Persistence of Vision

My title is something of a double entendre. Persistence of Vision happens to be a fundamental principle of how animation and film work. In animation and even film, presenting a sequence of still images in quick succession gives an optical illusion of a continuously moving image. It's this illusion that is known as Persistence of Vision. However, the persistence of vision I'm more interested in here has less to do with animation or film theory and more to do with actually sticking to what you believe in irrespective of the odds.

A couple of months ago, I spent a month in France for an animation residency with Ciclic Animation! Although I'm only just finding the time to write about it, hopefully, this article is worth the read.

So how did I get there? Simple! In 2021, I won the Digital Lab Africa (DLA) award, a mentorship and incubation program that each year selects the best in African Animation, Games, XR&AR, and other digital content projects from across the continent. I said simple but in actual fact, it really wasn’t that simple. How could it be when the competition was open to the whole continent of Africa? I had tried to pitch for the award for two years straight prior. On the first attempt, I got an email back saying I didn’t make the cut, and on the second try I didn’t even hear back from DLA at all (my project was probably really that bad). I was honestly skeptical about making a third attempt but thankfully I had a good inner circle that encouraged me to pitch my third story idea and even helped me to the finish line. Third time's a charm?

Growing up, my mum used to say “If at first, you don’t succeed, try, try and try again!” Maybe there’s something about at least trying thrice. This experience at least taught me not to give up so easily, and I really do believe that a large part of winning by the third try was in failing the first two times. In a sense, I had learned how to do things better the third time around.

So I’d like to share a bit about my experience and the benefits that a residency like the one I attended at Ciclic Animation can afford creators.

One of the most important benefits of a residency is the fact that it affords creators the ability to immerse themselves in their work with minimal distractions or material constraints. In my case, this was the opportunity to get away from the hustle and bustle of Lagos, Nigeria for about a month and move to the small town of Vend?me, France; a scenic town with about 18,000 residents located about 40 minutes southwest of Paris by Train.

I arrived at Charles De Gaulle Airport in Paris and had to make my way to Vend?me where Ciclic Animation is located, by train (two train trips). Altogether it took less than 3 hours but it felt longer; considering the fact that I tend to be restless and had spent the last several hours sitting on a plane.?

Arriving at the Vend?me Villiers Sur Loir train station, I met Simon, the amazing and friendly manager at Ciclic who picked me up and took me on a short tour of the beautiful little town before we arrived at the animation studio which also houses the residents. I immediately noticed from a lot of the architecture that this was a town with a lot of history. Located not far from the banks of the river Loir and Saint Jacques chapel, Ciclic animation studio, for instance, was converted from stables for Horses that used to belong to the castle of Vend?me; the remains of which are less than a 10-minute walk from the studio.

The very next working day after my induction, my residency had begun in earnest. For my project, I had decided to concentrate on the story and to take the writing on my pitch document as far as I could as well as sort out minor revisions to the main character design. I was given a small, well-lit corner office which was to be my personal workspace for the next couple of weeks. With DLA providing logistics and financial support and Ciclic providing the studio facilities, a workstation, a small studio apartment (with a double bed, washing machine, and other amenities), and mentorships with various industry professionals, I was able to do a lot of writing and revised my initial pitch document working from about 9 am to 6 pm (many times a lot later) daily on weekdays.

Here are five of the benefits that I derived and that I believe others can derive from this and similar residencies -

Focus

At the core of this and any other residency experience for most creators is the ability to detach from typical routines and focus their time and energy on their creative practice. I was able to devote that time to advancing my project as best as I could within the allotted timeframe. It helped a great deal that the environment was serene with rivers close by in case I needed to get away to think. This brought a sense of focus without any of the typical distractions or noise I would contend with at work.

Funding

Residencies typically make stipends available to cover the costs of daily living and materials. In my case, the only "materials" I needed were a computer and software, all of which were available at the studio, while daily living and travel expenses were covered by DLA.

Learning & Resources

Residencies that have run for years typically have experience meeting the varied needs of residents. There is the potential for collaboration with other artists-in-residence and at the very least the possibility of peer networks being expanded. Within the studio itself, I was surrounded by and had access to other residents doing some amazing work, and was able to share my project and get their feedback. There was a well-stocked library catering to animation (even though most of the material was in French). Among my mentors during the program were some of the key players in the animation and filmmaking industry in Europe who from their wealth of experience could speak to all of the challenges I needed to address. If it was related to story development, design or character development, and even sound design and production, or any other aspect of production, I had an industry professional with whom I could speak.

Networking

Being part of a residency can definitely be a chance to further one's career. Other than appearing in your CV, it can have real-world applications. As with most things in life, here relationships are key, and leaving a good impression and cultivating positive relationships are paramount; whether that is among peers (because you never know where they’ll be in the future) or between mentors, managers, and so on.

Midway through the residency, as part of the programme, I left to attend the annual Annecy Animation Festival; the biggest animation festival in the world which has run now for more than 60 years. Although it wasn't my first time at the festival, my first (and last) time was just before the pandemic. During the festival, I met some influential industry leaders and networked as much as I could. This is one event where you could be sitting at a talk, listening and taking notes when you notice the guy sitting beside you taking notes even more voraciously, and then your pen mistakenly drops and he helps you pick it up, and you only realize later on after he hands you his business card that he’s Paul Gerard Senior VP at Warner Brothers. I also got to meet my friend Akin, whom I wrote about in a previous LinkedIn post.

Experience New Cultures & Make New Friends

Traveling is always a good experience and useful for seeing things differently, deepening perspectives, and broadening horizons. A residency can definitely be an opportunity to learn something new about the host country and its people. Ciclic Animation runs a rolling residency accepting projects from all over the world, meaning that as one project is ending they are making room for a new one that represents people and cultures from diverse backgrounds. Some residencies are also longer than the typical 1-month I spent and while I was there, there were over 15 residents (most in groups of at least 4) concurrently creating various projects from 2D to Stop-Motion Animation and other unique mixed media projects. They were very friendly and communal and on several occasions, we had barbeque-style dinners together or climbed all the way up to the Vend?me Castle remains on a chilly night to watch a live musical performance. I also got to discover and enjoy new food even though it was my second time in France. Plus I’m still in touch with a few of the people I met there to date.

In Conclusion, although I had a great experience and felt quite welcome, especially in Vend?me where I spent most of my time, I think the one main issue that a non-French-speaking African might face is the language barrier. Personally, it wasn’t that much of an issue for me though, with all of the staff of Ciclic Animation being able to communicate in good English; something that I found out was more or less a requirement for hires, considering that they accept residents from all over the world. For communicating with the general public though, I found Google Translate to be a lifesaver, helping to bridge the divide on multiple occasions. That being said, good luck getting to a shop at 1 pm only to find that they’re closed for lunch. Sacrebleu!

Many thanks to Eric Reginaud, Simon Leguéré and the entire Ciclic Animation Team and residents for making my stay worthwhile and memorable and to Lesley Donna Williams , Eduardo Cachucho , Sino Nompunga, and the entire DLA team for helping to facilitate the whole process so well. A huge thanks also to Christophe Pecot and the French Embassy in Nigeria for the check-ups.

To learn more about Digital Lab Africa, visit https://tshimologong.joburg/incubation-acceleration/digital-lab-africa/?

To learn more about Ciclic Animation residencies and their annual film fund visit - https://animation.ciclic.fr/residence-ciclic-animation and https://ciclic-animation.com/animation-film-fund

Please feel free to get in touch if you have any questions.