Joseph Gilland.

A few years ago, on a gorgeous sunny day in Annecy, I ran into the director of the animation program at the Filmakademie in Ludwigsburg, Germany, Thomas Haegele. We were both looking to get one of the free shuttle bicycles you can take from the main theatre to the palace during the animation festival, but the bicycles were all taken already, and so we decided to walk together instead of waiting for a bike. A pleasant proposition on such a glorious day, to take the half-hour walk along the lakeshore to the palace.

So we set off, and of course we talked about animation, and in particular, teaching animation. At the time, I was the head of the classical animation program at the Vancouver Film School, as well as the digital character animation program, which was new ground for me. I was passionately trying to get my head around just how animation should be taught in this digital age, and I had (and still have) some very strong feelings about the way things are being done at a lot of animation schools around the world. And so I climbed up on my soapbox as we walked together, and began my tirade on how everybody these days seems obsessed with computers. As we walked, I became more and more animated. I began to gesture wildly and raise my voice. "Everywhere I go," I exclaimed, "I see young artists looking for inspiration and solutions inside their computers! They spend less and less time observing nature, and really looking at life! We've got to teach them to stop thinking that the computer is an end in itself. We've got to teach them to use their imaginations, the real supercomputer that is their brain! And then, take that infinite cosmic intelligence to the computer, and make it sing."

Thomas stopped me right there, and said "Joseph, I would love it if you could bring that message to my students at the Filmakademie. Would you consider doing a workshop there?"

And so I began concocting a workshop entitled "An Organic Approach to Visual Effects Animation" and, the following year, I went to the Filmakademie and tried it out on the unsuspecting students there. Although it was deemed a success that first year, and I received wonderful feedback from the students, it wasn't an entirely smooth workshop. I knew I had the basic pieces in place, but it wasn't polished, it was rough around the edges, and I felt that it needed to be much better. I reached only a small percentage of the students who attended, or at least that's how it felt. But it went well enough for Thomas to invite me back the following year, and the year after that as well.

Which brings me to the topic of this story. This year, my effects workshop really came to life. The students who attended were extremely receptive, and really willing to listen and consider what I was proposing to them: To stop looking at their computers, to look elsewhere for their inspiration. To try drawing, even if they don't particularly like drawing. To take on their visual effects challenges with their imaginations, with paper and pencils, and cameras. To get off their butts, walk away from the Internet, get outdoors and try whatever they could think of to learn about the effects they want to bring to life.

First of all, a little background on the Filmakademie's unique approach to "teaching" animation, and filmmaking in general. The Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg, as it is properly called, was founded in 1991. Today it is one of the world's most renowned film schools. The Filmakademie offers courses in production, screenwriting, film music and sound design, advertising, feature film production, cinematography, cinematic experimentation, documentary filmmaking, interactive media, science and educational filmmaking, film acting, technology for film and video production, and of course, animation, and technical direction for animation and visual effects. Their extremely project-oriented curriculum espouses "learning by doing," which is a catchy line I have heard from a great many films schools and animation schools, but from what I have seen, the Filmakademie comes much closer than most to actually delivering on that promise. Film projects at the school are approached professionally, with a producer, director and a crew, a real budget, full-blown preproduction, planning and execution. And just as in the real world, it gets crazy, and lots of things don't go exactly according to plan, but it is an exemplary model of how to really teach filmmaking, by doing it, just like the catchy slogan says.

In 2002 the Baden-Württemberg Film Academy and Thomas Haegele established the Institute of Animation, Visual Effects and Digital Postproduction. On top of animated short films, visual effects, real-time animation and other animation-driven formats, the Institute offers a special program for students interested in technical direction as well. As a result, it has become a wonderful melting pot for students who are interested purely in the artistic, creative side of animation filmmaking, and students who are passionate about the far more technical aspects of creating high-end visual effects and cutting-edge animation.

One of the most important philosophies of the animation institute is that they do not teach students how to use animation software. Students who apply are expected to be proficient in their craft to some degree before they get to the Filmakademie, so that the focus is on honing your craft, and learning how to make films. There are students working in every conceivable animation medium at the school. Hand-drawn 2D animation, stop motion, 2.5D hybrids, 3D, you name it, they are doing it. And there is no bias as to whether you work with XSI, 3ds Max, Maya, Flash, Toonboom, whatever. This is a refreshing break from the corporate-style, sponsor-driven schools that feel like advertisements for the software giants.

No, the Filmakademie sticks to teaching students how to make films. What a concept! And they do so by inviting scores of animation professionals from all over the industry to conduct short courses and specialized workshops throughout the student's time at the school. There are no tired old teachers who have been dragging their asses down the same old hallways for the last twenty years, teaching out of the same course outline they did a century ago. Rather, there is a constant coming and going of vibrant industry professionals who are actively engaged in their craft, passionately sharing their experience and insight.