2D approach of yours. Any chance to get a look? I might try to fool around with 2D anims until the big day. May drawing skills are far from being able to get puplic attention, but its a hell lot of fun nonetheless. (Just gotta make sure no-one ever sees them hehe)

Micha.

Bentagon

10-12-2005, 04:06 PM

My website link was still in my sig! Must've been over a year since I updated that.

And about me going tradiational. Trust me, I can't draw well eather. Sure, I'm pretty good at drawing what I see, but drawing what I'm imagining? CRAP! That's why I'm currently teaching myself how to draw with different books. And that's why most people won't see anything like that from me for at least a while :p
When this summer I wanted to pick up drawing again, I made the fault of focusing only on drawing what I see, and now that I'm in AM and wanted to draw other things, I realised that was not the best decision.
It's just that I take it as an extra challenge. Hand drawn is where my heart really is - even though I also love 3D - so since I'm able to do AM Online fulltime, I decided to take on that challenge. And it's not that I can't draw the Stu AM character or anything. So I won't even need those kickass drawing skills for about 6 months. But if I've improved enough before that, of course I will use those skills.

And for now, only thing we have done is a bouncing ball, so there's not much 2D animation to show. But if you want to see some of my drawing work, here's my flickr.com link: http://www.flickr.com/photos/50512902@N00/

- Benjamin

Kunanimation

10-12-2005, 06:45 PM

I always love black and white sketches more than colors, just because I was borned color blind, LOL...., so I have hard time on painting, it's getting better though. I can tell the solid red, yellow and green, but not sure when they are mixed with other colors. And I can't distinguish between red light and yellow light while driving.........fortunely I know the middle one is yellow, if it is the type of light that gives signs by switching color at the same spot.....that will be "oh my god......."

And does AM give a lot of homeworks and are they challenging or tough? And do you guys think if I am taking full time college classes, which are 12 units, I still have enough time to do the AM assignments?(If I get in)

anthea

10-12-2005, 07:25 PM

I finished it :)

- Benjamin

Ben DS: Future animator/rocket scientist

good job!!

Kimotion

10-13-2005, 12:13 AM

AnimationMentor featured in US News & World Report:

USNews.com article (http://www.usnews.com/usnews/edu/elearning/articles/1007animation.htm)

ThePredator42

10-13-2005, 07:46 AM

Heya Benjamin, I am confused. I clicked on that link in your sig yesterday! Or did I? DID I?? How long have I been here! What year is it? OMG, is it Fall2k6 allready???

I like the drawings, I wish I could draw models like that. Or see them hehehe

I quit on drawing classes after university, because back then I realised what you experience now. I wouldn´t learn to draw from my imagination! I wanted to draw mean killer robots and aliens and stuff.. but by the time I could actually draw those from real life, I would already have been enslaved by the invaders, and made to work in a coal mine for my share of rice in the evening.

@Kun_L: Hey Kun, I´m curios. So how does this affect the way you work in CG?

Bentagon

10-13-2005, 10:08 AM

Michael, it's actually fall 2008... where have you been? I haven't seen you in like... 3 years? Seriously, that link wasn't supposed to be in my sig anymore, since I have given up on keeping a website. Maybe I'll start a blog soon, much easier, but I'm not sure yet.

- Benjamin

ThePredator42

10-13-2005, 10:41 AM

Argh.. so that´s the reason I keep tripping over my beard when I go for coffee!

Na seriously... I swear by the five-armed god of phong shading, I clicked that link! Maybe that´s a sign that I should go and conduct the annual inspection of our coffee machine. Who knows what´s been brooding in there. (http://www.geocities.com/Area51/Labyrinth/9624/thetoad.html)

Bentagon

10-13-2005, 11:02 AM

Yeah, you clicked the link. But after that I got rid of it :rolleyes:

- Benjamin

ThePredator42

10-13-2005, 12:49 PM

arg I misunderstood u completely! I thought u removed that freakin´ SIG-LINK a year ago.

Don´t ever listen to me brabling LOL

lets change the topic

anthea

10-13-2005, 10:02 PM

AnimationMentor featured in US News & World Report:

USNews.com article (http://www.usnews.com/usnews/edu/elearning/articles/1007animation.htm)

hey jeff, thanks for that link. AM is Famous!! woo hoo!

Sean MacNeil

10-14-2005, 12:57 AM

Woohoo, that's a nice article! Right on!

anthea

10-18-2005, 03:41 PM

It's ask Carlos Time!!

http://forums.cgsociety.org/showthread.php?threadid=286290

Kunanimation

10-19-2005, 03:32 AM

I Just got the email of acceptance for winter 2006. Very happy!!...

Sean MacNeil

10-19-2005, 04:38 AM

Congrats Kun, you're gonna learn a ton! There is no better place if animation is what you want to do. See ya in January!

DigitalToon2

10-19-2005, 04:39 AM

I Just got the email of acceptance for winter 2006. Very happy!!...

Congrats! AM is awesome and you will love it. See you in January! :)

^Abe^

10-19-2005, 06:05 AM

Hey y'all.
I've been talking with the maker of Tweenmaker (http://www.tweenmaker.com). He is wondering if there is a market for a product like Tweenmaker. He seems concerned that interest in 2d animation has dwindled considerably and he doesn't know whether there are many people looking for a product like his.

I thought that you as people who a regularly in contact with some of the top players in the animation field might have a feel for the pulse of where animation is heading. Do you think that the market for 2d software is dead? Also do you have any links to solid content on the web that discusses the market for 2d animation in the future?

Any response would be appreciated.

Cheers
Abe.

UnderwearNinja

10-19-2005, 06:37 AM

I Just got the email of acceptance for winter 2006. Very happy!!...

Ooohhhh
*begins checking email every 10 seconds*

mistafreeze

10-19-2005, 06:49 AM

UnderwearNinja

10-19-2005, 06:52 AM

nuclearfessel

10-19-2005, 06:58 AM

I Just got the email of acceptance for winter 2006. Very happy!!...

so did i... just got the email of acceptance to Spring 06... i was going to start in the Winter session but i will be out of town during the start for vacation... very happy... so looking forward to it :bounce:

Bentagon

10-19-2005, 09:27 AM

Wooo! Congrats, you guys! You're gonna love it!

@Abe: there definitly is a market for 2D, even in the 3D world. A lot of animators plan stuff out with 2D programs like Plastic Animation Paper, etc. But I'm not sure there's a market in highquality feature films for that particular program. One of the reasons why those animators plan in 2D, is that they want to have almost complete control. This tweening program just seems like a program that gives you inbetweens, and thus saving time, but it seems difficult to get what you want. Besides, they plan thumnail style, so a new drawing will take them like 30 seconds. I'm a also 2D student at AM, and I don't think I'd be interested in the program. Those gallery pieces actually seem rather floaty and unnatural, which is exactly the thing feature animators want to avoid.

Anyways, 2D is definitly not dead. There definitly might be a place for this program in the TV or commercial market. But not in theatrical features. There will be 2D theatrical features in the future, I'm positive of that, but most likely they'll want to have drawn every single frame. Cause whoever is building up studios to get their hands on a feature sure loves the medium.

- Benjamin

anthea

10-19-2005, 10:17 PM

anyone know the sucessrate for job placement with animationmentor?

also it would be nice if they would put up some demo reels of previous students, showing what we could expect to learn from the teachings offered from animation mentor.

if the job placement is pretty good, i might consider going there after i finish up my next semester at college.

Animation Mentor only started less than 3 semesters ago. We are right in the middle of the 3rd semester and that's as far as the school has gotten so far. We still have almost a year left of training to go if we finish all the semesters. So if you are willing to wait another 12-18 months, then you'll have your answer on post graduation placement.

Otherwise there have been lots of students right now that have already gotten some animation jobs, some of them had previous experience animating before AM, but many did not have professional experience. I have high hopes for us all. I think we are heading in the right direction if we just keep our noses to the grindstone.

In terms of the progression of our skills so far, you can take a look at the student's blogs.
http://p.webring.com/hub?ring=animationmentorb
Some of us, myself included have links to our 1st, and 2nd semester work and our current work in progress of the third semester. Keep in mind we are not even half way through with the program. Have a look at the 60+ blogs and then you can decide for yourself!

Anthea

Bentagon

10-19-2005, 10:22 PM

AAaaaand I've heard some awesome rumors going around about one of our fellow students being hired by WDFA! Wooo!

- Benjamin

mistafreeze

10-20-2005, 12:14 AM

thats right, i keep forgetting am is still new, i remeber hearing about it here a while back, i wasnt thinking about it still being 18 months, and yea im wanting to see about going their next year, ive been wanting to go their.

ill be sure to check out some more of those blogs.

thx again

Ollie_T

10-21-2005, 10:46 PM

There is some great insights from Animation Mentor/Pixar Animator Bobby 'BOOM' Beck in a feature interview. Check it out.
:: Read it here (http://www.strutyourreel.com/forum/feature/)

anthea

10-22-2005, 02:12 AM

AAaaaand I've heard some awesome rumors going around about one of our fellow students being hired by WDFA! Wooo!

- Benjamin

Hey! how did you hear about that? Word gets out fast! :P

mattmos

10-22-2005, 03:10 AM

ooo who is it who is it!! I wanna know! Congrats whoever it is :bounce: That's great news!

mmkelly011881

10-22-2005, 09:07 AM

rumours are the devil's paintbrush

Bentagon

10-22-2005, 09:13 AM

**edit**never mind

- Benjamin

mmkelly011881

10-22-2005, 09:43 AM

Snick Snack Snorum!

Modus

10-22-2005, 09:53 AM

who is it who is it !!?? :)

My Fault

10-22-2005, 05:27 PM

Hahaha, rumors do travel fast. I'll give you a hint, they are bigger then a breadbox and they are extremely talented and crazy cool.

HUGE congrats, can't wait to hear about their upcoming Disney adventure!

Modus

10-22-2005, 05:29 PM

wow Brian that's a clue !!! ...come on man I have no freakin idea... :( say a name say a name ! :)

AjaBogdanoff

10-22-2005, 06:05 PM

Haha, I'll leave more hints... in addition to being super cool and talented, they are also incredibly humble, and a fantastic classmate. :D

Bentagon

10-22-2005, 06:59 PM

It's a "they" ??

- Benjamin

clockwerkz

10-22-2005, 07:09 PM

A HUGE Congrats to the mystery person. I wish them the best of luck, and I really can't think of anyone more deserving! Woohoo!! Thumbs up!

cW

Modus

10-22-2005, 10:07 PM

classmate .?? mmmm.... so here's the list of your classmates from this semester :

TIGAN JAZZ

ARNETT ERNEST

BOGDANOFF AJA

BRADLEY RYAN

CHOROMANSKI IGOR

COLLINS JAMES

DETWILER WILLIAM

GARWARD MATTHEW

GRECO RICH

KRUCKEMEYER JOHANN

LOWE CHRISTIAN

MANGIN FRANCINE

MICKLE KIMBERLY

MULLINS CHRISTOPHER

REESE CHRISTIAN

Ok now which one ??? :)

AjaBogdanoff

10-22-2005, 10:11 PM

LOL, Phil, you're all my classmates! :love:

Modus

10-22-2005, 10:16 PM

hihih, that's sweet...well done :) and so ..? they are....drum rolllllllll ? well anyway a big applause !! :applause:

Congrats you guys for being hired by a such big studio

My Fault

10-22-2005, 10:41 PM

Hate being so cryptic but I don't want to steal their thunder.....

Modus

10-22-2005, 11:00 PM

are they in Class 3 with us ?

SheepFactory

10-22-2005, 11:02 PM

I know who!! :eek:

mmkelly011881

10-22-2005, 11:16 PM

*buzzkill/distraction!!!* maybe we should be doing our assignments

hell yeah! YAY for *blank*!

mgarward

10-23-2005, 01:59 AM

Indeed, a big congratulations to the mystery classmate! Definitely deserved it.

Now... back to work...

Jozvex

10-23-2005, 05:46 AM

Yes congratulations!!

Umm err, I just want to add that I've started a blog too! Do I fit in now? hehe.

http://jozvex.blogspot.com/

How do you add your blog to the webring? And how can I list the other students' blog links on my blog? Do people just find them and add them manually?

Thanks, I'm a blewbie.

:thumbsup:

mattmos

10-23-2005, 08:12 AM

Jozvex, you can find a huuuge blog thread on the AM forum where you can just copy and paste the list into your links area. As for getting it listed in the webring, you need to place a bit of code into the page - I think you can find it in a thread about rss feeds, do a search over there also - Jason Schliefer set it up :)

Jozvex

10-23-2005, 11:04 PM

How obvious!! Thanks!!

:thumbsup:

Kimotion

10-24-2005, 01:17 AM

Hey Jared, what happened to Sarah Michelle Gellar!?

Jozvex

10-24-2005, 01:34 AM

Well you know, as tragic as it is to see her happy face vanish from my avatar, I thought that at the new age of 23 I should re-invent myself to more closely represent.. myself.....or something. Of course I have no idea what to have as a new avatar yet, but hopefully I'll think of something. (haha maybe just a better picture of her if nothing else)

Besides, SMG was only 50x50 and I was getting jealous of everyone else having 100x100 avatars, hehe.

She served me well, as long as there's been a Jozvex, there's been a her.

My Fault

10-25-2005, 02:40 AM

Well it looks like Ben's rumor of an AM person getting hired at Disney was wrong. It was actually 2 people who are currently in AM that got hired at Disney!

Before anyone asks who it is, I am guessing you will hear from them shortly. Big congrats to both these fantastic people!

mmkelly011881

10-25-2005, 06:11 AM

when you wiiiiiiiiish upon a staaaaaaaaaaaar... put 80 hours in a week into your wooooooorkkk... ok that didnt rhyme but congrats *______* and you too *_______* ;)

you know we're all rootin for ya!

Jeremy Hopkins

10-25-2005, 07:06 AM

That's awesome! There are some kick butt people so it doesn't surprise me at all. Believe me, by the end there will be a AM feeding frenzy by hungry recruiters. Congratulations to 2 (my guess is closer to 3 or 4 very soon)people who have made the cut already!

My Fault

10-25-2005, 07:15 AM

Yeah, certainly wouldn't be surprised to hear that there are even more. Rumor has it the next video news will have more info.
How funny is it to be working the same place as your mentor. You could probably watch your ecritique as they are recording it :)

mmkelly011881

10-25-2005, 07:23 AM

simma dawwn naah

deeeeeep breaths

Kimotion

10-25-2005, 07:26 AM

Believe me, by the end there will be a AM feeding frenzy by hungry recruiters.

settle down there dude :)

mmkelly011881

10-25-2005, 07:28 AM

feel the flow... let it course through you.... deeep breaths...

i am a whispering wind

*breathes out*

Jeremy Hopkins

10-25-2005, 08:18 AM

Nah, it doesn't matter to me either way. I already have a job in the industry. The real work comes after the job starts ;) Don't think I'm exaggerating though... you've probably seen the industry day at one of the more popular animation colleges? Feeding frenzy barely describes it (depending on the year and the general health of animation industry). Plus, it's a good sign for those people who are still unsure about the program, but doesn't really matter for current students because we were sold on the idea long ago.

Bentagon

10-25-2005, 10:36 AM

Well it looks like Ben's rumor of an AM person getting hired at Disney was wrong. It was actually 2 people who are currently in AM that got hired at Disney! Say wha....? AWESOME!

- Benjamin

SkyZero

10-25-2005, 01:30 PM

What I'm curious about is if those people already had animation experience under their belts?

Either way, congrats to both of 'em! :thumbsup:

Sean MacNeil

10-26-2005, 01:23 AM

fluffybunny

10-26-2005, 03:43 AM

Oooo, this is sooooo exciting, who got hired, who got hired! Anyway, congrats to whoever it is! That's awesome to hear such great news! Like Brian said, i think they are gonna announce it in Monday's video news. Is it Disney that hired them? It's so cool to see our classmates gettin' hired by the big studios already! Wow, so soon into the program! Exciting times indeed!
Go AMer's Go!!!
Sean,
Yes, it appears that we'll get some juicy information on Monday. In the meantime, if you're so inclined, you can dig around the AM forums and figure it out ;)

eric

sergeantT

10-26-2005, 02:58 PM

DigitalToon2

10-26-2005, 04:07 PM

Woooooohoooooo!
Just got my acceptance letter from world-famous Luis. Can't wait, can't wait.
Special thanks to Matt G. for his advice in going to this wicked pissah (New England speak) school!

Oh hey someone please gimme some web-camera purchasing advice?

Thanks all.

Congrats :) ! As for the web cam I recommend the QuickCam Pro 4000 works great and I haven't had any problems with it. See you in January!

anthea

10-26-2005, 09:35 PM

Woooooohoooooo!

I'm joinin' the circus!!!

Just got my acceptance letter from world-famous Luis. Can't wait, can't wait.
Special thanks to Matt G. for his advice in going to this wicked pissah (New England speak) school!

Oh hey someone please gimme some web-camera purchasing advice?

Thanks all.

congrats on your acceptance!! you are in for the ride of your life!! Luis is so awesome, and you are going to get to know the other kickass support peeps like rosie, taylor and francis too!! they all rock and have helped me out sooo many times.

abt the webcam, you don't need anything fancy at all. just make sure it has microphone capabilities. when AM first started I tried to get by without buying a new webcam and used this ancient one that ended up not having a mic. but I think all the new ones come w that so you should be OK. They aren't too expensive nowadays either, I think mine was only $30.

A

stewartjones

10-26-2005, 09:37 PM

Congrats :) ! As for the web cam I recommend the QuickCam Pro 4000 works great and I haven't had any problems with it. See you in January!

I use the same webcam too, and it's been awesome throughout! I think that just about any camera will do fine though! :thumbsup:

Modus

10-28-2005, 08:35 AM

I bought the 4000 one at the beginining of AM and it works totally ! no doubt !

sergeantT

10-28-2005, 03:16 PM

for the advice and encouragement. (you too aja.B.!).

For now I'm wrestling with the graph editor to get the hang of that thang.

bdepper

10-30-2005, 05:39 AM

Congrats to sergeant_t. Truly wicked pissah. I grew in MA and that definitely brought a smile to my face.

I was accepted a while back but have been lurking and reading. Thanks to all who have posted their experiences as it definitely helped me make up my mind. A special thanks to those with families as it has helped to see that it can be done. Did I mention that my wife is a saint for agreeing to come along for the ride?
A quick question. For those who have been at it for a while, how does your family feel about it now?

I'm very excited. I've read Illusion of Life once and am working on the William's book. They are both so packed with great stuff that it will be a while before it all sinks in.

Looking forward to January.
Bill

toonpang

10-31-2005, 07:25 AM

I was accepted a while back but have been lurking and reading.

I've been quite the lurker as well, I'm still waiting to get accepted for January.

I hope to be joining the party very soon. :D

-Kevin

3FnD

10-31-2005, 11:52 AM

How funny is it to be working the same place as your mentor. You could probably watch your ecritique as they are recording it :)

Okay, if that isn't hint enough I don't know what is! Doesn't matter, since the video news is just hours away. So freekin' awesome!

Congrats you 2! or 5 or howevermany AMigos are gettin' da jobs! Woo!

Our school rocks! :)

molson67

10-31-2005, 03:27 PM

Hey Bill,
Just wanted to tell you about my experience with my familly and AnimationMentor. I am in the second class right now. I have a full time job. I have three kids, (4yrs 2yrs and 3 months). And like your wife mine is super supportive. It's hard to find time to do my assignments. But in the end it works out and i get them in on time. Most of my assignment I am not happy with. But I can definetly see improvements in all of my assignments.
I usually start working on my assignments when the kids are in bed, (around 8:00). until 10:00 or 11:00. I do not work every night though because I need a break.
I usually shoot my reference footage with my kids. They can act out the scene as well. They love it. When the older child looks at the animation I am working on, she asks if thats me or her. :)
I work for most of the day Saturday. I only work on Sunday if I need the extra time. I do feel like I am missing out on being with my kids, but When I am with them I make the most out of it. Kids are so inspirational. They have so much enthusiasm and energy. They keep me going. I could write many pages on what my wife sacrifices so that I can pursue my dream of being an animator. Even though she is so supportive I know that she wishes that I could take a week off for a break. Because I get stressed sometimes. It is stressfull. But managable.
Just remember when you are not doing your assignments to spend good quality time with your family, they proabbaly deserve it :)

Later,

Mark

molson67

10-31-2005, 03:32 PM

Oh yeah,
I also want to say thanks to all the positive people in this thread and the Animation Mentor forums.
They inspire me and pick me up when I am down or frustrated. The positive helpfull attitude when inside AM is so great!

Thanks

bdepper

11-01-2005, 03:48 PM

Thanks for the reply molson67. I have two girls, 7 and 4, and I am a bit worried about the time spent on AM. Having them be a part of shooting reference is brilliant and I will definitely adopt this.

Thanks again for the reassurance.

Congrats to the new Disney crowd.

save often

11-02-2005, 03:45 AM

i`m wondering if i can ask if anyone is studying with Amimation Mentor that is living in the u.k.
that has managed to get a student loan to finance this course.

i`m from england and would love to attend but the cost is just way out of my price-range.

i know you don`t have to pay the full amount in one lump sum but even the £1300 a section is
still abit to much for me.

has anyone any advice on any grants or loans??

any help would be greatly apprechated.

stewartjones

11-02-2005, 11:13 AM

I've checked out on some student loans, and none of them would fund me that's for sure!

Animation Mentor is not yet accredited, so the loan companies (and the government) are very reluctant to offer any financial aid at all... At least in my case. :sad:

save often

11-02-2005, 11:22 AM

ow well. shame. looks like i`m going have to start saving those pennies. pitty.

swadepgh

11-02-2005, 06:57 PM

AM has some trade school loans available through Sallie Mae now. They can cover the cost of tuition plus something like 6000 dollars for supplies. I think if you are outside the US you have to get a US co-signer/co-borrower, unless you have a US social security number and good credit score. It's worth looking in to though. You might try calling Rosie at AM for more info on those.

AjaBogdanoff

11-02-2005, 07:36 PM

Yeah, I'm on the Sallie Mae loan now myself, and it's cool... but probably very hard to arrange from the UK unless you have US relatives.

What I did before this, since I was working full-time and could aaaallmost cover the cost per semester if I didn't eat or drive the car, was to take out small short-term personal loans for each semester from my bank. They didn't mind loaning me $2000, and I had a year to pay it back, so if an emergency came up, I wouldn't be totally broke.

Maybe that's something you could look into, if you're close to being able to pay for it?

DigitalToon2

11-03-2005, 12:13 AM

I'm sure that if you look hard enough you can find a loan some where. Before they offered sallie mae i was hunting and found some other options.

save often

11-03-2005, 02:29 AM

hay, thanks everyone for all this information. my uncles a u.s. citizen, so maybe i can try and work somthing out with Sallie Mae. this is looking alot more hopfull after thinking getting into animation mentor was dead in the water.

Bentagon

11-03-2005, 07:42 AM

Great, save often!
Hope you will join us soon!

- Benjamin

d_jnaneswar

11-06-2005, 02:57 PM

Hey people..

why is this thread so dead?? hmm..

well, im going back to my page 139 of this thread and continue reading.

And all you JAN guys! welcome to AM! dont forget to bring in some cookies for your seniors. And practise Maya from now on until you join.. it would come in handy.

dj

Bentagon

11-06-2005, 04:38 PM

well, im going back to my page 139 of this thread and continue reading. Woah, you're nuts! How long do you think it'll take you? 6 days :D?

- Benjamin

digitalworkshop

11-06-2005, 05:46 PM

Hi all,

I want to know the views of people who are enrolled at present at Animationmentor.com
how good is it? i know that they have a weekly pre-recorded lecture(How long is the lecture actually??) and one live question& answer session and a weekly assignment which is to be done and submitted at the end of each week. This question is not about how the animationmentor.com works but how well it works for people who are new to animation? Is it for those who previously have some previous knowledge of character animation or will it work for newbies as well? I am planning to go for it. But the online thing is making me feel double think about it.....Is it really possible to learn a craft like character animation online??? i am skeptical as LOT of money is involved. In my case (i am from india) it would cost me approx. 6,00,000 Indian national rupee!!! thats a lot of money believe me! but i am willing to go for it and invest as its a dream.....i cant put a tag on it! One BIG plus point is that with the online education i feel is i would continue to work and do my present job which would also help me pay my bills and also pay for the course!!
But this also give birth to one more dilemna.....Is it possible to do this course along with a job? i am at present working as motion gfx artist and Discreet SMOKE editor at one of india's top new channel. the job pays well and all is going fine and smooth sailing but somehow my heart is in animation! i always wanted to do it but never got the right channel or opportunity.....
Is there any one doing this course along side with a job??? pls do share your views on this. I cant leave my job as there is no other way i would be able to pay for this course. Also i am married and have other 'Lifely duties'.....to take care of.
i hope there are lots of people who are in same boat as i am...pls do share your views....
i would be waiting to hear also from someone from animationmentor.com
regards,
KAMAL BHARDWAJ
PROMOS, NDTV
www.ndtv.com (http://www.ndtv.com/)
INDIA

mgarward

11-07-2005, 05:33 AM

Hi all,

I want to know the views of people who are enrolled at present at Animationmentor.com
how good is it?
.....Is it really possible to learn a craft like character animation online???
.....Is it possible to do this course along with a job? .....Is there any one doing this course along side with a job??? pls do share your views on this. I cant leave my job as there is no other way i would be able to pay for this course. Also i am married and have other 'Lifely duties'.....to take care of.
i hope there are lots of people who are in same boat as i am...pls do share your views....

The short answer is it is possible, and AM does work, as far as I'm concerned.

It works: The course is designed for people who know nothing, but it seems to do great things for people with experience too. It's not just in the lectures, Q&A and ecritiques, but the course is really, really well designed. It's also very focused, character animation only, and you learn a great foundation and build upon that. (And if you read back a couple of pages, one of the first 'real life success stories' is that one student who had no prior experience 8 months ago just got a job at Disney Feature Animation.)

I speak from experience when I say it can be done with a job and a family, as I am in that situation. It's not necessarily easy, and you have to have your priorities right (family first) and a lot of support there. But it can be done.

I feel like I have come a loooong way from no experience to where I am. I'm still daunted and there's a loooooong way still to go, but I think the course is amazing if you can put in the effort. My assignments are in my gallery at http://mattg.weavo.net (http://mattg.weavo.net/) so you can the types of assignments we've done in the last 7-8 months. (The quality of my assignments may be questionable, however.:) )

Just my opinion.
-Matt

taran0

11-07-2005, 03:00 PM

I enrolled to the first class of animation mentor and i thought it was great. i had never touched animation before and wanted to learn it the correct way if i was going to.

i have been involved in cg for 4 years now but never touched animation as i was afraid of it, i found animation mentor a great place to start.

The first semester was great i learnt the basics of animation which they taught extremely well, i was animating and gettign great feedback online.

when it came to the second semester there was (FOR ME!) a huge leap into character animating, with not enough background knowledge given, and huge chunks of info i found i didnt have.

it seemed as though you were automatically supposed to just work it out. which i found very frustrating, even though there was a video tutorial on how a professional goes through a shot(which was great) but again a whole chunk of info missed out.

i didnt finish the second semester also because the workload was getting very heavy, i have a full time job, family and baby, but it seemed as though aniamtion mentor was for people already workign in animation, people with a few years experience, or people who were doing the course full time.

before going on the course you need to seriously consider if you have the time to comit to it, because i found in the second semester as i was falling behind i found it harder and harder to keep up.

I also found it hard to get the help i needed, posts being ignored on the forum, and just general losing touch with it. too many unsanswered questions and not enough support. in the end i dropped out and just got an email 6 weeks later sayign i would be refunded for the classes i didnt attend.

dont get me wrong, i think animation mentor is GREAT and i truly loved the experience, the community atmosphere is brill and the teachers and students all have an amazing passion for animation. i made some great friends.

the videos have good info and are structured quite well although there was a lack of examples, it is mainly the founders speaking on tape with video reference.

but i feel as if i need to go away and try to grasp what i learnt in the first semester before i jumped to the second stage

The site functions ok , but can be a bit tricky to browse, but the new video player was great allowing two way video conferencing.

i think the mentors are animation gods but they dont really have the necessary teaching skills to be good mentors or the time to support pupils because they are so busy on production schedules.

I think animation mentor is great for people who already have animation experience, but for new people or people with not much time on their hands you really need to think carefully.

going back i reckon i would probably do one semester a year, that way i woudl have teh time to fully grasp the concepts and also give me time to experiment, becuase when you are plowing through a diferent video and animation every week it soon starts to take its toll.

and in the end i decided to just pull out and spend some time with the family instead.

thats my experience i am sure for others teh experience is much better and i wish animation mentor all the success and all the students i know will be badasss ninjas very soon.

Taran

Mojo Rizen

11-07-2005, 09:37 PM

Hey Taran,

I think we are in the same boat, except I have animation experience, but not much character experience. But the job and family demands we both have do take a big chunk of time. I’ve had to hold off starting for time issues. If they would do the every other week program I could make that fly, but at the current time every week just won’t work.

However don’t give up. Take what you have learned and keep moving forward when you can. Use the recommended reading and keep growing.

It’s like they say, just taking the class won’t make you a great animator, it’s the work.

mttjss

11-08-2005, 03:12 AM

really great posts guys. These are the types of questions on a lot of our minds waiting to enter AM.
I am recently married and 6 months from finishing my bachelors in animation at a local college. We have had extensive 2D classes and some 3D classes.
What I am worried about is getting a good dose of character animation. not just principles and seeing what others have done. I want to know that I am getting the best feedback and lessons to help me have enough knowledge to work on my own animations.
I dont want to put another chunk of money into a school that cannot help me when I run into a problem and they have no idea what my next step should be.
Has anyone run into a problem(the rig, rigging, texturing,etc;) that the mentor did not know the answer to? Did he help find out how to fix it? Did he seek out a true professional for the problem?

Matt -

Kimotion

11-08-2005, 03:25 AM

What I am worried about is getting a good dose of character animation. not just principles and seeing what others have done. I want to know that I am getting the best feedback and lessons to help me have enough knowledge to work on my own animations.
I dont want to put another chunk of money into a school that cannot help me when I run into a problem and they have no idea what my next step should be.
Has anyone run into a problem(the rig, rigging, texturing,etc;) that the mentor did not know the answer to? Did he help find out how to fix it? Did he seek out a true professional for the problem?

Matt -

The most important factor for me when choosing AM was the critiques that I thought I will be getting, and in that regard, AM has indeed exceeded my expectations. My biggest gripe with my former art school was that no one knew how to really critique an animation, especially some of my instructors who would just say "good, very good."

From my experience, the mentors (had 3 so far) were all extremely thorough and hard-hitting. They start off being polite, like "looks good so far" and then really get into it, describing a lot of things that can be done better, and WHY. It's the WHY factor that is where the meat of the critiques are. For me anyway.

Also, I am very satisfied with the number and quality of critiques from peers so far. They have truly helped, even if their suggestions ran contrary to what my mentor was saying! It's great to have so much varied feedback. There were times when I had to search for critiques: it's not every week where you will get more than 5 critiques from your peers. You can always ask other students to critique your work, via chat, forum, etc. Something I've learned is to never be hesitant or be embarrassed to ask for a critique, even when you ask for it repeatedly.

My mother told me an old Korean proverb when searching for a job: The mother pig will give her boob to the piglet who cries the most.

Oh, I'm not sure if it's a pig, dog, tiger or human. I never really listened carefully. I don't think it's a human because most mothers give birth to one infant, so why would an infant need to fight for milk? Anyway, that may be a bad translation, but you know what it means. You gotta keep asking around when looking for work: in this case, getting critiques. But at AM, from my experience, I didn't have to cry loud to get critiques. However it never hurts to keep doing it: the more critiques you get, the more full the animation process will be.

ThePredator42

11-08-2005, 09:31 AM

Thanks for sharing your experience Taran.

Good to hear it´s not all shiny and golden. It would have been too hard to believable anyway.

Don´t get me wrong, I´m still thrilled to participate in Fall. I don´t consider your report to be negative in even the slightest way, but it´s like a "Be prepared!" warning in bold, fiery letters.

Even more now, I´m glad I decided to wait till fall so I´ll be able to sort stuff out b4 the course, and more importantly: get my time better organised! I was a little sad after the application date for winter-term went by. My next realistic chance to start is now September.

Michael.

sergeantT

11-08-2005, 03:33 PM

Hey ,

The Winter 06 deadline is Nov 28.

You're starting in the fall?.
Next fall 06?

EDIT:

Also, Taran's post took some wind out of my AM sails...
Getting a little woried over the whole time management thing.

SkyZero

11-08-2005, 04:01 PM

Time management is a big deal in order to get the most out of AM, but I think this is true in traditional schools as well. Just because it is an online school doesn't mean it will demand less time or less effort. Like everywhere else, you get out of it what you put into it. The time it takes to get through a session at AM depend greatly on your workflow, if you need to watch the lecture again and again, if you'd like feedback from your peers and campus mentors on your assignment, and at what point are you satisfied with your assignment to turn it in to your mentor.
Welcome to all upcoming winter students! :wavey: It's one helluva ride! :twisted:

ThePredator42

11-08-2005, 07:10 PM

Time management is a big deal in order to get the most out of AM, but I think this is true in traditional schools as well. Just because it is an online school doesn't mean it will demand less time or less effort.

But a traditional school tells you when to be in the class to learn. A Flexible schedule comes with pro´s and con´s. But that´s really besides the point.. point is, I think the way AM does it is just great, and I wouldn´t be able to attent such a school if it were any other way. All I´m saying is I´m a sucker when it comes to organising time hehehe.. :-)

seargant_t, yeah, fall 06 it is. I have to sort stuff out b4 that, work on some basics, plus I´m in crunch time at work during summer, so september it is for me. But believe me, knowing that I would theoretically have another couple of days to apply for winter will leave me thinking.

taran0

11-08-2005, 07:20 PM

yes thanks everyone for your comments esp. mojo.

looking back i wish i would have been more prepared.

I was a project coordinator and now manage multimedia projects, so i beleive i can manage my time and work to a schedule, in the first semester i never missed an assignment or lesson and i had OK grades....

my job isnt as demanding as it used to be so i wasnt too busy with work, animation requires a lot of time to be put in, somethign i couldnt do not the amount that AM demanded, i wasnt willing to let my family suffer, because to me they are more improtant then anything.

at the end of the day you have to make a decision, you have to prepare, and you also should discuss it with your partner, about how much time you will be spending learning animation and it is really important to get your partners support because it the time you will be spending on am will be away from them. My wife was very supportive and even now wants me to go back and finish.

this is how it was for me

1) you have a 1 hour prerecorded lecture each week, you are recomended to view it three times, i managed twice some of the time,

2) then you have a live q&a session with your mentor, which can be an hour or two - because most of the mentors are in america this soemtimes has to be 3-7am in european countries.

3) you have drawing assignments - this doesnt take up too much time but as you go into the course you realise how important this stage is so it starts to take up more time.

4) you have do your assignment in MAYA, so first you will have to learn to use it, if you dont already know or if use a diferent package.

5) you need to watch your critique from last weeks assignment and make changes and resubmit it.

6) there is usually a guest interview to watch which can be upto 1.5 hours but these only come along once a month

the assignments can take a while, but once you submit, the video recorded feedback you get from your mentor is INVALUABLE ! amazing pointers.

and then you have the online forum, and then you have the campus where you can see other peoples work , sometimes upto 100 students, and see their critiques and leave comments and see how they done. this can take a lot of time , really great but after a few weeks found that i didnt have the time to surf all these sections.

u need to work out how much time you can spare each week, and sacrifice other things. I personally gave up a lot of things and activities i usually do.

the reason im posting is i dont want anyone to go through the same thing i did, as i was unprepared, i mean you can easily look at spending ten hours a week studying, i know some students spent a lot more, some spent double that , i could manage 6 soemtimes 8 hours, i knwo soem weeks i must have spent about 12-15 hours. you dont want to waste your time or money, because with a family it can be hard to afford, and i know its great value.

also i think i am a bit too polite, i woudlnt hassle the mentor's because i knew they were busy and didnt want to inundate them with emails, so i wrote all my questions down and asked them at the Q&A sessions.

the reason i left am was a personal decision and nothign to do with the quality of teaching provided, the teachign material, expertise, community atmosphere is AWESOME. I think my own personal situation at the time and moving home meant it was not a sustainable solution for me.

It is teh best place to learn animation, as they dont mess abotu with rigging, texturing, modelling , just pure animation. I made some great friends for life.

i always recomend AM to everyone i meet interested in animation, it is worth every penny.
as long as you know what your gettign yourself in for.

Ideally i would be doign AM full time and the few students i knew who were doing this were doing very well.

all the best of luck, and you are guna love it.

taran

SkyZero

11-08-2005, 07:21 PM

I think the way AM does it is just great, and I wouldn´t be able to attent such a school if it were any other way.

Same thing here. Due to AM's flexible ways, how it's presented, etc. I am able to attend and am eternally thankful for that. I wouldn't have the time to attend anything else.

at the end of the day you have to make a decision, you have to prepare, and you also should discuss it with your partner, about how much time you will be spending learning animation and it is really important to get your partners support because it the time you will be spending on am will be away from them. My wife was very supportive and even now wants me to go back and finish.

I totally understand what you mean there (and everything else you wrote). I went through this with my wife as well. She is very understanding and extremely supportive of my dreams to be an animator. Even though she is the same room as me, I am not there because I am 100% concentrating on the task at hand. I try my best to make some time with her such as watching a TV show during a study break or two or getting through my assignment early so we can go out later that week. It can be extremely difficult, especially with assignments getting more involved every week but with the support of my family I know can make it! :D

Hopefully we get to see you around campus soon taran0! :thumbsup:

My Fault

11-08-2005, 08:00 PM

Was sorry to see you go Taran, hopefully you will be able to come back in the future. I know how hard it is to have a family, a kid, hold a job and do AM all at the same time. If I wasn't losing my hair before I certainly would be now (LOL). Definitely a challenge week in and week out.

That said I can't imagine doing anything else. The amount of plusses in AM far outweigh the few minuses for me. While we do have weekly assignments the fact that the day to day schedule is up to me gives quite a bit of freedom. I could never manage a brick and mortar school right now, it would be completely impossible in my situation.

One of the other big strengths with AM is that they really are listening to the students. They do surveys every few months to keep up on our progress and what we feel works and doesn't work. The web site will soon go through a major overhaul, meant to make it much easier to navigate, view workspaces, critique, etc. Also AM is starting up Maya tutorial classes so users can more easily use it or if you used it before, become even stronger in it. They will also be tweaking the curriculum to make the transition in to full character animation even smoother come January. The gang at AM is so focused on making this experience a good one for all of us.

Another fantastic thing that was started recently, this time by students, is digital dailies. They are flash meetings held a few times week in which you can show your work to fellow students to get direct critiques and ideas from. Since we use our webcams like our normal Q&A's you can speak directly to fellow students. So helpful and it creates an even stronger bond between everyone.

In the end you still get out what you put in. If you are a new student or a student about to start the biggest piece of advice I can give is get involved. Get involved in the forums by posting regularly, asking and answering questions and making yourself known to your fellow students. Get involved with your mentor by telling him or her what you hope to get out of this quarter and what you feel are your strengths and weaknesses. The more they know you the better they can help. Get involved with the staff at AM. They are there to help and they genuinely are concerned with your well being. Get involved in animation. Animate whenever and wherever you can. Even if it is just thumb nailing some ideas while you are on the train (I try to avoid thumb nailing while I am driving...EEK! LOL) do it whenever you can.

Good luck to my fellow mentees and to those who are joining up soon. It's a great place to be and so cool to see everyone getting better each and every week. Woo!

mgarward

11-08-2005, 08:01 PM

Same thing here. Due to AM's flexible ways, how it's presented, etc. I am able to attend and am eternally thankful for that. I wouldn't have the time to attend anything else.

I totally understand what you mean there (and everything else you wrote). I went through this with my wife as well. She is very understanding and extremely supportive of my dreams to be an animator. Even though she is the same room as me, I am not there because I am 100% concentrating on the task at hand. I try my best to make some time with her such as watching a TV show during a study break or two or getting through my assignment early so we can go out later that week. It can be extremely difficult, especially with assignments getting more involved every week but with the support of my family I know can make it! :D

Same here too. My family is amazingly supportive. I know I responded earlier in a mostly positive way, but I need to join in an reiterate: it IS a lot of hard work and you have to be prepared for it. You need support, and you will make sacrifices. AM suggests that lecture, Q&A, eCritique and assignment work will take about 10 hours each week, but that seems like a minimum to me. I think I spend about 20-30 hours a week. That means, with work and family time, I'm staying up until midnight-1am most nights. It's crazy. And I (and my mood) often suffer for it. But I am trying to make the most out of this amazing experience because for me I think this is the only, and best, way I can learn animation. And even though I annoy them at times, I couldn't do it without my family's support.:)

Jeremy Hopkins

11-08-2005, 08:07 PM

Hey Taran, good for you for knowing your limits. I was in a similar position during my second term, took a break and then came back to it full time. The full time experience is much more enjoyable and it's nice to have time to make mistakes. That's one of the big points to consider when studying animation anywhere - the time it takes to fix work... and that gets no better in the industry either.

in the first semester i never missed an assignment or lesson and i had OK grades....
Don't sweat the grades part. I mean it's good to know where you stand but it really doesn't matter in the long run. One of my good friends at the traditional animation school I attended wasn't an elite while he was in college. He got ok marks and sometimes not very good marks... but he worked really hard and when he got out into the industry he was one of the best assistant on staff. What is really important is that you never missed an assignment. Missing an industry deadline = pain, which I'm sure you already know. Anyways, good luck all with your applications. AM has definately been the best learning experience I've ever had.

toonpang

11-08-2005, 08:17 PM

One of the other big strengths with AM is that they really are listening to the students. They do surveys every few months to keep up on our progress and what we feel works and doesn't work. The web site will soon go through a major overhaul, meant to make it much easier to navigate, view workspaces, critique, etc. Also AM is starting up Maya tutorial classes so users can more easily use it or if you used it before, become even stronger in it. They will also be tweaking the curriculum to make the transition in to full character animation even smoother come January. The gang at AM is so focused on making this experience a good one for all of us.

Well, all I have to say is Thank You!! Students, Thank You for refining the process for the Students after you. Your 'beta testing' of the program will make the experiences of classes to come that much more amazing. Mentors and everyone at AM, thanks for your hard work at making AM even better than it is now. Its great to see a school that is dedicated to giving advice and direction also able to take it themselves.

I must say I was one of the guys who didn't want to go first, I thought I'd let the dust settle and the bugs get worked out before I joined up. But I couldn't wait any longer and I just got my acceptance email from AM today so..

See you guys in January and thanks for all your hard work!!

-Kevin

SkyZero

11-08-2005, 08:31 PM

Awesome Kevin! See yah in January! :applause:

Roger Eberhart

11-08-2005, 09:32 PM

the videos have good info and are structured quite well although there was a lack of examples, it is mainly the founders speaking on tape with video reference.
Taran

I totally agree with this. I didn't have a real grasp of what was lacking until I signed up for Keith Lango's video tutorial service. He'll describe the same concepts as the AM lectures, but then he'll fire up Maya and actually show you how it's done. This makes such a difference. Also, I find the AM material relies far too heavily on artist interviews. I'm getting pretty sick of interviews at this point. I'd rather look over someones shoulder as they work than hear their opinion on weight or arcs. Show me, don't tell me. Artists are visual people.

mttjss

11-08-2005, 10:19 PM

Well I did not see this mentioned anywhere, but I came across these names as being the ones who have been offered jobs and have not been in AM that long. Congrats to them!

Dan Gerhart: (http://dangerheart.blogspot.com/) Ninja Theory Games

(http://www.ninjatheory.com/blinkblink/index.php?option=com_content&task=blogsection&id=6&Itemid=56)Erin Pearce-Zuazua: (http://www.monstersauce.com/) Santa Cruz Games (http://www.santacruzgames.com/SantaCruzGames.htm)

Chi Chao (Rex): (http://homepage.mac.com/rexchao/FileSharing6.html) Airtight Games (http://www.airtightgames.com/)

Paul F. Diaz: (http://www.paulfranciscodiaz.com/) Blue Sky (http://www.blueskystudios.com/content/index.php) (Ice Age 2)

Rebecca Perez-Dominguez: (http://www.wik-id.com/reb/AM) Walt Disney Feature Animation (http://www.disney.com/) (A Day with Wilbur Robinson)

Anthea Kerou: (http://antheakerou.blogspot.com/) Walt Disney Feature Animation (http://www.disney.com/) (A Day with Wilbur Robinson)

"See, dreams really do come true!" (Disney "Wish Upon A Star" music in background)

source of information (http://www.belligerentandnumerous.com/2005/10/31/big-news/)

Bentagon

11-08-2005, 11:33 PM

I totally agree with this. I didn't have a real grasp of what was lacking until I signed up for Keith Lango's video tutorial service. He'll describe the same concepts as the AM lectures, but then he'll fire up Maya and actually show you how it's done. This makes such a difference. Also, I find the AM material relies far too heavily on artist interviews. I'm getting pretty sick of interviews at this point. I'd rather look over someones shoulder as they work than hear their opinion on weight or arcs. Show me, don't tell me. Artists are visual people.I don't know. The whole point of AM is to become an animator... to be able to OBSERVE. That's the most important skill in animation you can have. With the interviews and lectures, they tell you WHY certain aspects/principles are important, with help of the interviews, examples, physics, etc. Then it's up to YOU to observe, and actually do it. Once you've done that, they tell you what's wrong, what you should think about in the future, and show you (or is this something new) how Bobby would take on the assignment. So in the end, they do show you how it's done. It's just a part of their teaching method to first let you figure it out by yourself, since you'll learn much more doing so.

That's how I see it...

- Benjamin

ThePredator42

11-09-2005, 08:36 AM

Hello!

You know, this threat and you guys where the reason I want to join AM. So I guess this is the right place to make it official:

I´M GOING TO START JANUARY!

No point in sorting stuff out until fall.. it´ll just be a lot harder, but ít´ll be one hell of a ride anyway... and who knows what obstacles come my way once the ones ahead are sorted out...

YAYAAA I can´t wait, I´ll be seeing you soon!

(well that is, IF AM wants me hehehe)

Bentagon

11-09-2005, 12:09 PM

Woohoo! I'm sure you'll get in, man! You've definitly got the rigth attitude!
You're gonna have one helluva time.

- Benjamin

sergeantT

11-09-2005, 08:48 PM

Hello!

You know, this threat and you guys where the reason I want to join AM. So I guess this is the right place to make it official:

I´M GOING TO START JANUARY!

Nyahh nyahh

Made you sign-up early!!! :-)

mttjss

11-09-2005, 09:12 PM

ThePredator42 - I think this thread did it for me as well. I just sent out the application and hopefully I will be starting in January as well (crosses fingers X).

I will have 2 final quarters of the school I am at now, but I wont have a real 3d class and I will have to do my internship, but I am going to be able to do AM online and probably just be working a PT internship.

Either way, I am gonna put a lot of time and effort into AM. I have a really good knowledge of Maya and character animation in general, but I really am anxious to learn how to get my thoughts and ideas onto the computer.

Hope to see some of you wandering the halls!

Matt -

SkyZero

11-09-2005, 09:38 PM

Awesome news guys! See you in January! :applause:

ThePredator42

11-09-2005, 09:38 PM

Kinda urgent.. all the AM elders, please share your wisdom..

Heyho, big trouble, big trouble. Great to have AM almost within arms reach now. BUT I promised my family I´d go on a two week vacation with them in spring. Now that was before the plan to start AM, and I don´t want to break my promise. But I also don´t like the idea of missing two entire weeks of my 2nd class.

My two questions to you elders..

- Is it like very bad to miss out on two assignments in the 2nd class? Will I burn in animator hell for that? Will eternal wisdom be denied to me for ever?

- Considered I´d be able to smuggle my notebook over the border (in some place you don´t want me to mention), and considered I could get my hands on a humble 56k internet connection (or some bongo drums).. would that lousy uplink be enough to get the info I need to do the assignments? Or do I have to watch the lessons video feed in order to do my assignments right?

Nyahh nyahh

Made you sign-up early!!! :-)

naaa not just you.. also the like.. uhm.. 68.000 other posts :)
BUT you pointed out that the deadline for applications has been postponed. For that, I truly owe you a beer or two. Thanks a bunch!

Hey you´ll all sooo curse me once you know me better, but for now I´ll just enjoy the appreciation *muahahaha*

Bentagon

11-09-2005, 11:12 PM

I think nowadays you can say to support you want to go on vacation/leave of absence from that date to that date (but I think at least a month in advance), and then they'll give you a schedule in which you do your assignments and view your lectures of those weeks before you go on vacation (a faster pace for a while, if you will). So the only things you'll be missing out on are 2 Q&A's and 2 weeks of forums. Missing those isn't really fun, there's lots of information and things to learn in both, but it's not a disaster eather.

I'm not 100% sure about this, though. Anyone care to confirm?

- Benjamin

anthea

11-10-2005, 02:44 AM

Vacations are a tricky subject since the decision is totally up to what is best for you and your family. Sometimes mentors go away for vacation during the term and we have a sub which is cool since we get to meet yet another industry professional and hear their take on things. The school has no problem with vacations and won't penalize your grade for them, just make sure you notify one of the support reps that you will be away so they don't send out a search and rescue for you when you don't hand in stuff. They can even up load assignments for you if you manage to get them to the early.

A lot of students go on vacation and are able to bounce back and continue with vengance. I can only tell you from my personal experience. The 2nd term in particular was very hard for me, It started getting harder as I became more serious about really learning and practicing. The more dedicated I became the more stress I began to have about my upcoming vacation I had been planning for months, the vacation was set for the middle of the second term and I would be gone for weeks. So after much consideration and sorrow I decided to cancel my vacation, I believed the assignments, lectures and feedback I would miss in those weeks would be crucial. Sure they say you can hand in stuff early but who actually does that? Most of us are just stuggling with the assignment at hand.

Looking back I think I made the right decision to cancel my trip even though I had to pay for my friend's ticket who was supposed to go with me and disappointed my cousin who I was supposed to visit. I think when you are in school mode you should really just stick with it for the whole 12 weeks and then go on vacation after the term ends. You new students will have this situation much better since after the first semester we went Straight into the next term with NO BREAK!! Basically 24 weeks straight with only a week break between the 2nd and 3rd semesters. That was hard, but I think now we are getting 3 weeks off betw terms, a perfect time to go on vacation. But if you are like some dedicated students I know like Aja and Brian you will be working on your own short animations and practicing even harder, putting you ahead of the competition.

I know it must be much harder when you have a family who wants to go on vacation who you don't want to let down. Just remember all the other students who will eventually be competing for the same jobs and how much practice they are putting in (including in between semesters)

mgarward

11-10-2005, 03:23 AM

I know it must be much harder when you have a family who wants to go on vacation who you don't want to let down. Just remember all the other students who will eventually be competing for the same jobs and how much practice they are putting in (including in between semesters)
No pressure... you just take that vacation. hehe! :D

I think if you have been planning it for a long time, take it. Family always has to come first. But I would definitely try to catch up the work either before or after the vacation. If you're going to take a vacation mid-session though, I think class 1 would be okay if you work hard afterwards. Middle of class 2... not such a good idea.

If all else fails, email or phone AM headquarters and they will be happy to tell you what the options are, I'm sure.:)

AjaBogdanoff

11-10-2005, 03:28 AM

On the topic of vacations... it's such a personal decision. AM is totally fine with you missing a week or two, as long as you let them know at least a month in advance that you have a vacation planned. So it's really just a question of whether or not you can balance the schoolwork with the time off.

I took two 1-week vacations during the second semester, aka Hardest of the Semesters For Me™. One for Siggraph, woo! And I'd planned on it being a total wash on the assignment that week, but I was staying with the fabulous Anthea, who was kind enough to set me up with Maya and even dig a mouse out of storage for my then-wacom-challenged self. :) So I didn't miss an assignment after all, although I did miss my Q&A due to being on a plane at the time. Two of my classmates, Sara Wade and Aaron Reid, who also very kindly put me up on that trip :), attended their Q&As on their laptops from the Siggraph show floor. Like, literally, sitting on the floor. :bowdown:

For the second vacation, though, I was in the woods. In the middle of nowhere. And my husband suggested that maybe I not bring the laptop. ;) But we were starting a new assignment that week, so I spent a lot of time brainstorming ideas for the shot, and came home rarin' to go on it. I think I was only a day or two late turning it in. I did miss another Q&A though.

I've definitely been in a lot of Q&A's and chats with classmates on vacation, though. It's totally up to you, if you have the technology available. I think most people find that they WANT to keep up on their classes no matter what, that it's something they enjoy doing, or at least that they don't want to feel like they're missing something... and it's not that hard to find internet access these days. But at the same time, AM can be very hard work, and especially if you have a family, you might not want to be spending time on schoolwork when you're supposed to be spending time with them on the beach. It's totally up to you. If this vacation is something you and your family are really looking forward to, then do it. Don't fall in to the trap of making AM the top priority. Your family is your top priority. Remind them of this constantly. :)

If you can manage to bring a laptop along and get a little work done over those two weeks you're on vacation, great, otherwise, you'll just have to work harder on your assignments the week before and the week after you go. It's do-able. You just have to manage your time and plan plan plan your work so you get it done as efficiently as you can. And let your classmates know you're having a tough time those weeks, so they know you need some support! :)

anthea

11-10-2005, 03:37 AM

Yes it is a doable situation, and I do agree that family comes first. YOu don't want to let down thos smiling faces!! I think when I made my decision to cancel my vacation I was only doing it because I felt like I wouldn't be able to bounce back after missing, so from then on I made it a priority to not be away from the computer during the term, but sometimes you just need a break. Only you can tell what is right for you.

AjaBogdanoff

11-10-2005, 03:54 AM

Oh yeah, totally! Anthea, I so wasn't thinking about your situation when I wrote that! It seems like you made the right call there, and I'm sure they understand. Especially now! :) I was thinking more people who actually depend on you day-to-day, your significant others and spouses and kids... the people who are really helping support you when you're on the 6th revision to your assignment and you just don't understand why it's not entertaining... those are the people you probably don't want to cancel vacation on, if you can help it. :)

Sorry if I sounded like I was judging you though!! :blush:

ThePredator42

11-10-2005, 10:17 AM

Ow.. thank you so much for your feedback. This really helps. I don´t know how I will approach this thing, but at least I know now that it´s possible from an organisational point of view. What I have to do is make it possible.

Believe me, the thought that I have precious 18 months at AM, and I´m going to sacrifice an entire half month of that.. it´s an awfull thought. But that vacation was planned such a long time ago, and it´s really a big thing for all of us, and the time is already fixed. It would just be unfair to break my promise. As a matter of fact, this trip was the last thing that kept me from joining AM this winter. That leaves me with only two options - sit and wait until september, like planned. Or try to make this work in one way or the other. I decided that there will always be obstacles, and to think that if I start september, it will be all smooth is pretty naiv. Who knows what other stuff comes my way. Summer will be hell, that´s for sure - we´ve got 8 weeks of crunch time scheduled at work. But it´s like that every summer, I can´t avoid that. The best I can do is pick my start-term so that I only have ONE summer in that 18 months. So after winter, my next chance would be no sooner than fall.

Anyway, my main concern was wether it is organisationally possible. I think what I will do is try to work ahead as much possible. Then also bring my stuff to the beach, and work a fixed period of time every day (I should be able to skip the Merengue Lessons in favour of animating LOL).. also, they have this terribly expensive internet cafe, so I can hang out in the forums, MAYBE even manage the Q&A´s. After the vacation, I´ll take an additional week off from work, just to be on the save side. That´ll be ONE weird sort of vacation hahaha :)
Who knows, I might be the first mentee handing in an assignment animated at the pool :)

I thank you guys for the info / warning / support. And no, I didn´t feel critized.. besides, I gotta get used to that anyway, right :)

SkyZero

11-10-2005, 02:50 PM

Who knows, I might be the first mentee handing in an assignment animated at the pool :)

Just don't forget about the sunblock or you'll show up at the QA burnt to a crisp! :eek:

I was thinking of planning for a vacation as well in a couple of the upcoming terms so this info proved very useful to me too. I'm really uncertain if I should even take one because of anything I might miss out on or something like that. I think what I'll do is take an extended weekend instead of a whole week to take a break from everything. There's a possibility we might take a week-long vacation late next year but we decided that if I risk on losing out on my work, lecutres, etc. then we would put it off. Thank goodness for a supportive family! :thumbsup:

lutonomy

11-11-2005, 12:25 AM

Hey everyone!

Just wanted to give a shout out to the January starters, cuz I'm one of 'em too! :)

I'm really excited to start. The school itself was more than enough to get me on board, but it's pretty obvious how all the students are really supportive of each other and make a great community, so I can't wait to be part of it.

See you all soon!

DigitalToon2

11-11-2005, 12:35 AM

HAntunez

11-11-2005, 12:46 AM

Just heard from AM, I got accepted for the Winter 06 Term. I can't wait to begin, from everything I have read in all the student blogs and the post on this forum I am confident that this will be a great experience.

Any advice from those already in the program as to how to prepare for the first semester?

-H

Modus

11-11-2005, 09:11 AM

advices advices..mmm buy illusion of life, animator's survival kit, etc..., start to read them, jump into maya's animation tools ( graph editor, timelime etc...) and get some coffee because you're gonna live the most intense learning experience in your life :)

Welcome on the ride !

SkyZero

11-11-2005, 01:15 PM

and get some coffee because you're gonna live the most intense learning experience in your life :)

Welcome on the ride !

or some pepsi if you like your caffeine cold like me! :thumbsup:

ThePredator42

11-11-2005, 02:47 PM

or some pepsi if you like your caffeine cold like me! :thumbsup:

Or caffeinated bubble gum / gummi bears ... your pick :)

mttjss

11-14-2005, 02:53 AM

so I have filled out the application, and taken the 8 min test. Now what?:shrug:

mmkelly011881

11-14-2005, 05:24 AM

put on headphones and play suspenseful music while you make paellas and eat peeps.... stand.. staring at your doorway (or email proggie) while you await your AM acceptance package

simps

11-14-2005, 04:03 PM

Hi all...I just sent in my application. I hope to get in the January Classes. I'm a modeler converting to animator I guess.

kenshi

11-14-2005, 08:02 PM

toonpang

11-15-2005, 02:21 AM

or some pepsi if you like your caffeine cold like me! :thumbsup:

I'll be asking for a stockpile of moutain dew and rockstar this christmas. :D
And hello to all the January starters! See you in class on the 9th! :buttrock:

One thing I've been wondering, is their any counter-strike or fps other online gamers in AM? I feel like we need to get togeather and have some fun deathmatch style.. :thumbsup:

-Kevin

ThePredator42

11-15-2005, 07:25 AM

3FnD

11-15-2005, 10:24 AM

One thing I've been wondering, is their any counter-strike or fps other online gamers in AM? I feel like we need to get togeather and have some fun deathmatch style.. :thumbsup:

-Kevin
Oh, you betcha! But now the bad news. Everyone I know of at AM who was previously hooked on [game of choice here] has had to drop most or all gaming being it is such a time-suck. Even mentors have the same issue depending on their production schedules at work. I'm personally not hardcore like some classmates, but I remember early on reading posts about WOW and such, and people sadly having to give up their favorite game in order to focus on studies.

AjaBogdanoff

11-15-2005, 03:22 PM

Haha, it's true! I was never much of a gamer, but I used to be a huge fan of The Amazing Race on TV (yeah, so shoot me! ;) ) and used to look forward to watching it every week... Now I don't even know when it's on. Whenever it is, I'm sure it's time that I'd rather be spending on my assignments. :p

Being in a program like AM definitely has a way of making you rethink your priorities, that's for sure. :)

Bentagon

11-15-2005, 05:24 PM

Same here Aja! Only show I still watch these days is "24", and I'm glad next week is the final episode! Films I usually record and watch like two weeks later, when I finally find the right time :p

- Benjamin

clockwerkz

11-15-2005, 05:33 PM

yeah..games? What are those?? Heck, I was even planning on getting the Xbox 360.. but what for? I have zero time to play anything. The new expansion for WoW is gonna be coming out, and that's killing me.. but it really defeats the purpose. I cannot reason the thought of playing a game for any amount of time when I'm paying for a course like AM. Sadly, just to quelch my game thirst, I've resorted to Windows Internet Checkers. :-( Very sad, I know.

agreenster

11-15-2005, 06:32 PM

yeah..games? What are those??.. but what for? I cannot reason the thought of playing a game for any amount of time when I'm paying for a course like AM.

Maybe for the same reason you go see animated films--to keep up with what's happening in the industry. There are tons of amazingly well-animated games coming out that you should check out. If you ever get an interview for an animation position at a games company, it would be very helpful to have knowledge of current-gen games

UnderwearNinja

11-15-2005, 07:10 PM

simps

11-15-2005, 07:29 PM

good luck simps. i have taken a similar route - being mainly a hi-rez modeler at my current company. i don't know how much maya experience you have (the models on your site looked mostly 3Dsmax), but general 3D knowledge is always a plus. if you're anything like me, it will be nice to go from making the characters to actually moving them around and breathing life into them. i'm in class 3 at AM and have had a great experience so far.

hope it proves to be a good experience for ya.

Thanks for the nice welcome Kenshi. I am am a 3DSMaxer but I have basic to intermediate knowledge with Maya. A little rusty, but I should be able to get by. I'm just hoping my application gets seen on time so I don't get missed for the January classes.

xino

11-15-2005, 08:46 PM

Kimotion

11-15-2005, 11:07 PM

Currently, I am waiting to find out if I'm accepted as well. Hopefully I'll be able to make it into the Jan. 06 classes, but that totally depends on if I'm accepted and if I'm able to get the loans necessary. *crosses fingers

Here's to hoping everything works out.

Hey Xino! Glad to see you on this thread as well :applause:

Guys, don't worry so much about "getting in." The standardized test only measures that you know how to think, and the essay would not be a worry if you are just passionate about animation. But I remember when I was applying and waiting for the response: you just can't help being a bit anxious!

Bentagon

11-15-2005, 11:15 PM

Hello! I'm also a January starter, and I'm really looking forward to AM! I've met a handful or so of current students, and I know some of you use XSI for AM, and I was wondering if I could pick your brains a little about doing so?

Do any of you XSI users have any advice about using it for AM? Do you wish you had just gone with Maya instead?I know of people that actually went from Maya to XSI. So I don't think there's much of a problem. It's not officially supported by AM, but there are enough XSI-wizzes that recreate the models, etc, to make it completely possible.

- Benjamin

DigitalToon2

11-15-2005, 11:53 PM

A lot of people tend to use maya b/c that's what's supported, I went from using 3ds max for 4 years to using maya and haven't had any problems. It really doesn't matter what you use and there's always people with solutions in the AM forum to help with whatever 3d package you choose to use.

UnderwearNinja

11-16-2005, 12:09 AM

Bentagon, DigitalToon2, Thank you much!

kenshi

11-16-2005, 01:15 AM

keep in mind that Disney and Dreamworks use Maya. and that a lot of houses use proprietary software, requiring you to "switch gears". so learning a new package, especially one so widely used in the industry, can do nothing but help you.

my mentor has done in-maya demos for us. i don't know of a single mentor that is using xsi.

maybe think of it this way: growing pains now or growing pains on the job?

just something to think about. hopefully i won't incur too much wrath from you XSI'ers out there. i'm not saying it's a bad package. and animation principles never change, no matter what software you're using.

the most important thing to consider is: what will be best for my future career? what are my goals and what will help get me there the most?

personally, converting everything over to another package sounds like a major pain in the keester. leave that to the technical support people and just animate.

d_jnaneswar

11-16-2005, 01:23 AM

Hey Jan'ners!
Welcome. As a true to the kind Senior, its only natural to pass on some sage advice.. hehe... so here it goes...

Get an attitude.. Never Try To Put on Airs and Learn To Take Hard Critiques Positively!! Many of us are known to give hard and "to the point", but honest and constructive, critiques to our classmates, and at AM, we are respected for that. Try bentagon. ;)

Do some maya before u start AM.. thats my big advice. you dont wanna be searching for tools once you are doing the sweet stuff. the other big advice? try out some animation! just forget about rigs and textures and models, and just animate something.. download a rig and try doing a walk or jump or take a couple of balls and bounce them using keyframes... try hard getting one of those things down and out looking good. animating atleast once before you join AM will be of real help.
Some of my classmates have started with zero animation experience, like they are into AM and they found Maya in front of them. They were struggling the first two/three weeks with the tools and stuff, but now, on week8.. look at them go! So, that might happen to you too.. but you could save the first two week struggle, if you struggle a bit ahead.

Be prepared to spend some time in the AM forums once you join.. Its such an integral part in the whole learning experience IMHO.
AND HAVE "ILLUSION OF LIFE"!! cant stress how cool this book is.

Hey! dont look at me like that! So what do you mean its been said before? The rule at AM: if more than two people say the same thing about something, then it has to be looked into.

my two paise,
dj

swadepgh

11-16-2005, 10:06 PM

All you new January folks getting accepted...you are going to love it at AM! :D

It is true though that you won't have much time for games, or social life, or whatever else you do in your free time. I am lucky to have enough time for work, AM, exercise and the occasional bout of Mario Kart racing....and I am even trying to find ways to quit or start working part time at the day job just so I can focus more on learning animation. It's not like you have your nose forced into AM all the time...but once you start learning and improving it gets addictive. I find myself wanting to animate every chance I get. :)

mmkelly011881

11-16-2005, 11:41 PM

its all about scheduling.... which i am piss poor at... trying to fix it... NOW..

eh.. ill do it tomorrow :)

oh.. and.. lots of gamers in AM... and no... not just for ref or study :)

im in day of defeat... i gave up on counterstrike
handle: "de-animator" or "M.Kelly"

i know a bunch of people play that time sucker World of Warcraft and we've got a couple of people on Halo2

im trying to cut down.. i think i can get it under control just gotta schedule it in and stick to it

simps

11-17-2005, 01:28 AM

Day of Defeat is my main game. It's addicting.

mistafreeze

11-17-2005, 02:28 AM

hey i just applied for am (just finished taking a test for them earlier today), i was wondering how long the lectures are, and about how much work is typical for a week, when do you get assignments? such as do you get assignments sunday with the expectation of getting it done by saturday?

just wondering, so i can try and plan out in advanced =)
my day job i dont get off till 5 but i can change that by working earlier, least we have maya in the mac labs at work.

anyway cant wait

thx

andy_maxman

11-17-2005, 04:33 AM

congrats to everyone joining in...:thumbsup:

and i want reiterate something for total newbies to maya -

get a grip with

-viewport navigation
-keyboard shortcuts to toggle between keyframes
-and finally, rip apart the graph editor....(trust me...it will save a heck of your time)
-best way to practice with the editor would be to animate simple geometry....and do everything in your side view. perspective can come in later.
-a good solid 3 hours a day and some added hours on a holiday will get you through most of the first class. but that has got to be solid uninterrupted time.
-and get ready for the madness that dwells in the am forums....that imo will be your 24 hours life support system
-dont forget to fasten the seat belts....
-jam on:thumbsup:

olioli

11-17-2005, 06:13 AM

Is AM selling t shirts?

if so where can I get one :)

DigitalToon2

11-17-2005, 01:02 PM

Is AM selling t shirts?

if so where can I get one :)

Nope no t-shirts as of yet. Were're all waiting as well for those.

simps

11-17-2005, 01:39 PM

How long did it take most of you to hear back from AM after submitting your applications?

ThePredator42

11-17-2005, 02:14 PM

I´m wondering about that too. I applied over a week ago, and I´m beginning to wonder wether everything went ok b/c I didn´t even get an e-mail confirming that I applied.

I know for sure this question has been answered at least twice in this thread, but spare me to go thru all of it again (I should be animating) :)

Micha.

DigitalToon2

11-17-2005, 02:51 PM

If you applied for January you'll probably hear something in the next couple weeks, if not sooner. I applied back at the end of May for the fall and because they were still taking applications for the summer I ended up having to wait a month till I heard anything, so consider yourselves lucky that you wont have to wait that long.

Now you can go back to checking your email every hour!

ThePredator42

11-17-2005, 03:04 PM

Now you can go back to checking your email every hour!

half an hour :)

simps

11-17-2005, 03:43 PM

ThePredator42

11-17-2005, 08:15 PM

What got me thinking was mttjss who applied the same day and 5 days later also got that 8 min IQ test... didn´t get that.

But then.. maybe they thought me smart enough already.. it IS possible, right? I mean.. they don´t know me.. hehehe

-What? You don't have time to read through 400+ pages? :)

au con traire! (sorry my french isn´t even good enough to pick up chicks :banghead: ).. I did that. It´s just that it seems it has slipped my mind where exactly on those 430 pages that info was...:arteest:

back to IoL and coffee!

Micha.

kenshi

11-18-2005, 12:08 AM

**Attention all newbies: just wrote this and posted it on my blog (link in my signature) - thought it might be of interest to all you starting out in January...

"There are a lot of new students starting at AnimationMentor in January that have asked about time management, especially where they have jobs and families, so I wanted to go into what has worked for me, and what I plan to do to balance the demands of fulltime work, fulltime school, family, social, and personal life.

Many students have quit their jobs to devote 100% of their time to AM studies, but that's just not a feasible scenario for most people. There are bills to pay, mouths to feed. So how does one balance all that and still get the fulltime AM experience?

Funny you should ask.

When I first started back in March of this year, I thought it would be no biggie. Put in a couple of hours here, a couple of hours there, and voila! - become great at animation.

Wishful thinking at best.

This is an art that takes a lot of dedication and practice to master. You know, actually taking theory and putting it to practice.

The first term wasn't so bad, because we weren't just unceremoniously tossed into the deep water. They waited for the second term to do that. Seriously though, the first class was a cake walk compared to what we were expected to turn out in Class 2. Not to scare anyone off, because it was an amazing experience and I learned a ton, but that's when it finally hit home to me that time management (or the lack of it) is really what makes the difference between sinking and swimming.

Some important things to think about:

There will be hard weeks. There will be easy weeks. Some concepts will really sink in and some you'll really struggle with. Some weeks you'll have crazy deadlines at work like I had two weeks ago that require you to stay up all night finishing a project. Some weeks you'll have family commitments that take you away from animating. That's okay. Do the best you can with the time you have. That's all anyone can ask of you, and that's all you should ask of yourself.

Animation is everywhere, so if you're feeling like you're wasting your time because you're not in front of a computer, stop wasting your time and open your eyes to what's going on right in front of you in EVERY SITUATION. You're at the gym exercising? Observe the forces that happen when people lift weights, or the different walks you see on the treadmills. Notice what is happening in your own body when you're doing your own workouts. You're at a dinner party? Observe the reactions of people to what's being said. Are they bored? What are their bodies doing to show their boredom? Wandering eyes? Focusing intently on a plate of food and nodding without listening? This kind of stuff is better than a lot of reference because it's REAL LIFE. So take advantage of every opportunity. Just make sure you're not doing it to get away from actually animating, and you'll be fine.

If you don't have your health, you're no good to anybody. Sure you can brag about how late you stay up every night animating, but when your eyes are bloodshot and you're too sick to even get out of bed and you have carpal tunnel and a chronically stiff back, I can pretty much guarantee you will not be producing your best work. It's all about balance, so don't forget to take care of yourself! Eat right. Drink lots of water. Get plenty of rest. Exercise.

Enjoy life! Who cares if you can compose a beautiful sentence if you have nothing to say? Animation is just the same. You can polish a shot beautifully, but performances that don't somehow come from inside of you are going to fall flat on their face. Just remember, there's more to life (and animation) than spline shapes and weighted tangents.

Apply what you learn at AM to your current job. I don't care if you are a garbage collector. You will learn things at AM that you can apply to your current situation, whatever it is. Be it better planning, clear communication of ideas, brainstorming and constructive feedback; these are all crucial to successful animation as well as any job you could be doing. Personally, since I do 3D artwork in Maya on video game title covers and other promotional pieces, I have seen a huge leap forward in my skills and productivity. Thinking in terms of silhouette and strong line of action, believable posing and sense of weight of a character, all have made me a more valuable employee at my current job. I get jobs done faster and better; I get "buy off" approval from clients on the first round a lot of times whereas before it would take me several passes to get something with enough personality, character, energy, appeal... Those are second nature now.

Up to this point, I've been a part-time student. I'm embarrassed to admit that I have let a lot get in the way of me actually applying these principles of life management and becoming a true fulltime student, whether I can spend 40 hours a week at it or not. That's not the point. Look at the word "full". What images does that conjure up for you? Brimming over, satisfied, expansive, complete, 100%...

You can't give anything 100% of your time, even fulltime work. Life just doesn't work that way. But the time you DO give, make it full. Make it full when you're with your family, full when you're on the job, full when you're animating, full when you're listening to a friend.

That's why I take back what I said in my last post about waiting til January to really pursue this FULL time. It's gotta start now. You wait for tomorrow, for January, for when your schedule "frees up" (it never will, by the way), for that faster computer, for whatever...and it'll never happen.

Like my favorite little green person once said, "Do or do not... there is no try."

So welcome all you newcomers. Part-time or fulltime, make the MOST of it.

It'll be over before you know it."

UnderwearNinja

11-18-2005, 10:48 PM

That's wonderful info Kenshi, thank you.

mistafreeze

11-18-2005, 11:14 PM

how long does it typically take, from the moment you take the 8 minute test until you hear back from AM, im guessing if your didnt register until novemeber, you will not be able to take classes in janurary and will have to wait until april, but what are the chances that some seats might still be open for janurary classes?

andy_maxman

11-19-2005, 02:17 AM

Like my favorite little green person once said, "Do or do not... there is no try."

is the quote for the day....

olioli

11-19-2005, 02:28 AM

i just filled out the application this morning (for Jan) and by this afternoon, I took that 8 min test.

hope to hear the results soon :bounce:

simps

11-19-2005, 03:51 AM

Ok, I sent my application in. It's been over a week and I haven't even gotten to take the test yet. Whats up?

SkyZero

11-19-2005, 06:51 AM

Like my favorite little green person once said, "Do or do not... there is no try."

Don't forget this other classic by the same green friend:

"Much to learn you still have."

:thumbsup:

ThePredator42

11-19-2005, 09:14 AM

"Much to learn you still have."
:thumbsup:

Phew thanks for that hint.. :)

I´ll be calling AM on monday, to hear if they got my application. I have heard nothing whatsoever since I applied 10 days ago. There´s only next week left to apply, and I don´t want to find they didn´t get it by the time it´s too late to send another one.

Jeremy Hopkins

11-19-2005, 11:15 AM

Wow, great post Kenshi! No wonder you're a natural actor, you're thinking about it all the time. Just like a true ninja. I definately agree about the 80 hours a week part too. Quality degrades very quickly until nothing is working right. Best to put in fewer solid hours than too many 'I'm about to die hours." Anyone that can work, attend AM, have a family, and do solid work definately has my respect.

Hey simps, they're probably pretty busy. If you're worried, either email the AM support team or give them a call. Everyone is really nice and so I'm sure they'll be glad to help in any way possible.

simps

11-19-2005, 04:04 PM

Hey simps, they're probably pretty busy. If you're worried, either email the AM support team or give them a call. Everyone is really nice and so I'm sure they'll be glad to help in any way possible.

Ya, I emailed them through their site. I'll give them a call on Monday as well. The deadline is quickly creeping up.

mistafreeze

11-19-2005, 04:14 PM

hey simps, when is the deadline? i thought the last day you could apply for janurary was october 28th did they change that?

ThePredator42

11-19-2005, 04:56 PM

Yes, according to their newsletter, it´s november 28 now.

mistafreeze

11-19-2005, 05:09 PM

wow, thats too sweet!

simps

11-20-2005, 01:09 AM

Ya, Nov 28 is the deadline, but theres not a lot of time until then.

Modus

11-21-2005, 02:47 PM

Hi everyone !
Today, we are proud to announced the launching of Animation Lounge, brand new animation forum !
The goal behind it is to create always more and more materials to share with others animators around the world, share our true passion for animation.
News, interviews, video references, links,... etc all of those materials are gonna fill the forum week after week.
We really hope to see you there and enjoy this new experience on the Internet.

David and Phil
www.animationlounge.com (http://www.animationlounge.com)

ThePredator42

11-21-2005, 06:07 PM

yeah member #26 :)

I think this could be a cool forum, I´ll definitly add it to my visit-every-day-bookmarks.

simps

11-22-2005, 01:28 AM

Well, I finally got a respsonse from the application and did the test ...I hate tests, I always get so flustered, especially timed. I hope I did good, I think did...lol

ThePredator42

11-22-2005, 08:40 AM

me too, I called them, and wow! They are super-nice and -helpful! They sent me a link to that test again and I did it. Funny, felt like doing exams again :)

simps

11-22-2005, 02:01 PM

me too, I called them, and wow! They are super-nice and -helpful! They sent me a link to that test again and I did it. Funny, felt like doing exams again :)

Ya I called them too. They said that sometimes hotmail accounts(which I was using) see their email as spam. The guy I spoke to was super nice as you said. It did feel like school again..lol
I'm getting excited!!!

xino

11-22-2005, 06:04 PM

They said that sometimes hotmail accounts(which I was using) see their email as spam.

Funny, I haven't had any problems getting any of their emails. Hopefully I won't though since I'm waiting on getting the email. ;) I'm sure it'll be coming in the next few weeks though.

mttjss

11-22-2005, 11:23 PM

:bounce:
I AM IN!! Got my acceptance letter today!

Now - how to pay for these classes? :D

Matt -

mistafreeze

11-23-2005, 12:05 AM

congrats, how did it come? email or letter?

mttjss

11-23-2005, 01:34 AM

via email.
I have to wait until they send the registration package to me, but that should be right after the Holiday.

I am about to graduate with a degree in character animation, but if you have read my posts or talked to me, you will see how aggrevated I am with this school.
I cannot wait to focus ONLY on animation and really learn some great stuff and make some new friends.

Matt -

ThePredator42

11-23-2005, 07:21 AM

Oh NO!

that means I will continue to check my email every 10 minutes! I was looking forward to checking my (physical) mailbox just twice a day LOL

xino

11-23-2005, 11:47 PM

hmm...did something evil happen to the website? :shrug:

DigitalToon2

11-24-2005, 12:17 AM

Yep it's down at the moment, one of the servers went down last night and the great support staff is working extremely hard to get everything back up and running again.

simps

11-24-2005, 01:02 AM

WOOHOO, I just got excepted! Can't wait till January.:bounce:

olioli

11-24-2005, 01:46 AM

I haven't heard anything yet....hopefully I'll get accepted...

now I'm a bit nervous.

Jiminy

11-24-2005, 02:41 AM

Congratulations simps! You're gonna love it. I thought this school was going to be extremely cool before I got in. And now I am blown away at how it far surpasses my already high expectations on every level. You are in for some great animation instruction and a great time. Now comes the painful waiting for the next 6 weeks until you can actually log in. I dont think I slept for the whole month before class started, I was so excited. See you on the inside soon:)

Jim

DigitalToon2

11-24-2005, 01:33 PM

zeroeffect

11-24-2005, 01:39 PM

I thought I'd just post this here b/c the AM forums are working on and off but I just have a question for current AM people since the server is down everyone got that email about them restarting week 10 next week, so just so I'm clear that means we don't have an assignment to turn in this week on sunday, correct? Thanks!Hey Nicole, that's what I make of it too. Our Q&A schedule will stay the same with a special global Q&A to end out the class (year) on. Looks like we have an extra week to polish up those walks :)

droidzlander

11-24-2005, 01:39 PM

Yeah Nicole! I do think so too. No assignment this week, it's due the next week. An extra week for polishing our stuff.

Andrea

jugger

11-24-2005, 02:16 PM

the email from AM clearly reads

"Note: You will need to upload your work Sunday by noon. In essence you will have had one extra week to work on your assignments. If you have any questions please contact support@animationmentor.com"

which means you need to upload "something" at least....

DigitalToon2

11-24-2005, 02:19 PM

Alright, thanks! I just wanted to make sure I had it right, I had to read the email a couple times before it made sense, probably didn't help that I had just woken up when I read it, lol.

Jeremy Hopkins

11-24-2005, 04:10 PM

Umm.. I didn't get the email. When is the site suppose to be up again?

sinbad

11-24-2005, 09:32 PM

Dunno, I wonder what the hell happened... must have been serious. I hope all of our uploads are ok!

Anyway I get an extra week, and after 22 almost consecutive weeks of assignments, I am exhausted.

raffael3d

11-24-2005, 10:24 PM

not sure what happened, but they said they work around the clock to bring it back up.

Bsmith

11-24-2005, 11:03 PM

Kimotion

11-25-2005, 12:07 AM

I have a question...I'm kinda considering Animation Mentor sooner or later (not sure when yet). I have no doubt that its a great program. However the one greatest thing that prolly concerns me the most is that this being an online program I can imagine peoples life getting a little islolated. I'm already having problems being isolated all the time and I fear that AM would probably increase the problem.

Anyways I was just wondering if anyone has had problems like this and if AM made it worse or not.

What you wrote got me thinking. To be totally honest, I think it did take a toll on my social life: it's Thanksgiving Day and when I remember last year, I realized that I had a more active social life, going from dinner to dinner, eating and drinking until we got so round we just rolled back to our apartments. And the year before that, I went to this huge feast at one of my friend's mother's house in Sonoma where we ate ate ate, sang songs and all got into a huge outdoor hottub talking and talking under the stars. This year I have less opportunity to do that because I kinda got swept away into the AM online world (that's only one reason why ... I should've kept in touch with that girl who's mom lives in Sonoma county!). But that was my choice to focus so much on AM this year, and it was a conscious decision. When you are at home animating all day, I'd be lying to you if it's more fun than animating with other students right next to you in the labs.

But I ask myself this constantly: what is more important to you at this time in your life: having more and more people around you? Or getting the best animation instruction when you are paying for it? It's not choosing one or the other. You need both! However, it's my priorty that needs to be honed, and I choose an education.

I'm from the school of thought where you need to make sacrifices when you want something so bad. Personally I was never the type to need to be around others 24/7 to be happy. The irony is that at AM they actually tells you to always be out there, so you can observe life to animate.

It is a difficult juggling act. You can't just animate and not experience social life: if you don't you won't have any fodder to feed your creativity. But if you need to place an emphasis, I'd choose animation, simply because the sacrifices I make now, the investments I make, will be worth it a few years later.

I hope. :thumbsup: