Joyce Rudolph
Sometimes the best notions come to people chatting over a good meal at
a local restaurant, and that's where the idea for The Animation Academy
was born. Charles Zembillas, president of the animation school, says it
was founded in the back of the Coral Cafe in Burbank.
Today the school, which also does a lot of professional production,
occupies the second floor of a building on Olive Avenue, says the 17-year
Burbank resident.
The positive feedback he's received from local studios that hire his
graduates, he says, has proved his is an effective school, offering
training in the basics of animation, character animation and
preproduction design. Many of his graduates working in the industry come
back to teach.
He'll be offering career guidance and recruiting students at the
Animation Expo 2000 today at the Glendale Civic Auditorium. The trade
show and interactive educational event is hosted by ASIFA-Hollywood, the
international animated film society, and sponsored by The Hollywood
Reporter. Workshops and panels will take place at Glendale Community
College.
Zembillas will be reviewing porfolios of the people interested in
employment in the industry who come up to the academy's booth, he says.
"I will give them a very honest critique of their skill level," he
says.
He will either recruit them for his school, recommend another one more
in line with their skills or, if they are at a professional level, will
recommend them to an animation studio.
The academy offers different levels of internships, from discounts on
classes to paid opportunities, and the chance to get professional
experience.
"(The expo) is good for us because we can make new contacts and reach
out to people who are serious about making animation their career," he
says. "We can guide them in a way that is beneficial to them as well as
us."
The expo was started seven years ago by Antran Manoogian, president of
ASIFA-Hollywood chapter. Its purpose is to provide an event not only for
the professional animator but those interested in getting into the
industry, he says.
"So whether it be visiting exhbitors or taking a seminar or workship,
we trust there is something there everyone can benefit from regardless of
their level of experience," he says.
In his 13th year as president of animation society, a volunteer
position, Manoogian is employed as an associate producer at Walt Disney
Television Animation. He oversees the creation of a production, keeping
