International Recognition for MDS 3D Short

Date: Wednesday 1 July 2009

International Recognition for MDS 3D Short

A 3D animated short, entitled Time to Fly, from Auckland's Media Design School has been awarded third place at the prestigious Hamburg Animation Award in Hamburg, Germany. Time to Fly was produced in eight weeks by a team of students studying the MDS Graduate Diploma of Advanced 3D Productions; New Zealand's premiere specialist 3D course.

The award ceremony took place on Thursday 25 June and Advanced 3D Productions graduate Cameron Smith was on hand to accept the award. In partnership with Film Auckland, Auckland City Council arranged for Mr Smith to attend the award ceremony and collect the 2000 Euro prize money on behalf of his team.

The Hamburg Animation Award attract entries from top schools and Universities through Europe, past winners coming from acclaimed 3D and digital content academies such as Germany's Film Academy Baden-Württemberg and Denmark's The Animation Workshop.

Auckland City Council formed a strategic alliance with Hamburg in 2007, encouraging best practice learning and supporting opportunities for key sectors, particularly in the areas of creative industries, biotechnology and education. The Hamburg Animation Award, open to entries from tertiary institutes in the Auckland area, is an example of one of the initiatives to have come out of the alliance.

``The strong turnout of Auckland city entries, and the success of ‘Time to Fly’ showcases the skilled workforce and high calibre of tertiary education currently working and being developed within Auckland. Congratulations to Cameron and his team. We’ve all known the film sector in New Zealand is thriving, especially in Auckland, but an award like this goes some way to verifying the talent we have around us,’’ says Councillor Aaron Bhatnagar, chairperson City Development committee.

Time to Fly features the integration of live action footage with Computer Generated Graphics, the story chronicling how a plucky bunch of Tui birds band to together to rescue the last remaining living tree in a recently felled patch of forest in the New Zealand bush.

ENDS

Notes for Editors
Media Design School www.mediadesign.school.nz is an industry-based digital design and technology school providing highly relevant qualifications for specific roles and careers within the film, design and production industries including video editors, effects artists, 3D animators and designers. All courses offered are production- based, and taught by highly experienced industry professionals. The school is supported and assisted by highly reputable creative, design and digital companies, which provide live projects, mentoring, and workshops to ensure all qualifications provide students with leading-edge skills that meet the demands of the high-end creative sector.

© Scoop Media