My Animation Avenue: From Comics to the Oscars Short List:
Smaran Savanal
Could characters created by Legends like Walt Disney, Hanna Barbara, Hergé and Goscinny /Uderzo inspire your career? Think of Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, Tintin and Asterix and Obelix et al. Well, in my case they did! Here is my brief voyage (to date) down Animation Avenue.
The Age of Innocence:
As a child, I loved the bed time stories that I heard from my grandfather, Mr. B. G. Savanal. Yes, in my childhood, bed time stories told by grandparents were events we looked forward to. Those were my generation’s ‘days of innocence’. In India, back then, neither cable nor satellite television existed. A Black and White TV with Doordarshan was the only ‘stand- alone’ channel; a cassette player and a radio were the only ‘gadgets’ that were talked about.
I come from a musical family. God allowed me to carry my love for music into this incarnation and in particular a gift and penchant for playing the Tabla. I can proudly claim that music is a strong bond that binds our family.
My schooling years in Kuwait were the turning point; my first exposure to colour television and cartoons! The Channel showcased several Disney and Hanna Barbara classics. I was hooked! I was fascinated by these and other cartoon characters. We recorded some of these wonderful priceless pieces on VHS tapes (we still have them!). These cartoons and my collection of comics were magically and yet unknowingly fuelling my ‘animation’ ambition. After my schooling in Kuwait, Bombay and Pune, I joined the B Com course at Pune University. I quickly decided that the world of commerce was not my ‘calling’ and that Character Animation was the space that I wanted to be in. This decision was earlier influenced by the ‘behind the scenes’ making of the 2D based ‘LION KING’ in 1995.
Animation my ‘Inner Calling’: Journey Begins:
When I was 15, The Indian Institute of Materials Management (IIMM) asked me to showcase their Annual Conference proceedings (in real time) using multimedia. I used SCALA multimedia software and was thrilled to receive an Award and Citation from them!
I moved to Alandi to C-DAC’s Campus after clearing CDAC’s All India Entrance examination and completed my Diploma in Advanced Computer Arts. I learnt the rudiments of Multimedia Content Creation, Interactive Applications Development and Web Page Designing. Living in Alandi was itself a great learning experience.
The next leg of my journey began with a visit to Mr. V Rammohan (often referred to as the Walt Disney of India). He was gracious to receive us at his Worli residence and advised me on the pros and cons of embarking on Animation as a career.
As a career, Animation requires patience, grit, fortitude, determination and years of hard work. He said, “But, if you are sincere to your creative passion, it can be a rewarding journey”. His encouraging words only helped strengthen my resolve.
Mr. Udipi Srikrishna and his gifted son Shyam of Rajaram Fine Arts, Matunga, Bombay, (now Mumbai) strengthened my Sketching and Character drawing techniques. Every evening, I went to King’s Circle garden to sketch. Some ‘brave souls’ even posed for me!
On my return to Pune, I learnt ‘Classical Animation’ over three years under the tutelage of Mrs Pallavi Apte and Mr. V G Samant (Creator of ‘Hanuman’). They used to run a private program leading to a Diploma in Classical Animation.
Simultaneously, I worked for a start-up animation firm to get an insight into the work flow in an animation studio and concurrently honed my Tabla skills under the guidance of Ms Aditi Dixit (disciple of the Tabla Maestro Shri Yogesh Samsi). I also helped my father and used the skills that I had learnt at CDAC to develop multimedia and interactive training modules, ‘e-Brochures’ etc on a wide variety of subjects.
Technology was making inroads into the world of Animation. The legendary Steve Jobs had acquired Pixar and the world saw the power of 3D Animation. Remember the advent of ‘Toy Story’ and ‘Finding Nemo’? It was important to garner skills in 3D Animation; I was keen on obtaining a Degree in Animation in an international environment.
In 2007, my prayers were answered and the Lasalle College of the Arts, Singapore admitted me to the BA (Honours) in Animation Arts Program. Based on my Portfolio, Lasalle gave me a remission of one year and the Bank of Maharashtra sanctioned me an Education Loan in record time.
Life in Singapore:
I went to Singapore full of hope and my faithful Tabla set accompanied me! Little did I realise that God was going to further test my resolve in the next three years.
Singapore with its multi-cultural population is a great place to study and live in. The transportation system is fantastic and the clean city attracts a host of tourists every year from all over the world. You can balance life as a student, local laws permit you to work part-time and yet participate in a host of creative events.
I strongly felt His Divine Grace. Professor Rajesh Basrur, a Senior Fellow at Nanyang Technological University, graciously gave me shelter till I found suitable accomodation. He has truly been my Guardian Angel in Singapore! Later, my father’s Client allowed me to stay at his Company’s Guest House on the condition that I pay a modest rent and take on the duties of a ‘Caretaker’. This rental was also waived some months later as I had created a multimedia marketing presentation for their company. At Lasalle’s new campus, I was exposed to ‘Stop-Motion’ and 3D Character Animation techniques, etc. My HOD Mr. Christopher Shaw was a great source of inspiration.
My ‘life-education’ went beyond Lasalle. The Caretaker role ended and I moved into shared accomodation with my batch mates at Lasalle. Additional costs meant the pressure was back!
Hence, I worked part time at the ‘New York-New York’: a popular American Deli restaurant, as a Gallery Sitter at Art Galleries/Media Festivals and as a Percussionist with a Band.
I also worked as a Volunteer at prestigious computer graphics festivals such as ‘CG Overdrive’ and ‘SIGGRAPH ASIA’. It was at these two festivals where I would meet my future boss; Animation Director, Phil Mitchell.
My love for music and the Tabla led me to team with Mr Lim Thien Soon (renowned Singapore Musician of yesteryears; but still ever-green) and Mr Tan Thien Soon (my former boss at The Japan Media Arts Festival held in 2008). We performed at various clubs, shows and at the presitigious Singapore Changi Sailing Club to good audience ovations.
Several Singaporeans are of Indian Origin (Tamil is one of the four official languages). Hence, I was surprised that some Singaporeans were fascinated by the Tabla as a ‘unique’ percussion instrument.
I performed on Singapore TV on the National Day Video in 2009 and was proud to be the only Indian in the ensemble!
At the end of the final academic year, an Exhibition and ‘Industry Night’ were held on campus. All of us worked hard and showcased our Short films and Demo Reels. Mr Greg Chew, VP Animation of Infinite Frameworks Studio liked my Demo Reel. This led me to join them in Batam, Indonesia to work on a unique Japanese Animation Feature Film: ‘Tatsumi’.
Making of Tatsumi at Batam Indonesia:
To my sheer surprise, Infinite Frameworks hosted me at the adjoining Nongsa Point Marina Resort in Batam, as the employee accommodations were full. Suited me just fine! I couldn’t have asked for more and felt truly blessed!
TATSUMI the film is based on the life and work of Japanese ‘Mangaka’ (Japanese Manga style comic Artist) and legend Yoshihiro Tatsumi. It was indeed an honour to be a part Tatsumi Sensei’s work! The film was directed by celebrated Singaporean Director Eric Khoo. We were a small team of 20 comprising Canadian Animation Director, Phil Mitchell, two Animation supervisors from the Philippines and other Indonesians. As an Animator, my responsibilty encompassed Animation and Rendering. I was the only Indian working on the Film and the first Indian in the history of the company!
Sensei insisted that his style of drawing be seen on the screen. Our Art Department provided us Animators, with ‘drawing assets’ pertaining to each and every shot. We then animated these using the ‘asset drawing’ as a base. As we were a small team, we had to multi- task which also included the render for the final composite. Overall it was a unique and great experience!
Accolades for Tatsumi in 2011:
Since its commercial launch on the 8th September, 2011, Tatsumi has won several accolades and Awards. These include:
· Singapore: Grand Opening in Singapore: Received excellent reviews in the Media
· Cannes Film Festival 2011, France: TATSUMI bagged a nomination under the Special Category (‘UN CERTAIN REGARD’) and received a high Audience rating of 5/6. It received good reports from ‘The Hollywood Reporter’
· Barcelona, Spain: The SITGES 2011 Film Festival was held from October 6th to 16th on the Catalan Coast of Spain in Barcelona. Tatsumi won the award for the Best Animated Film.
· Asia Pacific Award: Nominated as Best Animation Feature Film at the Asia Pacific Screen Awards! Announcement on Nov 24!
· Final List of the Oscar Academy Awards: On Oct 13th 2011, the Final List of Film Submissions for the 2012 Oscar Foreign Language Films was announced. Sixty Three Films will compete for the Best Foreign Language Film in the 84th Academy Awards.Tatsumi qualified as a contender from Singapore
· The screening of "Tatsumi" at the Tokyo International Film Festival, Japan October 2011, was amazing; huge applause and great positive feedback, both online and offline.
Best Film at the Dubai Film Festival 2012
· It is also slated to be screened in Hong Kong and Canada soon.
It has been a challenging yet exciting Odyssey (journey) so far! I look forward to the future with hope and confidence. I am encouraged by my Father’s words: ‘God is putting together a beautiful bouquet for you. Always keep ‘That’ fragrance alive’.
For success in a creative career, I recall the words of the Late Steve Jobs at Stanford’s convocation, “Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish”; .i.e. keep that fire in the belly burning!
