E-Critiques: A Student's Perspective
By: Brad Bradbury
One of the biggest challenges given to an education system like AnimationMentor.com must be the challenge of how to deliver appropriate, insightful, and inspiring information, while judging a student's work. It's a delicate balance of giving advice, and explaining what is wrong, as an instructor must be honest enough to give the student the perspective to understand the students' abilities, yet not be too harsh to the point of pushing students into despair and hopelessness. They must judge the work for it's merit and continue to provide the student an understanding of the quality of the industry. So how can an effective, personal, one-on-one critique be delivered to a student through an online animation program such as AnimationMentor.com?? The cutting technology of choice at AnimationMentor.com is an 'e-critique'.
In an e-critique, students receive a taped critique of their weekly work in their workspace online. The videos include a brief intro, with the Mentor discussing the strengths and weaknesses of the piece overall. Using a drawing tool as part of the system, mentors will correct the poses of animation or still images, pointing out areas of improvement visually. Mentors will end with some kind of encouraging statement reiterating strengths and reinforcing hope in the works revision.
I have found this e-critique format, as it is employed by AnimationMentor.com, to be quite effective at delivering the feedback I need about my assignments. There are many benefits to this online method of critiquing animation work. First of all, AnimationMentor provides students with access to the opinions of some of the best-known working professional animators in the industry. Imagine the euphoria at knowing that Victor Navone, the Pixar animator with a large internet following would be reviewing my first terms assignments. The video format is much more effective at giving the students a connection to a real person over a critique via e-mail. It's truly an inviting experience as you can see the Mentor in his environment reviewing your work. For me, the ability to watch a taped critique is a big advantage. Often during the term, I will review the critique more than once to take notes, and truly understand and digest the informational review given to me. For animation, a frame-by-frame assessment is often necessary. Using a drawing tool, arcs and spacing and other issues are dealt with by drawing in corrected poses, or explaining concepts through drawing. This is an ideal method for the student that learns better visually.
An e-critique also takes the hostility out of the relationship between teacher and student. On occasion, I am not ready emotionally to take advice. This happens to artists with a particular amount of personal investment in the work. With a taped critique, I can watch the tape when I am in the correct frame of mind, in the comfort of my own home and the safety of my environment. This really lightens the pressure of a tough critique sounding like a sermon I'm not interested in hearing. Any emotions of misunderstanding or frustration over the critique can be dealt with privately first and then questions can be asked later to get better clarification and truly learn from ones mistakes.
Another advantage used by AnimationMentor.com is that personal critiques can by viewed by anyone in the system. This really expands the knowledge of everyone by really utilizing the power behind the infiniteness of the internet. In a live setting, a teacher may go though everyone's work in a class 20-30 people. Students have to listen to every critique, often with the teacher repeating similar concepts. Online, the dynamic truly expands itself exponentially when you have the ability to listen to other mentors explaining similar concepts regardless of class level. I can listen and learn from a student's mistakes two classes above me, or I can review how well new students are learning a lesson I struggled with in the last class. I have the ability to pick and choose, fast-foreword, or listen multiple times.
This kind of personal feedback is crucial to a blossoming artist. It gives them the direction and guidance to push their work in the appropriate places to become more successful on a number of levels. Deadlines are given and work is reviewed in a reflective manner pointing out both good and bad qualities. A video critique gives the animator's moving visual reference to explain concepts and express ideas, and learn from mistakes. AnimationMentor.com connects students from across the world to each other, and to working professions through a common interest, a passion and love for animation.
In an e-critique, students receive a taped critique of their weekly work in their workspace online. The videos include a brief intro, with the Mentor discussing the strengths and weaknesses of the piece overall. Using a drawing tool as part of the system, mentors will correct the poses of animation or still images, pointing out areas of improvement visually. Mentors will end with some kind of encouraging statement reiterating strengths and reinforcing hope in the works revision.
I have found this e-critique format, as it is employed by AnimationMentor.com, to be quite effective at delivering the feedback I need about my assignments. There are many benefits to this online method of critiquing animation work. First of all, AnimationMentor provides students with access to the opinions of some of the best-known working professional animators in the industry. Imagine the euphoria at knowing that Victor Navone, the Pixar animator with a large internet following would be reviewing my first terms assignments. The video format is much more effective at giving the students a connection to a real person over a critique via e-mail. It's truly an inviting experience as you can see the Mentor in his environment reviewing your work. For me, the ability to watch a taped critique is a big advantage. Often during the term, I will review the critique more than once to take notes, and truly understand and digest the informational review given to me. For animation, a frame-by-frame assessment is often necessary. Using a drawing tool, arcs and spacing and other issues are dealt with by drawing in corrected poses, or explaining concepts through drawing. This is an ideal method for the student that learns better visually.
An e-critique also takes the hostility out of the relationship between teacher and student. On occasion, I am not ready emotionally to take advice. This happens to artists with a particular amount of personal investment in the work. With a taped critique, I can watch the tape when I am in the correct frame of mind, in the comfort of my own home and the safety of my environment. This really lightens the pressure of a tough critique sounding like a sermon I'm not interested in hearing. Any emotions of misunderstanding or frustration over the critique can be dealt with privately first and then questions can be asked later to get better clarification and truly learn from ones mistakes.
Another advantage used by AnimationMentor.com is that personal critiques can by viewed by anyone in the system. This really expands the knowledge of everyone by really utilizing the power behind the infiniteness of the internet. In a live setting, a teacher may go though everyone's work in a class 20-30 people. Students have to listen to every critique, often with the teacher repeating similar concepts. Online, the dynamic truly expands itself exponentially when you have the ability to listen to other mentors explaining similar concepts regardless of class level. I can listen and learn from a student's mistakes two classes above me, or I can review how well new students are learning a lesson I struggled with in the last class. I have the ability to pick and choose, fast-foreword, or listen multiple times.
This kind of personal feedback is crucial to a blossoming artist. It gives them the direction and guidance to push their work in the appropriate places to become more successful on a number of levels. Deadlines are given and work is reviewed in a reflective manner pointing out both good and bad qualities. A video critique gives the animator's moving visual reference to explain concepts and express ideas, and learn from mistakes. AnimationMentor.com connects students from across the world to each other, and to working professions through a common interest, a passion and love for animation.