AFRICA Digital Media Institute (ADMI) CAMPUS TOUR
On 27th May, 2022 the Association officials made a Campus tour to Africa Digital Media Institute ADMI. The objective of the tour was to create awareness about the Animation community in Kenya and to encourage students to join the Association as student members so that they can be counted as members of the animation community.
On this visit to ADMI, the students expressed a lot of interest while learning about the history of animation in our country and the need to join a professional association while still being a student. To entice the student present to learn more about the association, the A3K office extended a one-month student membership to the student present as a way of letting them understand the essence of the Association before joining formally.
ANDREW KAGGIA VISITS USIU-AFRICA
On 15th July 2022, USIU – Africa’s Cinematic Arts Department was privileged to host Andrew Kaggia the founder of Afrikana Digital. Andrew is an award-winning filmmaker, 3D animator, and Game developer.
On this occasion, Andrew shared a preview and dived into a conversation about the making of his newly completed 3D animation feature film which is scheduled to premiere later in the year. He revealed that the production of this new film took him one and half years, with 16 to 19 hours a day dedicated to its production.
Andrew a self-taught animator also took the audience through his progressive and transitional creative journey highlighting the differences he experienced during this process, being caught up in the evolution of technology and software. Drawing from his own personal experiences, he warned against employers exploiting talent and sensitized on the need to work with clearly outlined and signed agreements/contracts and shy away from the not-so-gentle gentleman’s agreement.
There’s an obvious sense of admiration for his work as he takes the audience through some of his creations. A lot of superhero influence can be seen in his work which he admits is mostly inspired by superhero and alien invasion movies. He encourages young animators to strive for quality in their animations no matter the style, which can only be attained through putting in a lot of time and commitment.
Andrew is also popularly known for the Nairobi X 3D mobile game, his youtube channel HeroSmashers and the politically inspired Wageuzi: Battle 2012
PRICING AND BUDGETING WORKSHOP AT USIU
On 23 rd June 2022, Ernest Livasia a 2D motion designer and the General Manager at Chomoka Studios conducted a workshop on Pricing and Budgeting at USIU-Africa. The workshop provided very valuable insight into how to price your animation work as well as considerations to explore when planning budgets for animation projects.
In his presentation, Ernest took the USIU students through defining the differences between pricing and budgeting, emphasizing the need to understand the project brief and being able to define the deliverables before preparing any quotations. He also took the students through a cost analysis process that enables creatives to make well-informed decisions that provide sustainable solutions for their businesses.
The team leader from Chomoka Studios further stressed the need for creatives to pay attention to ethical considerations when running their businesses, advising also that every creator needed to be armed with legal protection before getting into any contracts with a client. He encouraged working with legal consultants to counteract any conflicts.
As an active member of the Association of animation artistes Kenya (A3K), Ernest currently serves as a jury member of the annual Kalasha Film Awards courtesy of the KenyaFilm Commission.
