“Is This Possible? Massive Online Inter-institutional Student Production” by Aoki, Joel, Ursyn and Pollak
Conference:
Type(s):
Title:
- Is This Possible? Massive Online Inter-institutional Student Production
Session/Category Title: TALKS: INTERDISCIPLINARY CIRCUS
Presenter(s)/Author(s):
Abstract:
The Massive Collaborative Animation Project is a multi-year, multischool, global animation production currently entering its second year of production. Initiated in the summer of 2016 at the annual SIGGRAPH conference in Anaheim, CA, by Dr. William Joel (Western Connecticut State University), the purpose of MCAP is to allow undergraduate students and faculty from institutions around the world to join together in the creation of an original computer animation. A single animation and visual effects production is a highly collaborative effort that utilizes multiple, interconnected teams. As such, industry needs workers that have experience with the intricacies involved in team-based projects. Many schools have animation components in their curricula, but may not have either the resources or student numbers to engage in the creation of extensive animation projects. By creating a platform for such schools to work together, sharing their resources and expertise, MCAP provides a mechanism to enrich these students’ educational experiences, as well as hopefully provide a model for other collaborative projects.
Acknowledgements:
We would like to thank all faculty members and students participating in the MCAP project and discussions for helping to move the project forward. We are especially grateful to the Ferris State University students in Jacob Pollak’s classes who worked on the management plan, the Northern Colorado University students in Anna Ursyn’s classes for their work on story development and Eric Ruggiero, Wilkes University and Johannes DeYong, Yale University for their wisdom and participation to the project.
