Interview with Manoj Katoor- Animation Director, Kilnidea Animation Studios, Bangalore, India
Manoj Katoor who is currently the Animation Director for Kilnidea Animation Studios, shares his experiences in the animation industry for the past seventeen years with CGShelf.
Read the interview below to get to know Manoj a little more.
Q : Could you tell us a little bit about yourself?
A : Hello everyone. I'm Manoj Katoor. I was born in a town called Nileshwar which is in Kasargod District, Kerala, India. I earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Physics from Nehru College in Kasargod itself. I've been working in the animation industry for the past 17 years and I'm currently working as the Animation Director for Kilnidea Animation, Studios. I live in Bangalore with my wife - Sunitha and two children - Rahul and Laxmi.
Q : What made you select Computer Graphics as your career?
A : As a child I was interested in Art. I had won awards for drawing, painting and caricature in college. I also actively participated in Dramas.
When I had just finished college, I wrote an aptitude test at NID (National Institute of Design). Two candidates were selected from the State of Kerala and I was one of them. My family is quite orthodox and you know in those days, artists were known for having long beards and painting sign boards. My family thought it would be a big mistake in sending me, so I had to reject the seat at NID. Even now, I still regret not having accepting the seat at NID .Today things have changed with so many animation schools and movies being released, parents are aware of the prospects of animation.
In 1990, A Film Producer gave an advertisement in the newspaper for the post of an Art Director for one of his films. The advertisement said that candidates should send ten different types of drawings. I was quite excited and thought that it was a good chance for me to get into the Art/Film industry. So, I sent the drawings to the Film Producer. After five or six months, I was called for a test in Cochin, Kerala. Around 10,000 candidates arrived for the test. Famous artists who used to draw for Malayalam newspapers like Malayalam Manorama also attended the test. After meeting these artists, I never even dreamt of getting an offer. When I was about to leave, they asked me to stay and wait for some time. After some time, they told me that they had selected ten candidates and that I was one of them. I was so thrilled! We had to work on a Malayalam feature film called "Oh fabby”.It was a live movie with an animated cartoon character. We had to go to Mumbai and work on this project. My Father was quite against the fact of me going to Mumbai to do animation. I tried convincing him, but it was of no use. Finally, my uncle convinced him and then I was on my way to Mumbai. I worked for Ram Mohan Biographics, which was I think at that time the only animation studio in India. I started out as an in-between artist and felt very blessed to work with Mr. Ram Mohan as he is known as the father of animation in India. Mr. Ram Mohan asked a few of us to stay back after we finished the film. So, I stayed back and worked for RMB for six years.
Q : So, what did you do next?
A : Well, then I moved to Chennai where I worked for a company called Millinium for 5 years as an Animation Director. After that, I worked on a Feature film called “Tiger for Malgudi”for a company called Acropetal which is based in Bangalore.Mr. R.K. Narayan wrote the script for the film. We couldn't finish the film because of some financial problem. Then I joined Jadoo Works, Bangalore as an Animation Supervisor. I Worked on Disney's “Higgley Town Heroes” while I was there.
Wherever I am in India, Tinkle Digest Comic Book (IBH group) send me the story and I draw the sketches and send it back to them. They take care of the coloring. I feel very happy when I receive little children’s letters saying that a drawing in a particular issue was good.
Then I worked for a company called Indian Artist which is based in Chennai. Back then, Maya was installed on my computer but I didn’t know how to use it. I was working on a Kanada film called "Kaaligambal". The story had an elephant that played cricket. So the producer asked if we could do it in 3D. There were a couple of junior artists who knew a little bit of animation in Maya. There was no process called rigging back then. It was quite tedious as an elephant has around 34 bones in its trunk. These bones in the trunk had to turn....turn.... and turn just to hold a cricket bat. I feel that we are so blessed these days as technology has advanced. So I starting working with them and after around 15 shots, I myself started working on animation in Maya.
Courtesy - Indian Artist, Chennai
I found it quite amazing and felt that there were so many advantages in 3D than traditional 2D drawing. It saved so much of time. It was that time that I felt that a single individual could make a film by himself with a computer. In traditional 2D drawing, we have to draw 24 frames for one second of animation. Another great advantage I found out was that in 3D you could give light. In traditional 2D drawing, you have to draw the shadow \ matte and animate it in each frame. Another disadvantage with 2D drawing is that If the client sees the animation and then decides to move the camera angle, we would have to drink a glass of water first... he he he.... that's because we would have to draw the complete animation all over again. In 3D, we would just have to move the camera. Whatever happens, I still appreciate 2D more than 3D in the sense that when I draw a key drawing I get that satisfaction that I don’t get in 3D. I feel that even my son appreciates 2D cartoons more than 3D.
While I was working for Indian Artist, I had also worked on a Malayalam Film called “Magic Magic”. It had won a National award for special effects.
Q : What was the biggest challenge that you faced in career so far?
A : I think... Disney's “Higgley Town Heroes”.The main reason for it being challenging is because it's Disney's and since they are one of the best in the animation industry, we as a team had to work hard for it.
Q : Do you feel that knowledge of traditional art is necessary in Computer Graphics?
A : I feel that it is a very good advantage as we will learn something called "aesthetics and composition". Another advantage I see in traditional art is that when you draw something and it’s not come out right, you crumble the paper and throw it feeling sad. You feel sad because it took a lot of time and pain to draw it. But because of the mistake that you made, you will learn posing, line of action, balancing and you will probably not make that mistake again.
But I also feel that there is still a chance for people who don’t have a 2D base to come into the animation industry. All they require is something called “OBSERVATION”. 75% of animation is all about observation. Televisions are one of the best ways we can observe things. Another thing is the internet. In the olden days, it was quite difficult to find a reference to animate.
I remember back then, sitting in hospitals and railway stations to observe people from different walks of life.
In Mumbai, I used to show my animation to the man who used to take photocopies of our drawings. When he laughed, I knew it was good. I used to do this because tomorrow…. It's people like him who are going to see the animation movie.
Q : How do you think computers have revolutionized animation?
A : I feel that Technology has advanced in so many ways with new software releasing newer versions. There are so many new and helpful features.
When I was working for RMB, We had to draw a frame and then with the help of an optical camera, we used to take a picture. If we had to see the final animation, we had to wait for the negatives to get developed. It was such a tedious process. Then in 1993 or 1994 a new software called Animo was introduced. With Animo, we would first draw on paper and then scan the picture. After that we used to do the coloring with the help of Animo. So you see how much technology has advanced now!
Q : Do you feel that motion capture devices have become a threat to keyframe animators?
A : I don’t think so. Then what’s the use of an animated film? You can go for a live feature film. If you would like to show extra-ordinary animation and effects you still require keyframe animation. Even when motion-capture is used, keyframe animators still have to enhance the animation by giving ease - in / out, e.t.c. Another main point is that – how many good motion capture actors do we have in India? We can’t have a hundred people like Jim Carey or Robin Williams - who are so flexible and can behave like perfect cartoon characters.
Q : How do you think the animation industry is currently doing in India?
A : I think it's doing quite well! I feel that Mr. Shyam Rammanna (Crest Animation Studios) brought the concept of 3D animation into India in the 90’s and now we have grown so much. I believe that we have the talent and that we'll keep on growing. The only problem we are facing right now in India is that we don't have good storyboards. The pre-production department is not strong enough. The storyboard is supposed to be the pillar of the movie. If we look at good studios today, they first make the movie in 2D (Animatics) by scanning the drawings, adding sound, e.t.c. Then they watch the entire movie and fine tune it. Only when they are satisfied with it in 2D is when they start creating it in 3D. Otherwise, I feel the other departments in India are creating wonders!
Q : Who are what inspires you the most?
A : Mr. Ram Mohan. I feel that he is the best storyboard artist in India. I learnt a lot from him. He is not just my "GURU”, but a good person and a friend. When I switch on my computer everyday, I remember him. I always try my best to follow his principles while leading my team.
I feel that team leaders should be role models to their members. Team members should feel free enough to share anything with their team leaders. They should be able to crack jokes with each other. A team leader should listen to his member’s ideas.
In some studios, people who have only two years of experience are made Team leaders. I don’t think that it is a good idea. Most of them reach the top only because of their communication skills and not because of their technical skills. If someone better than them comes for an interview, they would make that candidate fail. This is the problem... they feel a sense of insecurity. They’re only concerned about their own survival. At the end of the day, investors/owners of the studio loose out.
I always tell my team members that whenever they feel that they’re not learning anything from me, they should tell me. I will resign...because there is no point of me leading a team without imparting knowledge to them.
Q : Can someone with a programming background be successful in animation?
A : I believe they can. There is a section for them in 3ds Max – known as "MAXScript" or in MAYA – "MEL” ( Maya Embedded Language) . It would be very good for the CG industry to get a lot of people with programming backgrounds. They would be especially useful for huge fight scenes, e.t.c. I don’t think they have to be creative for this. The creative director will tell them how the animation should be and then they can use their technical skills to do it.
Q : What advice would you give to prospective animators?
There is no shortcut in life. If you take a shortcut, you will excel for the time-being only... Don't waste time. You should keep on learning…. Try your best….Put in your hard work…..When you start working for a studio don’t have the mentality to give the client only what he or she requires. You will be cheating yourself. Give your best……Don’t work just to show off to your superiors… You know there is a story of a farmer who had a Pig and a Fox. One day the farmer was going to town and would only be back in the evening. So he told the pig and the fox to clean up the paddy field. When the farmer left, the pig worked very hard and cleaned up the whole place while the fox was fast asleep. When the pig finished cleaning up, he went to take a shower. After some time the fox woke up and found the place very clean. He knew that it was time for the farmer to return, so he jumped in the mud and got all dirty. When the farmer returned, he found the place very clean and then he saw the fox. He asked him where the pig was. The fox told the farmer that the pig most probably went home. In the end, the pig came out all clean and the farmer got very angry with the pig.
That should not be the case. You should work hard for your studio and for most importantly yourself.
Plan your work schedule…. For example, suppose you have been given a deadline to finish some seconds of animation at 6 p.m. You should split it into hours and don’t think that you can take your own time because you have time till 6 in the evening. Try to finish it earlier, so that you can modify and enhance the animation.
We have an online Library -"The Internet", for reference and for tutorials ….use it wisely…. Also watch TV and study different cultures and body languages.
Thanks,
CGShelf Team
