Native Puppets, one of India’s top online animation schools with expertise in character animation, has some exciting news for budding animators – It’s offering certified advanced diploma courses in animation, gaming, and VFX to prospective students. And they can do this in the comfort of their home by creating a schedule to match their convenience!
Native Puppets has carved a niche for themselves in the field of animation schooling. Their trainers and alumni come from all parts of the world, including across India.
Talking about the course offerings, Native Puppets head of strategy Sumit Verma says, “The range of courses will help bridge the gap between the student and industry, thus making the student more job-ready. These courses have been formulated by senior artists from the field and therefore students benefit by learning from these veterans directly.”
Native Puppets founder Anand Baid affirms his company’s vision. “Native Puppets,” he avers, “envisions a learning ecosystem where anyone, anywhere can enhance their creativity by accessing our world-class learning experience.”
“In India, the animation and visual effects sector is becoming more employable,” he states, ”as there are many opportunities today, more than ever before. This is thanks to sectors where demand for talent in this field is increasing such as animated feature films, visual effects movies, advertising, gaming, medical animation, simulations for defense, architectural pre-viz, and the latest buzzword which is AR-VR.”
“The popularity of Netflix and Amazon Prime and also the recent interest by Doordarshan has led to increased demand for animated content,” he adds. “This has, in turn, created the need for more job-ready artists, giving rise to plenty of job openings.”
Below is an excerpt from a chat with its founder, Anand Baid, on the courses at Native Puppets:
What online courses does Native Puppets offer and what is the duration of these courses?
NP offers 3D animation, game animation, 3D modeling, storyboarding, and visual effects courses. All these have modules starting from the basic level and go up to advanced feature-quality level courses. This essentially ends up being the portfolio of the student and helps gain entry into a top animation studio. A unique course of study available to the students is an advanced production and technical director course: the first of its kind in the field.
The duration of these courses ranges from three months to 18 months. Full details are available from our site: www.nativepuppets.com.
What is the prerequisite for anyone taking up the course at Native Puppets?
At NP, we get a lot of inquiries from students from various walks of life. These prospective students have shown interest in learning the art and craft of animation and are from diverse fields: some pursuing engineering or commerce with some straight out of school. With the introduction of our orientation courses, anyone who has an interest in the field of animation can study with us. And all of this in the comfort of your home!
Are the courses certified? Is placement provided after certification?
Yes, all advanced diploma courses in animation, gaming, and VFX effects are certified.
NP shares a strong rapport with animation studios, both in India and overseas, and thus we can assure 100 per cent placement to our graduates.
Why are the courses available online and not in a physical set-up?
The primary reason is to provide a platform whereby a student can learn from a working professional from a top-class studio. This will ensure the student is industry-ready at the end of the course. Also, the online courses facilitate students to work on their assignments at their chosen time and space.
I hold a fulltime job, is it still possible for me to take up a course at Native Puppets?
Yes, of course! That is where our online courses are useful as they lend enough flexibility.
Can you tell us a bit about the mentors/trainers at Native Puppets?
Mentors at NP are highly passionate artists and currently work or have worked in some of the top animation studios in the world including DreamWorks Animation, OnAnimation, Technicolor, Disney, Framestore, and Double Negative amongst others. They have a minimum of seven years of experience working on international feature projects.
We are excited to have DreamWorks head of character animation Dave Burgess, on our panel of mentors. Burgess is very impressed with the talent he has come across in India. “As a mentor,” he says, “it’s very satisfying for me to be able to nurture and guide the next gen of animators so they are more production-ready. Having worked with a bunch of talented artists in Bangalore, it’s nice to be connected back with India.”
Can you give some information about the free webinars that are organized by Native Puppets for the community?
First, not many know about the concept of webinars. So, in a nutshell: these are live sessions conducted by an expert from the field of animation and can be attended by anyone for free, from wherever they want. Attendees can interact with the expert, learn from them, and even receive feedback on their work. All you need is a headphone and an internet connection.
In these sessions, the experts will share their experiences apart from discussing case studies and workflow methodologies.
Can you name a few artists who have conducted these sessions?
Experts such as Dave Burgess (DreamWorks and Disney, The Lego Movie, The Lion King, Beauty and the Beast), Mike Stern from Pixar, Nicolas Chauvelot (DreamWorks and Cinesite, Penguins of Madagascar, Puss in Boots), and Dhimant Vyas (Zynga Games, Taare Zameen Par), Stephen Silver, Vaibhav Kumaresh, Kshiraj Telang, and Javier Alonso are just a few names on our panel for these webinars.
These webinars are our way of giving back to the community and inspiring the next generation of artists.
When does the next batch start at Native Puppets?
We have a batch starting every two months. Our next batch begins on 5 March 2018.
Those interested can get in touch with us right away at info@nativepuppets.com.
Learn more about mentors, course structure, and fees on our site www.nativepuppets.com
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