Second Animation for Development Workshop & Summit

Orlando

The UNICEF Second Animation for Development Workshop and Summit took place in Orlando, Florida from 14-18 November, 1994. Hosted by UNICEF with the help of Walt Disney Feature Animation, the workshop was designed to bring UNICEF staff, world class animators, non-governmental organizations and animation business leaders together for the first time to enhance child survival and development through creative communication. Over 62 countries were represented at the workshop, and more than 40 UNICEF field offices were in attendance. Animation industry leaders also answered the call, and the biggest names in international animation took part, including the following companies:

Academy for Educational Development, Atelier Camara Enfants Admis, ASIFA, Australian Children's Television Foundation, Bedford Productions, Cairo Cartoon Studio, Canal 3, The Children's Television Workshop, Chocodile Isle, Cinearte, Colossal Pictures, Fil-Cartoons, Film¢grapho, Galler Communications, Hanna-Barbera Cartoons, Hiroshima '94 Animation Festival, I Choose Me, Jamaican Broadcasting Corporation, John Canemaker Productions, Mauricio de Sousa Productions, MTV Music Television, Namibian Broadcasting Corporation, The National Film Board of Canada, National Film School of Denmark, Nickelodeon USA, Noyes & Laybourne, Pakistan Television Corporation, Plan International, Radda Barnen, School of Visual Arts, Start Desenhos Animados, Ltd., Street Kids International, Television Suisse Romande, Today for Tomorrow, Turkmenfilm, Turner Broadcasting, TVE, Walt Disney Feature Animation, Warner Bros. Feature Animation, Winton Hill Animation and World Media Partners.

Training
One of the main goals of the Orlando workshop was to teach UNICEF staff how to develop creative and interesting animation projects around serious issues. One entire day was devoted to bringing animators and UNICEF staff together to share knowledge and expertise in their respective areas during a lengthy storyboard development session. The group was broken up into sub-groups, each dealing with one of the following UNICEF themes:

• Oral Rehydration Therapy
• Gender Equality
• Conflict Resolution
• Nutrition
• Teenage Pregnancy
• Clean Water/Sanitation
• Child Labour
• HIV/AIDS

The purpose of the exercise was to give the animators a chance to go through all the important issues involved in introductory animation, such as concept development, storyboards, and character creation, while UNICEF staff members filled in the group about the critical issues pertaining to child survival and other developing issues concerning the fate of children worldwide.

The results of the exercise were revealed in the afternoon session, when each sub-group presented their final concept. At the end of the creative presentations, everyone voted on the favorite storyboard. The winner came from the Conflict Resolution group. The short animated spot featured two round creatures, one red and one green. After fighting with other and mistakenly picking up the wrong colored body parts, they must work together to put themselves back the way they belong.

 'Conflict Resolution" from Orlando

Keynote Speakers
The last two days of the workshop made up the summit, and leaders from the animation industry presented keynote addresses, including:

• Roy Disney, Vice Chairman of the Board, The Walt Disney Company and Member of the Board, United States Committee for UNICEF - The Power of Animation
• Michel Ocelot, President, International Animation Society, ASIFA - Visual Creativity and the Development Process: The Animator's Unique Role
• Barrie Angus McLean, Executive Producer of English Animation, The National Film Board of Canada - Animation and Social Responsibility
• Geraldine Laybourne, President, Nickelodeon - Kids Deserve to Be Heard: How an Animator Can Respond
• Stephen Lewis, Special Advisor to the Executive Director, UNICEF - A Call to Action

 

Results
As the week came to a close, networking was widespread and the level of excitement was high among participants, UNICEF staff and animation industry leaders alike. The week concluded with the signing of the following declaration by over 60 animators from all over the world:

Animation is a universal medium which can help to empower children and parents with knowledge. Knowledge which can save and enrich lives. As leading animators committed to children's well-being and to the full achievement of rights enshrined in the Convention of the Rights of the Child, we offer to work with UNICEF to this end. Through the animation for development network for children which we establish here today, we will contribute our advice and skills to the development of animation for the rights of the child.

 

The Second Animation for Development Workshop and Summit was the birth place of a number of current UNICEF animation initiatives, including the International Animation Consortium for Child Rights.