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Triumph of ideas
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Original concepts rolled out when SS Channel announced its animation award. Here are the winners
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"Timepass," they say, but no one believes them. Deepak and Anand have won SS Music's Animate! 2005, a nation-wide contest that called for applicants to create "irresistibly original ideas that'll challenge the boundaries of animation". They know they've sweated on it, but choose to sound breezy when asked how they managed it.
The contest was held on the occasion of SS Music's fourth anniversary on April 14, and required applicants to come up with Music Identities (MID - the random 30 sec montage that channels air) and Character Designs that represent the spirit of the channel. Haribabu, On Air Promotions Executive, SS Music, says the winners are clearly a cut above the rest of the 700-odd entries, because "they're funny, and have used cell animation." Cell animation implies that every frame in the animation is hand-drawn, and transferred on to the computer, where it is run in quick succession for continuity. Not only is this extremely time-consuming given the time period of 30 days, but it also faces competition from the faster, more colourful 2D and 3D animations.
Deepak and Anand have made a 30-second MID with pencil sketches of a musical crow trying to get a dry water pump to work. Where the alaap and the Saturday Night groove fail, the `Anna Kiliyae' booming from a speaker on a cycle scores. "SS Music: 4 the people", the sign-off says. "Very impressive," says Haribabu. The other jury members from SAE College, Chennai, Garden City College, Bangalore, and Animaster were sufficiently pleased too.
As the winners (an architect, and a visual designer) nod gracefully at compliments thrown their way, Ravish and Vibin, the runners-up, wear their excitement on their sleeves. Both students of animation, they hadn't expected their amateur methods to get them to the top. "This is our very first project and we've been awarded!" beams Ravish. "This is life now... This is the sign for me to do this all my life," says Vibin, his jaw set. The second runners-up was the design team from Satyam - with their manpower, they completed their animation in three days.
The jury did not find the Character Design entries inspiring enough, and dumped the whole category. The winners of the MID received Rs. 70,000, and a Rs.15,000 scholarship to study animation at Garden City College. The runners-up received Rs.10,000 and scholarships. The best part, however, is that the top entries will be aired on SS Music for a year.
ROHINI MOHAN
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