Anniversary

Creative Multimedia's 14th Anniversary Celebrations
A landmark event, that's now, the buzz in the industry.

Creative Multimedia celebrated 14 years of leadership in Animation, VFX, Web and Graphics Education, amidst industry veterans on Sunday, the 22nd of July 2012 at Hyderabad from 10.00 a.m. to 7.00 p.m. It was an eventful day that witnessed many memorable and inspiring moments.

Raja Sekhar B, CEO of Creative Multimedia delivered the inaugural address after inaugurating the event by lighting the lamp with the Chief Guest Vaibhav Kumaresh, one of the most prolific and sought-after Animation Film Makers in India and Director of Vaibhav Studios, Mumbai. Post the inaugural, Vaibhav thanked the CEO Raja Sekhar for inviting him to the 14th Anniversary celebrations. Drawing analogies with Creative Multimedia, he said that it was his 14th anniversary as well, because he too commenced his career in 1998, the year in which Creative Multimedia was established.

Mr. Raja Sekhar in his inaugural address welcomed all the students, alumni, parents, staff and well-wishers to the extravaganza. Reminding the gathering that it was World Parent's Day today, he urged everyone to wish their parents. On behalf of the Creative Multimedia, he reiterated the academy's commitment to imparting world-class, outcome-driven education and stated proudly that the academy has been setting the standards in the industry every since its inception.

Assuring parents and students that they were in safe hands, Mr. Raja Sekhar listed out the multiple value-additions being provided by the academy with the singular objective of enhancing employability, promoting class-leading talent and shaping winning careers. Before leaving the floor for the action ahead, he signed off with some profound words for students: "Give to the world, the best you have and the best will come back to you", "Compete with yourself and get better everyday", "Always look for win-win relationships". At Creative Multimedia, these are the three things that regulate our every action and thought.

The Chief Guest was welcomed onto the stage with bouquets presented by students.

Vaibhav launched DNA Inc^™'s latest 3D Animation short film 'Frog's Day Out' to a rousing applause. Commending the team on the brilliant effort, he exclaimed: I am particularly impressed with the lighting and 'look & feel' of the film.

Speaking to the press from the sidelines of the show, a parent, after watching the film was effusive in praise for DNA Inc^™., saying: the commitment of Creative Multimedia in grooming studio-ready Animation artists is evident in the brilliance of the film. Though I know very little about animation, I can tell you that the quality of the film is top-class. That the academy has established DNA Inc^™. to give Animation students practical exposure to film making under the guidance of industry-experienced mentors shows that it is genuinely willing to travel the extra mile to equip students with the competitive edge.

Vaibhav engaged students with an educative yet entertaining presentation on the 'HOW' of Animation film making. Employing wit and wisdom, he held stage for over two hours dishing out case studies, screenings, animatics, behind-the-scenes trivia and critical tips on effective film making. Treating students to some of his best works, including Television commercials (for Vodafone, Amaron Batteries, Clinic Plus, Everyday 360 LED and Sagar Cements), Channel ID's (MTV, Nickelodeon), TV Shows (Galli Galli Sim Sim – Pogo), the endearing Simpu character for Channel V and some public service films.

The OOGA BOOGA promo on cricket for Neo Sports had students in splits as hoots, whistles and claps rent the air: the hall reverberated with applause for the sheer brilliance of the film. Perhaps, this was a tribute to the master film maker and his creative magic.

"You have to be a carpenter, a tailor, a painter and everything as you have to create an entire world" he said, as he went about educating students on the frame-by-frame process of puppet/clay animation. Stressing on the importance of sketching, he encouraged students to keep doodling and said: "this is the most important exercise if you are in the animation business. It's the best way to keep your observation active. Sketch whatever you see and don't copy from books. Develop your own natural style."

Dedicating over forty five minutes for a session on Stop Motion Animation, Vaibhav screened the Bulaadi commercial and used it as a case study to explain the process in-depth. During the course of this session, he delved at length on miniature models and materials, Scale markings, armatures, lighting tests and track points, taking students on a steep learning curve. It was undoubtedly, a rare and exclusive opportunity for these budding Animation artists of Creative Multimedia to receive practical insights of the craft from a seasoned professional who is considered amongst the finest Animation talents India has produced. What more can a career aspirant ask for?

Skillfully packaged and delivered in a thoroughly professional manner, the enriching presentation by Vaibhav turned out to be a great opportunity for students as the master craftsman took them on a steep learning curves, introducing them, along the way, to such industry jargon as Exposure sheets, Animatics, Doodles, Ladders and Blocking techniques apart from offering powerful tips to navigate the production process efficiently.

The post-lunch session witnessed another brilliant presentation on the art and practice of Animation by Praveen Kilaru of Rhythm and Hues. Employing some of the best works of Rhythm and Hues Animation studio as a platform, Praveen dissected the production pipeline on a student level and dealt at length on each stage of the workflow to give students a near-real picture of the methods / techniques adopted by leading studios to put together a great Animation film. The presentation ended with a big round of applause for Praveen as he wrapped up the enriching show with a humble 'Thank You'.

Late in the evening, just as the energy levels in the hall seemed to be dipping, in came Senthil Kumar, the DOP for such widely acclaimed VFX-driven Telugu films as Arundhati, Magadheera and EEGA to a standing ovation. He almost bolted through the aisle, shook hands with Raja Sekhar and breezed onto the stage. Wasting not a minute, he smartly chose to conduct an interactive Q&A session instead of a formal presentation to make it more interesting and to-the-point for the students who were visibly pregnant with doubts on VFX.

Volunteers had a tough time running up to students and passing on the mike as hands kept popping up across the hall, eager for a public audience with the star cinematographer: the speed at which he dismissed queries making it no easier for them. Cool as a cucumber, he took on questions with characteristic ease, shattering myths and demystifying VFX for these eager green horns. Spot-on with a no-nonsense attitude and shooting straight at the heart of the query, he packed philosophy and inspiration as well into each response say: "embracing challenge is the only way to progress, never fear failure for it's the key to accumulating unique knowledge, develop a deep sense of curiosity and be a furious learner."

Students just lapped up the inspiration and probably couldn't have enough as the applause kept shifting gears to higher decibel levels. The session happened so quickly that if you were blinking on a thought or were shuffling around for some drinking water, you probably missed something very interesting.

Such was the curiosity and energy of students that the questions kept coming at Senthil like friendly arrows, and the CEO had to intervene to avoid any possible inconvenience to the special guest. He quickly stepped onto the stage and gently announced the end of the Q&A session. Not one to leave a student disappointed and at his charming best, Senthil eagerly offered to take a few more questions and the students had their way, thanks to Senthil's wonderful gesture. He congratulated Mr. Raja Sekhar for pushing the limits of excellence and helping Creative Multimedia to stay on the top for 14 years. He was impressed with the word 'Pixellence®' in the academy's tagline and wished all the students 'pixellence®' in their careers.

In between all these enlightening sessions was a rocking medley of entertainment: a dance here and a song there. Some brilliantly scripted skits sprayed laughter gas in the air as the crowd went gasping for breath. Right till the end, the stage never lost colour for even one fleeting moment as each program turned the venue into a sumptuous rainbow of fun for everyone to feast on, merrily.

A humdinger of a promo showcasing Pixel FX's advanced CG capabilities was launched by K.K. Senthil Kumar to a deafening applause. The promo shot on-location at Creative Multimedia Academy's global-standard campus was created using complicated 'live-action and VFX integration techniques'. The promo team included 35 CG Artists trained at Creative Multimedia and recruited by Pixel FX to work on its Telugu film projects pipeline (most recently, 'Dookudu').

On the occasion of the 14th Anniversary, the celebrations were preceded by a Blood Donation Camp at the academy's sprawling campus on Thursday, the 19th of July, 2012 from 10.00 a.m. to 6.00 p.m. In association with Red Cross Society, Creative Multimedia organized the camp as part of its social responsibility initiatives. With over 200 volunteers including students and staff, it turned out to be one of the largest blood donation camps conducted at any Digital Media Academy in India.

All the fun came to a grinding halt with the prize distribution ceremony. The prestigious Prodigi Awards instituted by Creative Multimedia and aimed at honouring outstanding student talent were presented to the winners by the CEO Raja Sekhar. A thank you note later, after the gathering left, the venue wore a deserted look but seemed as if it was decked up and ready for VFX-2016 - Creative Multimedia's 15th Anniversary celebrations.
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