24-hour animation competition for students opens registration

25 September 2020

What could you animate in 24 hours? This year 24 HOURS: Animation competition for students will be hosted online from Friday 2 October to Saturday 3 October. This free event challenges students from around the world to compete in teams of five to produce a 30-second animated film in less than 24 hours. Now in its XNUMXth year, this challenge is hosted by animation professor Aubry Mintz, at California State University, Long Beach.

The final 30 second films will be judged by a voluntary panel of esteemed animation professionals:

Galen Chu - Director at Blue Sky Studios.
Alexandra Sorrentino - Story Artist at Blue Sky Studios.
Karina Gazizova - Director Extravagant races, Active Storyboard Artist Teen Titans GO!, Technical Director at Studio RedFrog, France.
Mark Ackland - Active Storyboard Artist Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, Wander Over Yonder e Mickey mouse shorts.
Lesley Headrick - Director Remy & Boo, Creative Director of Studio su Paw Patrol.
Eric Calderón - Development Director, Show Runner and Producer.
Alison Mann - VP Creative / Strategy at Sony Pictures Animation.

Students interested in competing can now register their team of five online.

2019 ranked first asdfjkl.psd (Rangit University, Thailand)

“This competition has expanded rapidly, adding more than 300 students each year to a growing list of entrants,” Mintz said. “In 2019, there were 291 teams from 65 schools, in 11 countries, or 1.455 students! The challenge saw participants from Australia, Brazil, Canada, the Czech Republic, Germany, Hong Kong, Italy, Mexico, New Zealand, Thailand and the United Kingdom. In 2020, we also registered teams from India and Taiwan! "

This year, industry backers are backing this competition with additional awards and funding efforts to support students in new ways. An example of these new initiatives is an equipment application program for disadvantaged students, which will not only enable them to participate in this year's 24 HOUR challenge, but will provide tools to aid their virtual learning and art production. Eligible students are encouraged to apply for the program.

Supporters include Toon Boom, Animation Magazine, TAAFI (Toronto Animated Arts Festival International), CSU Summer Arts, ASIFA-Hollywood, CTNX, TVPaint, Wacom, Digicel, CRC Press, Stuart Ng Books, Your Animated Journey, DreamWorks, Blue Sky, Pixar, Sony Pictures Animation and more.

Check out some inspiring rumors from previous years in this Best of 24 Hours YouTube playlist!

Runner-up in 2019 on Facebook Peanut Butter Counter-Strike (Capilano University, Canada)

How does it work?

Due to the pandemic, all students can work from home, but still have to register in groups of five. 24 HOURS also requires that each team have a faculty advisor from the school of origin. This ensures that all teams are currently students and that the competition is in line with the learning outcomes of each school's students. Teams from the same school can share faculty advisors.

All teams start at exactly the same time and submit a YouTube link of the films completed in the contest before the deadline, Saturday October 3rd at 16pm PST. Late submissions are not accepted. Teams need to plan ahead and fix issues, including unsent emails and broken YouTube links. Finished films will be judged by a panel of industry experts, and the top five teams will be awarded prizes worth more than $ 163.000.

How did it start?

In 2002 Aubry Mintz challenged his students to work all night to see how much they could achieve. Five students remained when the sun rose and Mintz was impressed with what they were capable of producing. The 24 Hour Student Animation Contest was born, and Mintz has decided to continue offering this contest once a year to students looking for a challenge.

“It brings out the best in students,” commented Mintz after seeing 291 team signups in 2019. “It pushes them to the limit but teaches them to make creative decisions in an extremely limited time. Working with a team of five artists challenges you to learn how to work collaboratively. Sometimes this creates tension and obstacles that teams must work together to overcome. It's a lesson in speed in animation production “.

“While this competition seems crazy, the model seems to work,” he continued. “The best films are as good as some completed student films that take more than a year to produce. I think it is their chance to set personal goals and work outside the classroom structure on a creative project ”.

Questions can be sent via email to 24hourscontest@gmail.com; entries can also find a FAQ in the contest Facebook group.