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SHOWREEL
GET TO KNOW ROWZA
Can you describe the extent of any relevant work experience you might have?
I have worked as a freelance animator for a few months on a short film produced by Knock the Door Down with Tower Hamlets Council. I worked on all the animated segments of the film with the script and storyboards provided by the director, whom I worked closely with throughout production. The project also involved a workshop with the kids featured in the film, where I provided a few sessions teaching animation basics. It was overall a small project with a tight schedule that gave me the opportunity to learn about the workflow of productions hands-on.
How would you describe your contribution to your group project?
I was Director for the film "Shapla", but due to the small size of our team we all took on many different roles throughout the project. For the preproduction stage, my roles were as Storyboard Artist, Character Designer, Creature Designer, Concept Artist, Environment Artist and Colour Key Artist. Since I had originally pitched this project, a large chunk of visual development and design was done by me, along with our Art Director, especially due to the project's heavy influence from my Bangladeshi culture. I also worked on the final animatic, which I boarded and edited with the help of our Producer.
During production of the film, I worked as Lead animator, Clean-up Artist, FX Clean-up Artist and Layout Artist. The bulk of my work for the film's production was in animation and clean-up, and in reviewing my team's work with notes and draw-overs when necessary. However, as Director, I oversaw the whole project, which meant I had a hand in all stages of production to ensure everything was well organised and cohesive, managing assignments and providing constant feedback to my team was part of this. I also created layouts for all backgrounds to ensure consistency in the environments and composited assets where parallax was required to create depth in moving shots.
What do you specialise in and what made you choose that specialism?
I specialise in character and creature animation. I love bringing characters to life, and I find animating them super fun and rewarding. I'm always able to learn new things with every new kind of character I animate, the process of researching and studying the way certain actions are performed or how creatures move and behave is always fascinating to me.
I also specialise in storyboarding, I love creating stories and the use of composition, camera work, acting choices, staging and more interests me greatly. I enjoy learning about and implementing all the various skills required for storyboarding, and I really appreciate the way it is such an integral stage in the production of animated media.
What would your ideal first role in the industry be?
My first ideal role would be as an Animator in a production house of any size. I feel it would be a great way to make my first steps into the industry and a huge opportunity to help bring amazing new projects, whether big or small, to life while also improving upon my own skills and making new connections. Although I have experience in animating, I still have so much to learn in the industry and I can't wait to develop my skills even further in the next stage of my career.
Which of your student projects are you most proud of, and why?
I'm most proud of my final group film 'Shapla'. The project has come so far from when I originally pitched it at the start of the academic year, and even now, I can't believe how far it's come with the collective work of my amazing team. Being the Director for this film was a huge privilege, and I learned so much through the role. The film went through a lot of development and changes, and I feel we grew alongside it too. I learned and improved on many skills over the course of the whole project, especially in animating, and the experience has even strengthened my personal bond with my team members. We worked together amazingly, and with all our skills combined, we were able to produce an amazing final film to graduate with.
I am also proud of the film for its personal connection to me; the South Asian influence was hugely important to me in my desire to bring more representation to animated media, even the smallest details like a dark skinned protagonist and correctly drawn palms are a big win. I'm eternally grateful to my team for helping me bring this film to life, and I'm super proud of the work we created.
What’s a piece of media (film, game, animation) that changed the way you think about your discipline?
I have always adored Ghibli films, they have had a huge influence on my passion for animation. I admire the distinctive style with the beautifully animated characters and stunningly painted environment art. I especially love how cohesive everything looks despite the contrast of detailed backgrounds and simple characters through the use of cell shading and well-thought-out colour scripts. It opened my eyes to how animation can be approached in so many different ways with all kinds of styles and influences.
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