In Singapore, schools are looking to animation for more creative ways to teach national education, reports ChannelNewsAsia.com.
A particular video using sand art, which was screened at the National Day Rally, is the result of four months of hard work. The skydiving sequence alone took 10 days to create.
Mui Rui Yi, student, CHIJ St. Joseph's Convent, said, "We actually have to rehearse it 80 times, and when we feel we are ready, we did the filming, and then we actually have to film about 60 times, then we took the best part of it."
Audrey Heng, student, CHIJ St. Joseph's Convent, said, "There (were) many mediums of animation to choose from, but sand animation was the best. The pictures were very complicated like the PSA Port, the Merlion also, and from Merlion to be transited to PSA port, it can only be done best by the sand animation."
Upper secondary school students at the school took animation as an elective, using their skills when the Central National Education Office got them to create a clip for the Total Defense Campaign.
This year, the Office is holding an animation competition for secondary schools, and 31 schools have already submitted proposals.
Iris Teh, art coordinator, CHIJ St. Joseph's Convent, said, "We don't want to make National Education a really serious affair for them, so this is when cartoon and animation comes in... The message can come across really easily."
The school says it plans to offer animation as an elective to students of all levels in 2007.
Rick DeMott
Animation World Network
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