ANIMATION
Persistence of Vision Netflix Animation Studios empowers early animators By Ca ro l Bada r acco Padge t t
crucial resources needed to deepen the development and inclusion of Latinx creatives within these industries. Membership is currently free, and includes monthly newsletters, access to job boards, workshops, volunteer opportunities, networking mixers, and discounts to animation expos and conferences. The second partner, Exceptional Minds (EM), based in Sherman Oaks, California, is an autism-focused education organization that provides an academy and post-production studio to help prepare young adults on the autism spectrum for careers in animation, VFX, 3D gaming, and related entertainment industry fields. Along with its full-time, three-year academy, EM offers a post-graduate program and professional post-production studios, and is staffed with instructors, artists, technicians, and behavioralists, because a critical component of EM’s offerings is that it integrates behavioral training into its curriculum. Of Netflix’s partners in the program, the communi- cations reps point to a strong shared vision and mission that will help make a difference in the lives of young creatives. “Our goal is to build equity and increase ac- cess for underrepresented early creatives,” the commu- nication department gurus emphasize. Otherwise, “En- try-level roles within animation are highly competitive, and candidates from top animation schools or referrals from industry connections have a significant advantage.” The program’s first round of mentees will head out into the real world with invaluable assets to help them compete, the Netflix communications cohort notes, including guidance in editing and curating professionally styled portfolios, help crafting writing samples and resumes, and invaluable career advice from Netflix studio animators. The goal: prepare young creatives to apply for internships, training programs, and entry-level positions within animation—and to have a real chance to succeed. “Better representation in the animation industry starts by building talent pipelines into the industry,” Netflix reps sum up. And when a diverse group of early creatives succeeds, the empathy and understanding noted early on also have a chance to spread in the myriad stories that they tell. Budding animators and their supporters can keep an eye on netflix.com to learn when the next round of the Netflix Animations Foundation Program is open for sign up.
© Netflix Animation
empathy and understanding,” they say of the OTT stream- ing platform’s three popular animated series. “And we can bring more of these types of stories to the world with bet- ter representation in the animation industry.” To level the playing field and effect change, Netflix as a company has realized the need to broaden its reach and truly prepare underrepresented talent to compete in the early creative talent pools that help propel animation artists into full-fledged careers. To that end, the Netflix Animation Foundations Pro- gram is a four-month mentorship program that matches up in-house animation studio artists with young, up- and-coming artists—beginning with a fresh crop of early animators from the Latinx and neurodiverse communi- ties this fall. To ensure greater opportunities for the Latinx community, LatinX in Animation (LXiA) is a partner for the first round of the Netflix Animation Foundations Program. LXiA, part of the LA-based Latino Film Institute, is an organization that represents individuals within the animation, VFX, and gaming industries; and champions the growth of Latinx diversity in animation by organizing events that encourage networking, education, professional development, community service, and camaraderie. The ultimate aim of LXiA is to provide the
“ We’re the last true believers. ”
– Fei Fei, a bright young girl who builds a rocket ship and travels to the moon in Netflix’s Over the Moon E verybody starts somewhere. If they’re lucky. But that’s the thing, young minds and early creatives can’t always be in the right place at the right time. Many run up against very real, very high hurdles between here and there. Especially if they have no role models to turn to who are doing what they dream of doing and no resources for the kinds of training they’ll need. Netflix Animation Studios is taking action to bridge the gap between the dreams of underrepresented early creatives and their actual attainable opportunities through the launch of a 2021 initiative, the Netflix Animation Foundations Program. “Netflix’s greatest impact is storytelling,” say com- munications reps at Netflix’s LA offices. “Stories like Maya and the Three , Ridley Jones , and Over the Moon broaden
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