RENCONTRES ANIMATION FORMATION 4th edition 15 and 16 November 2012 Angoulême Report 1. Industry figures Speakers : Benoît Danart (CNC) Stéphane Le Bars (SPFA) Kris Ludhor (AFDAS) Carole Perraut (Audiens) The following documents were presented and reviewed : The animation market , by Benoît Danart and Stéphane Le Bars Key employment figures in the production of animated films andvisual effects, by Carole Perraut Vocational training in the field of animation 2005-2011, by Kris Ludhor The video game market, by Benoît Danart The SPFA was pleased with the 2011 figures : 355 hours (+10,9 %) of new production o television screens, an average of 306 hours of animation each year between 2002 and 2011; 10 feature films. It also expressed its concerns about the draft communication submitted by the European Commission which seeks to improve movement of workers, and thus smooth the attractiveness of support mechanisms, thereby calling territorial expenditure into question. The CNC emphasized the need to maintain the French mechanism, with its exemplary nature, through the support of French producers. A distinction between professionals in animation and visual effects is under consideration for next year in the Audiens study. Significant progress was observed in the figures presented this year as the scope of the Audiens study is the same as that of the Afdas study. Afdas reported that there is a balance between contributions and expenditure. RECA announced that it would like to produce an assessment of the number of new diplomas appearing on the market each year, in collaboration with SPFA. 2. What is preproduction for ? Speakers : Stéphane Berry (Marathon Média) Marie-Pierre Journet (Moonscoop) Christophe Malcombe (storyboarder) Claire Paoletti (author) Patrick Schwerdtle (storyboarder) Pierre Siracusa (France Télévisions) Several contributions from authors and storyboarders reported recurring dysfunctions in the organization of preproduction in television series: Inadequate scenarios, incomplete graphic packs, general lack of communication between the various participants. ‘‘Yes, things do go awry but we should not let it happen!’’ Echoing last year’s exchanges, the storyboard brought together several contributions. Apart from the aforesaid dysfunctions, examples were given of its decreasing importance in favour of animatics, indeed, in the near future for some, of previsualization. However, a majority of speakers, representing schools and studios alike, reaffirmed its crucial importance as a ‘‘review of editorial choices’’ and a ‘‘maturation time when participants can -- must -- be brought together’’. The schools are committed to continue and even expand their training efforts in storyboard. The educators emphasized the maturity required for storyboard which very few graduates possess. Hence the importance of internships and, in general, a period of immersion in the studio alongside seasoned professionals. It was also noted that this step is devoted to assimilating new skills, based around the use of 3D tools. ‘‘In the past there was one way of doing things, and now there are several". The importance of layout was reaffirmed: ‘‘an excellent tool to lead students to the storyboard: They focus on a drawing, they learn its composition and we support this learning process by explaining that each stage should facilitate the work of the following stage.’’ And to sum up: ‘‘What should be taught in the schools ? Definitely not the tools ! The students should be taught to be intelligent. Regardless of the tools, it is essential to develop the ability to understand the image in order to be able to create more. 3. Teaching Mocap : where, when, how ? Speaker : Rémi Brun (Mocaplab) The speaker defines mocap as recording movement and distinguished two moments, shooting and processing : the shooting, ‘‘as a team, with the tension and stress of live action", calls for profiles which are more akin to cinema live action shots; processing is the phase of extracting the points, transferred onto a skeleton, retouching and possibly post-animation. This calls more for a computer graphics artist. Different training formats may be considered depending on the level of ambition. With a view to discovering and/or initiation: Several hours of presentation in each course; modules lasting several days, including at least one day of shooting. Real training would need a minimum of 3 to 4 months, which could be extended. ‘‘I am convinced that in 10 or 20 years, there will be training courses for movement engineers, over several years, just as there are now training courses for sound engineers. time » For which market ? The needs are not so great in animation but there are other opportunities: Advertising, art, research, video games, industry… When all these needs are added together, a training course becomes justified. We should start thinking seriously about it. » Several mocap training experiences are described by different schools. 4. Teaching sound Speaker : Bruno Seznec (Piste rouge) It is regrettable that people in visual arts have poor knowledge and understanding of sound. The budgets are inadequate: in a series, 2 to 3% of the overall budget, whereas @sound is 50% of the performance’’. The situation is better for feature films. The speaker shares an experience with the audience: Screenings of the same extract from the feature film Zarafa, without the soundtrack, then adding successively the dialogues, the music and the sound effects before showing the final mixed version. In this way, the contribution of each sound element becomes clear: Creation of the acoustic quality of the place where the character will speak, indication of the meaning of the scene through the dialogues, the atmosphere created by the music; the contributions of effects and sound effects: indicate a time, a geographical location, explain what is happening off-camera… There have been significant technical developments: 25 years ago, 30 or 40 tracks for a feature film; now, for a small production, 300 to 400 tracks. Hence the greater technical requirements, to which must be added the understanding of the emotional and psychological import conveyed by the sound. A technological change is announced, a major advance since 5.1: the Dolby Atmos system that supports up to 128 simultaneous audio tracks and up to 64 speaker feeds, with the possibility of automatic rendering to the equipment for all the screens. This is in line with the move towards a more complete immersion of the viewer in the sound environment and will obviously require specific training. 5. Round table : Employment practices in animation Speakers : Jack Aubert (SPFA/CPA) Laurent Blois (CGT-SPIAC) Maxime Legris (FICAM) Christophe Pauly (CFDT-F3C) In the context of the renegotiation of the unemployment compensation system for contract workers in the entertainment industry before the end of 2013, everybody recognizes the difficulty of the situation while bemoaning a lack of information (true number of contract workers, the amounts worked) concerning the figures put forward: payments made to 100,000 contract workers (but 150,000 people coming under other social arrangements and receiving no payments); a deficit of annexes 8 and 10 calculated at 1 Bn € (1.4 Bn € paid out for 400 M € in contributions from companies and, to a lesser extent, from employees). None of the speakers hopes for a ‘‘miracle solution’’. The CPA notes that the rate of unemployment insurance contributions in the entertainment industry is higher: 10.80% compared to 6.40% in the general scheme. It therefore considers that an increase in contributions is inappropriate. The question of the scope of the derogation scheme could be raised. The labour unions express their refusal of any form of stigmatisation and their determination to promote long-term employment ‘‘each time it is possible’’. For all that, it must not be forgotten that the mechanism in appendixes 8 and 10 is justified by the requirement to smooth a job which is not regular. The existence of this derogation scheme remains a professional necessity, even if it is difficult to justify it to other professional categories. ‘‘What will happen next year? No-one knows; for the moment, we do have not any concrete answers’’. It is noted that the representatives of employers’ and labour organizations who are present on the platform negotiate the collective labour agreements but do not run the unemployment compensation system. If the cursors are to be moved, it must occur at a higher level. In the past, simple recommendations were made but not adopted. An idea is put forward in the name of the CGT union: A system that would be less ‘‘compensatory but more supportive" in which contract workers with the highest salaries would receive proportionally lower payments, possibly with an upper limit’’. 6. Training and the global situation Speakers : Shelley Page (Dreamworks Animation) Jonathan Turner (Framestore) Shelley Page, who is head of international outreach for Dreamworks Animation, sets out the recruitment stakes linked to the international development of the studio, notably in India and China, then gives details of the Animation Mentor programme and the training situation in the United Kingdom. The skills sought by Dreamworks Animation traditionally presuppose artistic and technical excellence: To that may be added the capacity to look critically at one’s own work, good time management, the ability to learn all through one’s career, to work in a team, to supervise. The speaker notes, in the recent past, a (relative) ‘‘return to flexibility’’, to be interpreted as the ability to change the artistic, technical or even the geographical environment. The training situation in the United Kingdom seems to be marked by a polarisation between, on the one hand, a very academic approach, and on the other hand, programmes devoted to technical training. It seems that what made then reputation of the United Kingdom for many years has been lost: The ability to create animation characters. Yet there is one encouraging development: At the instigation of professionals, a reflection is under way concerning the desired content of training courses, as well as voicing of the realisation of the interest in producing skills locally.