While watching animated features like Shrek and Finding Nemo, or Japanese anime like Spirited Away and Naruto have you been inspired to create your own animation? Well, if you needed motivation and focus, how about $10,000 in prizes and a theme to work with? Then get off the couch or cinema seat (after the movie has ended) and flex those creative muscles at the Brother Animation Challenge 2007!

Brother International, known for its home and business IT peripherals has launched its first animation competition for enthusiasts. The challenge is to create an animation that advertises its series of Colour Inkjet Multi-Function Centres.

Participants can take part in 3 categories, either individually or in a team of up to 4 members:

1. Primary and Secondary Schools

2. Tertiary Institutions

3. Public or Professionals

With the government’s push to establish Singapore as a Digital Media and Entertainment hub, this competition could not have come at a better time for aspiring animators to showcase their abilities and creative strengths.

“We implore anyone who thinks they can write, design and animate to participate [in this competition]. This is a platform which provides them with a good opportunity to become a producer of an animated advertisement,” said Tetsuo Watanabe, the Managing Director of Brother International Singapore.

The advertisement should show the scenarios, uses and benefits of the Brother Colour Inkjet Multi-Function Centres. Submissions should include a storyboard and the final animated advertisement.

Winners will receive prizes and cash worth up to $10,000, including Brother printers, TAB software and Wacom tablets to help you hone your animation abilities further. The shortlisted entries will go on a public exhibition from Sep 28 to 30. Winning works will be shown on the competition website and the official Brother website for one year.

If this got your interest piqued, you have up to Sep 5 to sign up online at the competition website. Shortlisted works will be announced on the website on Sep 14.

In addition to the Animation Challenge, participants are also invited to attend a range of animation workshops, all of them for free! Brother’s partners, TAB, Wacom, and Peripheral Solutions will conduct the workshops from Jul 14. These workshops will be opened to the public, and will be conducted at the iShop @ Orchard Cineleisure on Sat, Jul 28 and Aug 4.

These workshops are meant to equip you with the basic skills you need to conceptualise your storyboard and construct your animation – enough for you to create a masterpiece for the competition.

But before you begin your masterpiece, the UrbanWire has collected some tips from some of the greatest animators of all time, to give you a flying start.

Storyline

The basic plot of your story is the first thing to concentrate on. No matter how good the animation, characters or voice actors are, the animation, in its entirety, won’t be outstanding without a good plot.

Think for example, The Wild. Great animation, fantastic voice actors, poor plot, hence a terrible flop at the box office.

Characters and Character Development

Famous Japanese anime director Hayao Miyazaki said in a book by Japanese publisher Iwanami Shoten, “… we tried to overcome the decay of symbolisation by animating through ‘identifying with the character’ or ‘becoming the character’.” Characters help the plot come alive and through to viewers. Interesting ones endear themselves to the audience, keeping them glued to the story as they go on a journey with the character till the end.

As Walt Disney once said, “I try to build a full personality for each of our cartoon characters- to make them personalities.” His characters like Mickey Mouse remain close to our hearts even after 79 years after the all-time favourite character first came to life.

Animation Quality

There is a broad definition of what makes good quality animation. The most obvious point to note is the fluidity of your animation, especially how smooth the pictures are when movement is involved. To put it simply, it wouldn’t be enjoyable watching a show that transits from scene to scene shakily.

The best way to overcome or avoid this problem is to think of yourself as the audience and create the animation the way you would like to see it on a big screen.

Sound and Voice Quality

We all love music. Whether we are watching a television serial or a documentary feature, our senses are always aware and affected by the details of the music that accompanies the visuals, which define, emphasise and project the message the visuals convey.

The soundtrack is crucial as it enhances the whole viewing experience and assists in the change of moods in different scenes. Voice acting, another audio aspect, is often overlooked by many. In Japan, where the animation industry is one of the biggest in the world, voice actors are very highly regarded. They require a totally different skill set from normal actors as they have to portray emotions completely with just their voice.

Well, in the words of Walt Disney, all these elements make up a story told in animation. “In learning the art of storytelling by animation, I have discovered that language has an anatomy. Every spoken word, whether uttered by a living person or by a cartoon character, has its facial grimace, emphasising the meaning.”

So with all these tips in mind, take up the challenge and submit your entries to Brother today!

For more information, visit the competition website here.

To find out the schedules for the workshops, visit the website here.