Industry partners Animation Focus, Animation Mentor, Autodesk, Foundry, LAIKA, Toon Boom, and Wacom are continue to support Women in Animation’s ongoing WIA Scholarship Program with workshops, tutoring sessions, software bundles, and cash awards for participants of the 2022 cycle. In addition, the WIA Bay Area and Montreal Chapters are awarding unique scholarships to students with links to their respective regions.
The Women in Animation (WIA) Scholarship Program is dedicated to assisting deserving animation students who have creative skill, a love for animation, financial need, and a bright future in our profession. Applicants that identify as women, transgender, or non-binary who are studying various parts of animation production from schools all around the world are welcomed to apply.
The following are the details for each of the scholarship packages given by these partners (in alphabetical order):
• Animation Focus offers 1-on-1 online animation training with a professional feature film character animator for four weeks for one hour each week. Three WIA scholarship winners will be enrolled in an Animation Focus programme in 2022.
• Animation Mentor will provide one WIA Animation Scholarship recipient with a six-week programme (worth $699-$899) and the opportunity to choose from a variety of courses. They can choose from ten different classes, including the following: Maya Workshop: Animation Basics, Cartoony Animation for 3D Animators, 2D Animation for Beginners, 2D Animation: Walk Cycles & Character Movement, Pre-Visualization basics for animators, Storyboarding Fundamentals, Intermediate Storyboarding, Visual Development: Principles of Design, Game Animation Fundamentals, and Digital Painting—the student winner will have a variety of options to tailor this educational opportunity.
• Autodesk is providing licences for its 3D modelling and animation tools to this year’s winners. Eight winners will be able to choose between a one-year Autodesk Maya or Autodesk 3ds Max membership.
• Foundry will provide a $2,000 grant to one WIA Animation winner, as well as a permanent Production Collective licence to its suite of tools, which includes Nuke Studio, Katana, Mari, and Modo. Foundry’s industry-leading compositing, editing, review, modelling, 3D painting, look development, and lighting software will be available to the winner with this licence.
• This year, LAIKA is joining the WIA Scholarship Program for the first time, and they will be awarding two cash rewards of up to $2,000 USD to two meritorious stop motion students.
• Toon Boom will award up to $2,000 USD in software and scholarship funding to the WIA Scholarship Program winners. Each finalist will get a one-year bundled licence of Storyboard Pro 20 and Harmony Premium 21, as well as money to help them further their study.
• Ten WIA scholarship winners will get Cintiq Pro 16 tablets from Wacom. Wacom recognises the value of having professional-level technology since it distinguishes talent for both freelance work and creative portfolios, making them more employable in the Animation business.
• One scholarship recipient who lives and studies in the Bay Area will receive a $1,500 USD award from the WIA Bay Area Chapter. This option is also available to students who live in the Bay Area but will be attending school remotely this year.
• The WIA Montreal Chapter, in collaboration with Cinesite and ReelFX, is offering a $1,000 CAD scholarship to a student who is presently studying in Montreal or who lives in Montreal but attends classes at institutions in other countries online.
“This is another another exciting year for WIA, as we continue to provide many new opportunities to aspiring talent!” WIA’s Chair of Education, Hsiang Chin Moe, stated. “The degree of support we’ve gotten from these industry sponsors as WIA prepares for this year’s scholarship programme astounds me. This year’s outreach will be significantly larger as a consequence of their generosity, with an emphasis on students pursuing technical art, stop motion, and students currently studying/living in the Bay Area and Montreal.” In addition to cash prizes and software packages, we expanded to provide one-on-one online coaching and technology.
On behalf of WIA, I am very thankful to our industry partners who share our commitment to expanding educational opportunities and resources for our students, who represent the industry’s future.”
“The local WIA chapters were compelled to donate to this year’s scholarship programme as a way of assisting worthy students in their communities,” said Gail Currey, WIA’s Chair of Chapters. “So many women and non-binary students feel unqualified to apply, and we want to emphasise that this award is based on skill, enthusiasm, and need, so students should jump in and apply.”
The deadline for WIA Animation Scholarship applications is December 1, 2021 at 11:59 p.m. PDT. On the WIA website, you may find eligibility requirements, an application, and other information, as well as a 20% discount on WIA Student Memberships.
In February 2022, the scholarship awardees will be revealed.