SkillsUSA is a national nonprofit organization for high school and college students who are preparing for careers in trade, technical and skilled service occupations. It was formerly known as VICA (Vocational Industrial Clubs of America).
I am a big fan of SkillsUSA, particularly the 3D animation contest; it's intense! It simulations the real world pressure in its competitive environment. Students can learn more in those eight hours than almost the whole semester. We have been participating for the last four years and I will continue as long as it is around. On the other side, students generally do not create portfolio quality work. It is more of the high pressure experience.
Regionals:
Now with regionals, I want it to as real a possible. We are the only school that competes in our region and generally I have 8 -12 teams (24 students or so) competing for a spot to go to states. I want to get as many teams as possible participating for many reasons. First, it gives teams a chance to practice a few years until their turn and still makes it competitive enough where they could actually go if they train hard enough. I also make a big deal out of the event with real prizes, professional judges and big trophies. AND is always a combination of stress and fun for all.
Here are a few examples of what students can pull off in eight hours; it is tough.
Nationals 3rd Place Animation 2010
Canada 2009 3D Animation Gold Winner
National winner 2009
Here are some national prompts from the past (the ones I can find):
2009 - Decide on a “story” for your viral video that you think will capture people’s attention and make them want to share your video with others. Represent the product and the company’s vision in a fun way. Creative use of textures and animation will be important in having an impact on your audience. You have the liberty to do almost anything you want in the video, but must strictly adhere to the following rules:
• The video must be between 20 and 40 seconds.
• Must not contain any profanity or off-color humor.
• Must respect the product brand.
• All content must be original and produced on site during the duration of the competition.
• You may use an existing library of images for texture creation.
2008 -
2007 - Create a simple scene that sets a specific tone (or emotional state) such as: scary, depressing, desolate, joyous, cheery, etc. State your target tone in your storyboards. Create a very simple animation within that scene to reinforce your target tone. Select something original and appropriate for your scene and target tone, along these lines; a tumbleweed rolling by for a lonely, desolate western scene; the nose and eyes of a rat eyes peeking out of a hole to reinforce a gloomy urban scene; or a butterfly flitting through a bright, happy pastoral scene, etc.
2006 -
2005 - Plan, storyboard and create a very short animated subject which brings the Stikfa character to life. Using the kit provided, assemble a character with its contents. You will be modeling your character as precisely as possible in 3d. At a minimum, the character should fly into the scene and upon landing, exercise a short walking sequence. Keep in mind, this character is supposed to be an evil villain. . . . more
2004 - Plan, storyboard and create a very short animated subject around that animated segment of the stomach cross-section. You will find an animated cross-section of a human stomach. You are to re-create this animation. You are to replicate the model, textures, motions and effects as closely as possible. Your re-creation must be done with all original models and textures, etc. Along with it, include an animation showing a camera’s eye view traveling into a human mouth, down the throat, through the esophagus and into the stomach. Working as a team and each other as models, do your best to create as much realism as possible.
2003 - Plan, storyboard and create a very short animated subject which clearly shows the orbital mechanics which cause the phases of the moon as they appear from earth. Show the phases and why an eclipse does not occur every new lunar cycle.
2002 - Create and storyboard a very short subject where you have an alien arm reach in from another dimension, fumble around for and grab at an object, and then retreat through the inter-dimensional portal.
Here is the official description:
3-D Visualization and Animation
The world of 3D is rapidly expanding, and career opportunities exist in a wide range of fields – including architecture, games, product and industrial design, civil engineering, and film and television animation. This contest allows students to step into a real world 3D production environment where creative output must be accomplished within specific timeframes, resources and design constraints. This is a two-person team event and includes a preliminary written exam. Contestants must produce high quality images and an animated short subject using 3D computerized images. Students are evaluated on their technical knowledge, production skills and creative abilities – including visual development and storyboarding. They will also have the opportunity to interface with and get feedback from high-profile judges with successful careers in 3D visualization and animation.
SkillsUSA: http://www.skillsusa.org/
The Peter Ellenshaw Scholarships will be awarded to one VES member and one student (either in high school or currently in college) who plan to attend two (2) or four (4) year accredited schools in pursuit of any type of graduate or post-graduate degrees or certificates in fine or graphic arts. Peter Ellenshaw’s contributions to the field of visual effects were primarily as a matte painter and his artistic talent is highly regarded in the world of fine art. For this reason, the education sought by the recipients of these scholarships is not required to have any relation to visual effects, per se; however, that education must focus on some type of visual art.
The Albert Whitlock Scholarships will be awarded to one VES member and one student (either in high school or currently in college) who plan to attend any type of accredited schools in pursuit of certificates of completion in order to gain marketable skills in visual effects. Albert Whitlock’s contribution to the field of visual effects was as a matte painter on more than 500 projects. For this reason, the education sought by the recipients of these scholarships is required to be relevant to visual effects, per se; however, that education may focus on any type of visual art.
