Animation filmmaking involves many professions, theoretical and technical knowledge, and skills. In addition to story construction and directorial grasp, which are fundamental, the filmmaker must also understand editing, sound, music, camera, artistic flair, and skills. He should be a good animator, actor, have a sense of movement and time, encompass multiple animation techniques, both handheld and digital, both three-dimensional and three-dimensional. He should be able to direct both artistically and practically. He should have vision, a distinctive point of view and the ability to lead a team. And above all, he should have a passion for animation, for creating new stories and, above all, new worlds, because the animator is the creator.
From the above, it is clear that an animation student has a lot to learn. Moreover, animation is inherently time-consuming to create, and it doesn’t matter if the film is 2D or 3D, digital, puppet or painted under the camera. Each technique has its own specifics, and while all filmmakers around the world try to make a film as quickly as possible, all techniques end up taking almost the same amount of time.
Since its foundation, our department has been based on the fundamental aesthetic view that animation is a type of dramatic art. The basis of the work of our students is the short animated film, which is a distinctive artistic film format and a starting point for other types and forms of animation. We strive to recognize the individual talent of each student, to help them execute their film to convey what the filmmaker intends. We guide students to ensure that their films have both content and overlap, that they communicate with the viewer, and we emphasize the animation representation and the aesthetic value of their work. Our goal is to educate animation directors as individuals with artistic vision and practical skills, filmmakers who have cinematic and aesthetic sensibilities, education and insight.
The Department of Animated Film is made up of a well-coordinated team of internal and external educators, active and renowned animation filmmakers, experienced and passionate teachers with a deep knowledge of the profession. We all teach with love and selflessly share our hard-earned experience and knowledge with the younger generation.
We build the lessons around a short film where students experience all aspects of filmmaking. With their knowledge, they can then create music videos, commercials, and later series and feature films. Our graduates find employment as directors, animators, storyboarders, illustrators and scriptwriters. Some of them are working on their own films, directing their own films, collaborating on films by other directors. Some find themselves in other professions, so necessary for the creation of an animated film – they are animators, animation directors, create storyboards, etc. etc. Most of the graduates stay in the animation field, sometimes branching out into feature films.
We try to offer students as many theoretical and practical subjects as possible during their studies. At the same time, we have to give students as much space as possible to realize their films and choose the subjects carefully. The curricula and courses are continuously adjusted, responding to new formats, trends, and tendencies in the field of animation. Some of them will remain a fixed part of the curricula, others will be dropped over time. Thus, in recent years, the Anidok exercise and the course Feature Animated Film and Series have been added to the curricula, while the course Videomapping has been reduced. The Guest Seminar is attended by local and foreign filmmakers, directors, producers, artists, founders of animation studios. Internationally renowned directors come to the masterclasses and workshops every year, expanding the horizons of our students. During their studies and especially on their bachelor and master films, students collaborate with professional animation productions and studios – Animation people, MAUR film, Alkay Animation. They develop their projects within CEE Animation and in Cannes.
The success of our students and their films at international film festivals is proof of the success of the parameters set by our department. Films of our department regularly appear in the broader (and narrower) nominations for the student Oscar, BAFTA, CILECT, at the festivals in Annecy, Cannes, Berlin, etc. These successes have a huge motivational value for the creators themselves, but they are also an award for the animation department, for FAMU and, dare I say, for our republic.
Some of the most prominent names recently are Daria Kashcheeva (Student Oscar and Oscar nomination for Daughter, awards for Electra), Katerina Karhankova (The New Species, Cloud Fruits), Jan Saska (Happy End), Anna Bára Stejskalová (Love Is Just a Death Away), Diana Cam Van Nguyen (Love, Dad).
Current students are also already experiencing their first successes.
I am sure that the Department of Animated Film and its students and graduates will successfully continue the long and great tradition of Czech animation. Because animation is life, joy, it is blood, sweat and tears but also a mission, a fulfilment of life.
