Issue #2, Animatrix Survival Kit, July-2022 Newsletter
Welcome to our cozy, comfortable, relaxing and funky JULY-2022: Animatrix Survival Kit, Issue #2. Here we talk about everything you need to know about the industry. Make yourself comfortable.
OPINION
Some of our coolest childhood memories belong to those evenings spent watching cartoons and iconic fairy tales on TV with our parents. If only we could watch them again, they were good. Animated pictures have always captured our imagination. It’s perhaps this memory, interest and enthusiasm which has led to so many dramatic changes in the animation industry in such a short period of time. In this July newsletter we will share ideas and issues that every creative business is facing nowadays.?
?And finally, an exclusive interview announcement! The incredible business runner Dovydas Vilkelis, our managing and creative producer, has officially agreed to share his opinion on a working process at Animatrix and we couldn't be more excited. Dovydas launched Animatrix 10 years ago, and regularly speaks at conferences across the world. With a focus on art and technology, his eye for design, storytelling and visual effects has already created famous-winning work exploring the intersections between art, video, advertising and culture.
FEATURED PROJECT
Definitely, we are working hard at Animatrix and here's one of our beloved projects so far.
Everybody knows about the American science fiction film "Back to the Future" (1985). It was directed by Robert Zemeckis, and written by Zemeckis and Bob Gale. Set in 1985, the story follows Marty McFly (Fox), a teenager accidentally sent back to 1955 in a time-traveling DeLorean automobile built by his eccentric scientist friend Emmett "Doc" Brown (Lloyd). While in the past, Marty inadvertently prevents his future parents from falling in love—threatening his existence—and is forced to reconcile the pair and somehow get back to the future.
?We love this movie no matter how bizarre it is so we were more than happy to become a part of this interesting product launch campaign — DeLorean Time Machine, a new LEGO set. Animatrix was assigned to create a fully computer generated animation sequence. We received mini figures and a few house sets as 3D models from the client and did the rest of it —? lookdev, rigging, animation, FX, rendering, etc. Animatrix was happy to make a few suggestions for the story and to create all the environment designs ourselves. We partnered with the LEGO Group, U Itch I Scratch production company and Strictly Baltics for the production services. The campaign trailer was produced by Jacob Salling and Tony Lauge Madsen, directed by Liv Collander. Tomas Juchnevic stepped forward as an animation director together with Dovydas Vilkelis as an animation producer.?
EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW
?Dovydas Vilkelis's Animation and VFX Worlds
Animatrix’s managing producer Dovydas Vilkelis on the ‘perfect rule’ of managing a creative studio and on what is actually important while creating brand new worlds.?
Now a managing producer at Animatrix primarily concentrated on managing the studio and delivering creative topnotch projects globally. The pursuit for a BA degree in Media Management gave him a lot of inspiration for his core creative and business ideas. For Dovydas, those days felt like part of something substantial on the way to his own business.“I had a lot of space to grow during my studies,” he says. “It was really interesting, and I always knew deep down I wanted to do something creative. And by the time I graduated, I definitely knew I wanted to pursue the dream of launching my own studio,” he explains. “We launched a business together with Tomas Juchnevic. Tomas is an amazing animation director, his professionalism, creative eye, attention to details, and positive attitude are second to none. His knowing how to fix the situation and when to take advice is just what you need when the project gets tough, and his steady leadership keeps clients and artists thrilled with the work. Tomas has decided to go freelancing afterwards and I definitely respect his decision. Even though our ways have separated as business partners, we work together more than ever.”
From those early days, the most important lesson for Dovydas was that he learned to “just do what you have to do, no matter what.” Like a lot of creatives, he remembers holding himself back when starting out a business, out of fear of making a mistake or creating a bad piece of work.“But yes, there’s no way to prepare yourself for producing something – you just have to do it. And the first thing will probably be quite bad, but that’s part of the process.”?
?To Dovydas the true magic of his work hides in the “first little bit of animation.” This is to him the moment where he feels the world's he helped to create in his? head finally come to life. And the most challenging part is, when it comes to commercial projects, taking the client on a journey into this “very specialized field”. "Sometimes our clients are absolute freshmen in this field. But we are always ready to take care of them,” he says.
“It is not an easy task to manage a team. No matter what the end product is, the first job of a producer in animation is to manage a team of creative professionals. You are always responsible for setting and managing the budget of a production. Budget concerns are not the only problems producers face: I am also responsible for handling the day-to-day issues that arise on any production,” he says.“For animators, that could involve problems with software, running out of supplies or managing the challenges of working with remote team members. Animation projects often involve multiple teams working multiple locations and sometimes I had tricky times putting all the pieces together”. Here at Animatrix we all love what we do and just keep going no matter what,” Dovydas shares. So good luck to all of us!
CREATIVE SURVIVAL KIT EASY TO APPLY. ANIMATION AND VFX?101
What We're Watching
01.ISSUE: This is an interesting story from Ross Welch. His video production company is failing now. This video is his most honest and raw reflection of his own videography business. Ross shares his story of everyday struggle for clients' attention and how he plans to overcome it.?
02. PROCESS: Penguins show us the Pipeline of Dreamworks Animation Studios. If you have 15 minutes you can learn more about CG (aka 3D) from Dreamworks Animation. It's in English with Spanish subtitles.?
03.CREATIVE AD: What a nice work from Leo Burnett Agency, SAMSUNG and the Spider. Adorable project with adorable animation. The direction, storytelling and coloring are sensational. The special effects are incredibly well done too.
04. AWARD-WINNING ANIMATION WORK: Save Ralph. A very sad story with good animation. 1 Grand Prix, 1 Gold Lion, 1 Shortlisted @ Cannes Lions. Introducing Ralph, the new spokes-bunny of the global campaign to ban animal testing for cosmetics. Save Ralph is a powerful stop-motion animation short film produced by Humane Society International, featuring an all-star multinational cast including Taika Waititi, Ricky Gervais, Zac Efron, Olivia Munn, Pom Klementieff, Rodrigo Santoro, Tricia Helfer and more. And, yes, ban animal testing for cosmetics!
领英推荐
What We're Reading
01. ONLINE READING: Animation Today, https://www.animationtoday.net?
The magazine has been presented keeping in mind the needs of the industry. It is the only English magazine in this field in Asia. Aimed at catering to the needs of the professional animators, students and anyone generally interested in the field of animation and computer graphics.?
02. ONLINE READING: Animation World Magazine.
03. ONLINE READING: VFX World Magazine.
04. REPORT: The true impact of COVID-19 is being felt now. The report on the gaming industry issue and insights prepared by gamesindustry.biz took our attention for a while so far. Christopher Dring, Head of Gamesindustry.biz conducted some research on why we're seeing so many game delays, and why there is a current lack of major AAA launches. Interested in gaming? This is what might interest you.?
05. ANIMATION SOFTWARE: The best animation software in 2022.
What We're Listening
PODCAST: The VFX Artists Podcast, hosted by Kofi Opoku-Ansah and Daniel Mark Miller is the spot for artists to share, learn and discover other artists in the VFX industry. This podcast is made by artists for artists.
What We're Keeping in Mind
01.BASICS: The animation styles guide. The purpose of this guide is to take you through the different types of animation styles and techniques. It also covers the path you should take in order to become an animator for each of the 5 types. This is not about learning how to animate, but instead it breaks down the five different types (or genres) of animation available, and what you’ll need to start animating. Best software, best schools, and courses. Styles covered here are 3D computer animation, Traditional animation, 2D Vector-based animation, Stop motion, Motion graphics; click.
02.PRODUCT: Nothing screams community like an infinite canvas that anyone on this planet can draw. On Everyone Draw you can collaborate on pixel art using 16 colors, Product Hunt says. Draw close to the center to draw publicly, or start a new private drawing and share it in your group chats to collaborate. Check it out too, click.
COME & WORK WITH US. BECOME A PARTNER OF ANIMATRIX
Within more than 10 years of experience, Animatrix has become a leading and dedicated studio, creating high quality animation and visual effects for advertising, entertainment and game industries. Though based in Vilnius, Lithuania, Animatrix helps partners to define and develop their visions from script to screen globally, making every project unique and attractive.?
Over the years, our talented team worked with some of the best directors, artists and producers, turning their stories and imagination to reality. This allowed us to build an exceptional portfolio that really stands out. Our studio provides a full CG animation and VFX services, covering everything from concept art and modeling, to rendering and compositing, including everything in between: rigging, animation, special effects, etc.
Here at Animatrix we add value, contribute ideas and are actively involved in the creative process of every single project. Outstanding visuals and vivid characters are what we live for and are extremely good at – if you share the same passion, we are here to go the extra mile for you.
JOIN OUR TEAM AND START RECEIVING YOUR PERSONAL HUGE PINATA ON EVERY BIRTHDAY
To support our illustrious clients worldwide, Animatrix is always looking to expand its roster of freelancers. English speaking experienced and passionate designers, 2D animators, character animators, VFX artists, compositors are invited to send reels, portfolios, and resumes. Fancy working together? We are waiting for you, rush to show your talent to the world: [email protected]
We grow community so if you want to get a professional review of your works or want to suggest a topic to talk about in our next newsletters, just tell us.?
We all know that good emotions are a large driver of loyalty. We hope you had a great time reading. Be sure to share this newsletter with your colleagues and friends, leave your review, and use the hashtag #AnimatrixSurvivalKit when talking about this publication on social media.
We will keep you in the loop. Issue #3 is on its way already.
Have fun and stay safe!
Keep flyin'
The Animatrix Team
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