Department of Animation Cinema
About the department
The Department of Animation Cinema at the Satyajit Ray Film and Television Institute is new and geared to take in students for a three year Post Graduate course in Animation Cinema. Recognizing Animation Art as Cinema, the department has a view in re-inventing its learning. It intends and hopes to shift perceptions of Animation from ‘the cartoon’ to a form that is an extension of the plastic Arts with Cinematic Expression . With a distinguished visiting faculty, the Department’s faculty is equipped to teach Hand Drawn Classical Animation as well as Computer aided Animation techniques,Sequential Art, Game Design and Visual Effects. Drawing out the collaborative spirit of movie making, the Department has an open and inclusive philosophy to function as a crucible for the aesthetics and sensibilities of modern moving image making.
Course Objective
Animation activity in our country has largely been that of creating humor by moving supple cartoons about. And in doing so, we seem to have easily adopted a way of telling that is much away from our true sensibilities. Very rarely has Animation here been seen as a form of Cinema that can provoke thought , entertain, educate and inform with true dynamics of able narratives. The method of learning conceived at the Department of Animation Cinema explores our own ways of telling, our signs and gestures, and our theatre and narrative traditions to construct a unique language and grammar for the art. It thus hopes to bring in an intellectual foothold for Indian Animation Cinema that is clearly lacking today. A ‘reason for being’ that will bring in a true Avant Garde to the much needed times, to re-engineer andshape an animation that is ours.
Course Duration
3 Years Divided into 6 Semesters.
Total No of Seats
12 (Twelve)
Eligibility Criteria
Bachelor’s Degree in any discipline.
Candidates successful in the Joint Entrance Test (JET) will be called for Orientation and Interview.
Final merit list will be prepared on the basis of written examination(JET), orientation and interview.
Faculty & Academic Support Staff
Argha Sengupta
— Associate Professor
Graduate in Bachelor of Science (physiology) from Kolkata University and a Post Graduate Diploma in animation film design from National Institute of Design, Ahmedabad India. He has more than 20 years of experience in Computer Graphics, 2D & 3D Animation, Game Design and Visual FX for Feature Films & Television. Started his career as a Senior Visualizer and then subsequently been the Creative Director & Visual FX Supervisior with a leading Animatiion Studio in Mumbai, India. He has creatively supervised animation and visual FX production for various international DVD features, game cinematics and animated television kids series for Studios like Nickelodeon UK, BBC-1 UK, Tiger-Hare Studios USA, Electronic Arts Inc, Walt Disney, Visionscape International USA, Rag-doll UK and Brown Bag UK.
Suvobrata Roy Chowdhury
—Assistant Professor
Studied Graphic Art at Visva-Bharati, Santiniketan. After a brief stint in television with Television 18 India Ltd he went on to do his Masters in Graphic Art from M.S. University of Baroda, where he taught for a year after graduating. He joined Satyajit Ray Film and Television Institute in 1999. He further studied Animation Film Production at DeAnza College, California, USA, while working at the Satyajit Ray Film and Television Institute. He has written, produced and directed two independent short animation films.
Facilities
Department of Animation Cinema is a large block with three floors of ample studio space and lecture halls. It has state-of-the-art Computers in three large labs be sides a workshop for stop motion animation with modular rostrums and digital cameras. It has classical animation Class Rooms with independent line testing equipment for each table. Computer Animation Labs and Drawing class rooms are open during class hours for practice. Certified and licensed software for image acquisition and articulation at every station and in the professional lab meant for final outputs is another plus for the department. The Department sits next to a large pond among lawns and sprawling trees and close to the Film library of SRFTI.
