<p>Hi all,
DS is having to make a tough decision between his top two choice school for Digital Arts: USC School of Cinema Arts or Chapman-Dodge (which he has loved since Day 1). Recently, he got a nice inside view of Dodge's digital arts major from a current student (who is very happy there!). He has the current student's permission to share it here, since it may be helpful to other prospective students. There seems to be a lot of info available on film production at the various programs, but less on animation, esp regarding how the various tracks/specialties (2D, 3D, Visual Fx) are handled. So, here is a current student's scoop on Digital Arts at Dodge: </p>
<p>"2D is given just as much emphasis as 3D, at least from my personal observation. All freshmen are required to take a fully 2D course called Mechanics of Motion. We are given assignments, from the basic bouncing ball, to more complex assignments all must be done in 2D either on paper, photoshop, etc. The school provides students with light boxes, and reams of animation paper, which can be checked out through Dodges Goldroom.
Most animation professors are trained in traditional animation, including the director of our program Bill Kroyer, who was Oscar-nominated for his 2D short film Technological Threat.</p>
<p>After this initial class, students are given the choice to pursue 3D or 2D within the animation track. I believe there are a few seniors who are making 2D shorts for their senior thesis, and they are receiving just as much support from the faculty as the 3D and VFX based thesis. In addition, there is a class offered that teaches the students ToonBoom, which is the software used on many 2D cartoons and tv shows.</p>
<p>2D is definitely observed as the foundation for all 3D animation and all students are required to take basic drawing and life drawing (Graphics I/II for Digital Arts) classes during their freshman year.</p>
<p>Tablets are helpful but not necessary if you dont mind spending a lot of time in the film school. We have 3 Digital Arts suites that have a Cintiq tablet in them, which are huge and have great sensitivity. They are excellent for 2D work, as well as digital painting and design.</p>
<p>Internships: definitely based on the motivation of the individual but some places that current/graduate students have worked at include:
Artistic Development/Production Intern/Mocap Supervisor at Dreamworks
Production Intern at Nickelodeon
Full-Time/Part-Time employment at Ember Lab (Orange based VFX studio)
Blizzard Entertainment
Digital Domain</p>
<p>We have also received internships opportunities from numerous smaller companies, as well as Mattel, Disney Animation, Rhythm and Hues, The Third Floor Previz, etc. but those results are not yet out for this year. Students get credit for their internships, so it makes balancing class and interning much more manageable.</p>
<p>The professors are great! Because it is a private school, the students have a huge amount of contact and classroom time provided. We also have some awesome adjunct faculty from the industry. This excerpt is taken directly from an email I was sent last semester:
Jim Schlenker is teaching FTV 322-01 DESIGN THEORY. *Jim is currently Production Designer on the CARS sequel PLANES. *He has an amazing resume in 2D and 3D film design and has taught design before, so that class will be an invaluable chance to hone your design fundamentals and learn about current production processes.</p>
<p>Leigh Rens is teaching FTV 356-01, INTERMEDIATE CHARACTER ANIMATION. *Leigh is a great animator (has taught on Animation Mentor since 2008) and knows every trick in MAYA. *He recently prevised the tower sequence for Brad Bird in Mission Impossible 4.</p>
<p>Gil Zimmerman is teaching FTV 329-01, PREVISUALIZATION. *This is the first time we've offered previs. *You may have attended Gil's seminar last Fall. * He's currently head of layout on HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON, but will also be focusing on previs for live action FX movies in this course.</p>
<p>Fred Cline returns to teach FTV 385 CHARACTER DESIGN. *If you've seen Fred's website you know how experienced he is in this field.</p>
<p>Definitely some very talented people here at Chapman!""</p>