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WOOT! Animation Mentor Celebrates 7th Graduation Animation Mentor recently hosted their 7th graduation ceremony, along with an open house and career fair. Students, alumni, mentors and staff had a fun and busy weekend full of Animation Mentor goodness! The Animation Mentor offices in Emeryville, California, were open to students and their families on Friday, Jan. 15, for tours, snacks, video games and the filming of our weekly Video News. Students were able to submit their animation questions via video, and one lucky student had his question answered by CEO/cofounder Bobby Beck on Video News! Animation Mentor staff members led students and family members on tours of the office, and Student Care Manager Suzanne Francois said: "Seeing the parents and families here at AM headquarters was like one big family reunion! Being able to see the people that have supported our students through thick and thin was an honor for me and keeps me motivated to do what I do." Animation Mentor students and alumni came to California from around the world, from as far as Brazil, Belgium, Australia and Italy; so for some, it was the first opportunity to meet their classmates face-to-face. Suzanne Francois said that she thought "the students were most excited at actually meeting each other...Being able to shake the hands of people that had a direct influence on their success was also very important. I think they realize that their experience was a genuine experience and that has a very high value." Alexiss Memmott, Animation Mentor alumna and technical care specialist at Animation Mentor, organized informal social events over the weekend, including lunch before the career fair. "We pretty much invaded the streets of Emeryville, doing personality walks the whole way and jumping for photos as we crossed the train tracks. We walked to the Public Market in Emeryville, a popular lunch spot featuring international cuisine from over 20 restaurants. And amazingly enough we all found seats at the Public Market. It seemed like the perfect place – students from all over the world converging on a place that serves food from all over the world." Following the open house was the Animation Mentor Career Fair. Animation Mentor alumni were able to network and mingle with recruiters from such studios as Reel FX Creative Studios, Pixar Animation Studios, Industrial Light & Magic, Blizzard Entertainment, Sony Pictures Imageworks, and DreamWorks Animation SKG. About 120 Animation Mentor graduates attended the Career Fair, many of them from the two most recent graduating classes. Career Services Manager Becca Romeo said, "It was wonderful to see our alumni have the opportunity to submit their reels to so many prestigious studios and network with the industry representatives in a fun setting! Our graduates are incredibly talented and passionate about animation, so we are excited that the 2010 Career Fair was a success." On Saturday, Jan. 16, more than 100 graduates attended the graduation ceremony, where graduates and their families heard from keynote speaker Charles Alleneck. Charles Alleneck is a lead animator at Industrial Light and Magic, and he has worked at ILM since 2000, on projects such as the Star Wars Prequels (Episodes II and III), Hulk, Transformers 1 and 2, Iron Man, and Rango. The student-nominated and student-selected Student Choice Awards were presented by mentors such as Nicole Herr of Furious FX, Justin Barrett of Reel FX, Kenny Roy of Arconyx Animation Studios, Mike Stern of DreamWorks Studios, and Victor Navone of Pixar. Student Choice Award winners from Graduating Class 13 and Graduating Class 14 were:
The Mentor Choice Awards for each class were presented to Eric Grajo of Graduating Class 13, and Jude Brownbill from Graduating Class 14. Graduates walked across the stage and accepted their diplomas from founders Bobby Beck, Shawn Kelly and Carlos Baena. They also had the opportunity to mingle with the founders and mentors at the reception following the ceremony. Events Manager Molly Wolfsehr said: "The 7th AM Graduation was pure amazing madness…and I loved every second of it! Our commencement ceremonies continue to get bigger and crazier each and every year! For example, we're seeing more and more alumni coming from all over the world with their families and loved ones. I was backstage throughout the event, which was a riot…just imagine the AM staff chasing around 3 founders, 9 mentors, 2 ninjas and the always mischievous Spike! I can't wait for the next one this summer…" To see more photos from the events, check out our Facebook Fan Page. If you want to join in on the madness, check out our school page: http://www.animationmentor.com/school/ Sheena Sharma is a marketing coordinator at Animation Mentor. |
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