Women in Animation’s annual grants will now include educational workshops and animation software along with cash awards.
Women in Animation has just announced that their ongoing WIA Scholarship Program is expanding this year with the addition of two new partners – Animation Mentor and Toon Boom -- who are providing workshops and software packages that will be added to the usual cash prize grants.
The WIA Animation Scholarship is an annual award committed to assisting deserving animation students who demonstrate artistic talent, a passion for animation, a financial need, and a promising future in the field of animation. Student members of WIA are encouraged to apply, regardless of where they’re pursuing schooling for their animation career interests.
Animation Mentor will offer one WIA Animation Scholarship winner a 6-week workshop (a $699-$899 value) from a choice of several courses. Considering an array of classes such as Maya Workshop/Animation Basics for Beginners to Game Animation Fundamentals to Intermediate Storyboarding to Pre-Viz Basics for Animators as just a few examples, the student winner will have options to best personalize this educational opportunity.
Additionally, Toon Boom will be participating this year with giveaways and scholarship funds totaling over $16,000. One-year bundled licenses of Storyboard Pro and Harmony Premium will be awarded to each of the finalists as well as a unique package for the scholarship winners, who will receive the base licenses package as well as one-on-one remote training and $2,000 (an additional contribution to the WIA scholarship fund, which will be split amongst the three winners).
“WIA is so excited to have Animation Mentor and Toon Boom partner with us on our scholarship program,” Marge Dean, Women in Animation president, shared. “Animation Mentor is the premium mentoring program for our industry, providing years of success in training a new source of talent that can expand WIA's own mentoring program. We’re so fortunate to have Animation Mentor bring their vast teaching experience to our student membership in this way. We’re also very excited to partner with Toon Boom and greatly appreciate their support of our scholarship fund as well as their innovative software and training access, which demonstrates their commitment to the education and training of new and diverse talent.”
Bobby Beck, Animation Mentor co-founder, added, “Animation Mentor is excited and honored to be partnering with Women in Animation to bring our two great communities together. We share so many of the same values, and the talent of our global student base reminds us how important it is to have diverse storytellers in our industry. Because WIA has so many great resources, and such a worthy mission, we see this partnership as an opportunity for our amazing students to connect and grow in different ways, adding to the solid foundation they receive from us. Any chance to bring artists together to imagine and create, we’re all in!”
“Toon Boom Animation is excited to be working with WIA on yet another project to further promote and support a female presence in animation arts, science and business,” Stephanie Quinn, Toon Boom director of marketing, stated. “Projects such as WIA Vancouver’s B.C.’s Five in Focus: Animation and now this WIA scholarship are truly helping to shape the future of animation, and continues our focus on the creative community worldwide.”
The deadline to submit applications for the WIA Animation Scholarship is October 10, 2019. More details can be found on the WIA website here. Scholarship winners will be announced in January 2020.
Source: Women in Animation
