Monday, September 22, 1997 Animation department paints the whole
picture ART: Graduate program allows students to practice entirety
of craft, from initial idea to final production
By Stephanie Sheh
Daily Bruin Senior Staff
A little bit past the sculpture garden, on the second floor of
Melnitz Hall,
hides the animation program. Well, it=92s not hiding exactly,
but for some
reason not many know about UCLA=92s small, but prestigous
program.
Perhaps the reason for the program=92s obscurity is that while
there is a
graduate program, there is no official undergraduate program.
However
undergraduates are welcome to take the three coursed 181 series,
which
currently serves as an unofficial undergraduate program.
Chair of the program Dan McLaughlin has been working for five
years to
establish an undergraduate program. He feels having an
undergraduate program
is important as animation is quickly becoming a vital part of
the
communications forum. However, the process is complicated. The
program must
go through departmental approval, school (Theater, Film and
Television)
approval, academic senate approval… The list goes on.
Second year in the graduate program, Heather Wilbur does not
neccesarily
support the idea of an undergraduate program. She says, =93It
takes a lot of
dedication to be in the animation program. It=92s a lot of hard
work. I=92ve been
working on the (film) I=92m doing right now for 6 months and
probably wont=92
finish until Christmas time. As an undergrad you got to take all
those GE=92s.
I don=92t think there=92s enough time to make a lot of films and
get what you
want out of it.=94
And students do seem to get a lot out of the progam. It boasts
many
successful alumni. In fact, every episode of =93The
Simpson=92s=94 that is up for
an emmy this year was directed by a UCLA alum of the animation
program. In
addition, many alumni are and producers heads of studios.
=93Yes it does have a very strong alum,=94 confirms animation
professor Celia
Mercer. =93I mean from the animation area people are very much
still in
contact. We=92re actually talking about setting some kind of
mentoring program
to make it more official. But a lot of people from the
department are in high
level jobs. Dan always says, =91We prepare students not for
their first job,
but for their last.=92=94
The students are prepared through the animation program=92s
motto is =93One
person. One film,=94 which means that each person does the whole
film
themselves, from the creation of the film to the shooting.
While having responsibility over an entire film can be daunting,
it also has
it=92s upsides.
=93I like the aspect that you have total control over whatever
you=92re
animating, whatever your character is,=94 Wilbur says. =93I have
control of the
entire story. Everybody is in charge of their little film. I
don=92t have to
answer to anybody else. It=92s my decision completely.=94
Wilbur says that the having to produce all aspects of the film
will prove to
be beneficial career-wise. It will help her to avoid being
pidgeon-holed into
positions such as layout artist or cel painter.
=93I=92m not just learning how to do one thing,=94 Wilbur
explains. =93I=92m not just
learning how to do lay out. I=92m learning all aspects of making
a film. I=92m
learning how to write a good story, how to make a storyboard. I
shot the film
myself. I transferred it myself. I learned every aspect of
making a film
myself so when I go out there I will know how to do everything
basically so I
can go into any field I want. And I wouldnt=92 be stuck
somewhere. I could move
on.=94
Wilbur, who received an undergraduate in art in =9196 here at
UCLA, found that
she preferred animating to her previous studies.
=93I=92ve always liked animation and I got sick of doing art
school,=94 Wilbur
admits. =93I got sick of making up stories about my art that
weren=92t true. So I
found out that there were animation classes at UCLA…and I just
started
taking them. It was a lot of fun and I didn=92t have to make up
any stories. I
mean I had to make up stories for animation, but I didn=92t have
to explain why
I was making a film.=94
Mclaughlin understands the appeal of animation. Mclaughlin, who
started in
the entertainment industry as a child star, turned to animation
because he as
he puts it, =93Animation is taking the plastic arts and putting
it into the
performing arts.=94
With the advent of computers and the increasing popularity of
special
effects, animation is not limited to Saturday morning cartoons.
There are
different types of animation, all of which the UCLA program
teaches. However,
both Mercer and McLaughlin remind that any kind of animator
needs a strong
background in traditional animating first, and UCLA=92s program
accomodates
that.
=93What=92s interesting is (computer effects houses) like
traditional animators,=94
Mercer reveals. =93All the computer houses that people come from
have a good
art background, a good drawing background and know how to do
traditional
animation, because that just carries forward to computer work.
You can learn
to use a computer (program), but you need to understand all that
other stuff
first.=94
McLaughlin adds, =93The computer=92s a tool and you have to know
how to use it in
creating animation. You can take a pencil and a scribble. You
can make a mark
on something, but to make marks that mean something, wheter a
drawing or a
sentence you have to know the principles of why you draw. So the
toughest
tool is really the pencil…We=92re not here to teach people how
to run
machines.=94
Photo Courtesy of Twentieth Century Fox
All three episodes of "The Simpsons" that were nominated for an
Emmy this year were directed by alumni of the animation
department.