A chat with FatBoy Animations

If you happen to search for Kenyan Animations on the internet-there’s a high probability that you will come across a funny guy dancing to the song Huratete by Jimmy gait. The animation with almost 60,000 hits on YouTube (a hit by local standards) was made by none other than Michael Muthiga, a man whom if you don’t know is the owner of Fatboy Animations.Last week on the Wednesday 9^th January, 2013,i had the great opportunity of meeting the crew at FatBoy animations, a company which,as some of you already know, is behind the series of creative adverts  aimed at promoting Jamii Telkom's 'Faiba' product.The company's located in a serene environment near Jamhuri ground,lots of trees,cool wind and you actually see horses outside the main compound....The interview was quite revealing so read on......

1. What is your background as Fat Boy Animations, and why the name FatBoy?

FatBoy Animations is made of two CG artists Michael Muthiga and Sendeu Kanyare.The two are responsible for the creative Jamii Telkom adverts currently being aired on local TV stations in Kenya.

Michael Muthiga states that he was a lead animator at the Tinga Tinga tales project by Tiger aspects.He started FatBoy Animations  after the contract ended (around 2009).Muthiga says he was trained by Joe an Australian animator  in the Tinga Tinga tales, who also mentored him. Claudia Lloyd-the show’s Producer was also instrumental in shaping him up to become the man he is, as she provided him with the opportunity.

Sendeu Kanyare is the other half of FatBoy Animations and acts as the Director at FatBoy Animations. Sendeu was also part of the team that worked on Tinga Tinga tales where he gained valuable experience.

The two have a combined experience of more than 11 years in animation.

Interestingly,FatBoy Animations company name is actually a tongue in cheek name Muthiga chose since as at that time, he was...well fat…..

2. What are some of the (major) stints/shows/productions you have been involved in? (A brief on the FAIBA project…conception e.t.c)

As stated earlier the duo,Muthiga and Sendeu were part of the team that created Tinga Tinga series,earlier on before FatBoy Animations came to be.In addition,as FatBoy Animations the two have been able to execute some great projects such as The Barclays commercial of a dancing robot and lately the Faiba adverts for Jamii Telkom among many others.

Faiba advert is undoubtedly one of the best animated adverts locally.Muthiga says the idea had been ‘simmering in his brain’ for awhile and luckily he was able to pitch the idea successfully to the Jamii Telkom Limited chairman who approved it. The first advert was well received and Fatboy animations was able to convince the Chairman to turn it into a series of 5 different adverts.Muthiga says he also prays a lot,for ideas and is sometimes surprised after seeing the final product he comes up with.

 

3. What are your preferred tools of trade?

As seen through their work,FatBoy animations is excellent in character animation and the company has settled on Maya-an industry standard for character animation; the experience the two had, using  Maya earlier in Tinga Tinga tales also helped them reach the decision on what tool to use.

4. Some of the major challenges you face in the industry and possible solutions

Modern day life is very dependent on electricity and for FatBoy animations, the dependency on  KPLC Power is one of the main hurdles that keeps getting in their way-the power is erratic and issues such as transformers malfunctioning usually mean lost productivity, interference with renderings e.t.c

In addition meeting deadlines for the various projects they are involved in is not easy and the rate the company has been expanding its hardware is indirectly/inversely proportional to the rate jobs are coming in.

5. Current projects we should know about/be expecting?

Stay tuned…….TOP SECRET

6. What are your sources of inspiration and motivation (what keeps you going)?

Muthiga finds his inspiration from various sources such as gospel music, animation movies and walking around animation schools locally too.

7. Word of advice to local budding animators and interested parties ?

FatBoy staff state that local animators need to understand that making good animation takes time, commitment and sacrifice. Studies are also crucial for one to excel in animation e.g. through hands on training. Lastly as a way of giving back to the society, FatBoy Animations is in the process of setting up an online animation training school for local animators. This is a great step especially for would be animators who are based outside Nairobi since most animators are based in the capital city. The online school should be up and running by the third quarter of this year. In addition,Muthiga states that excellent students will get a once in a lifetime chance to join the team at FatBoy Animations.

8. What are some of the services that one can expect from your company?

FatBoy specializes in animated commercials,graphics design,story-boarding,sound production,script production-and animation training soon,through their online school.

9. What are some of your interests apart from animation?

Michael Muthiga has other interests too such as travelling, checking out cars,movies,music,going out with friends, the good old PlayStation video game and going to church.

10. Any other information….

FatBoy Animations is very grateful to all the fans who made the Faiba advert a success and thanks all the fans out there e.g The Faiba fan pages on Facebook.As for the question of whether the advert may just morph into a full brown TV series, we’ll just have to wait and see. Lastly stay on the lookout for the animation school that will be up soon……

Shout Huge Productions(Animation Studio) Interview

Shout Huge Productions Crew

1. What is your background? (Brief story on how one decided to join the industry e.t.c, some animation companies you have worked with/at, training).

Took my heart away from money , I ain’t interested in fame (song by Wale,Rick Ross,Meeky Mill) may just have been referring to Harto of Shout Huge Productions , an animator,and the founder of Shout Huge Productions(SHP) who has a great love for animation.

Shout Huge Productions is one of the new entrants in the Kenyan animation sector determined to change the industry. The company(started in early 2012) was  founded by Harto Muhato Macharia is made up of five individuals, Harto, Bob, Shadrack, Wangari and Tito.The team has a combined experience, of more than ten years.

2. What are some of the (major) stints/shows/productions you have been involved in??

Harto, has created several short animated clips by the name Soul Lion and another known as Muchoki.I tend to favor the style and story- if I may say of the latter: Muchoki (You can never go wrong with a love story infused with a dose of conflict such as war).However make a point of watching - (YOUTUBE: harto 191) - them both and tell me what you think.

3. What are your preferred tools of trade? (Software) and why (cost, speed, experience e.t.c)?

Shout Huge Productions operates using some of the ‘most potent arsenal ‘in the industry (Adobe suite,Toonboom,Photoshop,Cinema 4d,Maya and 3DS max and even Wacom tablets).The company has made a significant investment in ensuring that they are well equipped .

According to Shadrack: “the reason for using these tools is because we admire Professionals who use them: chief Nyamweya, Glen Keane, Ryan Woodward.”

For shout huge productions…”The tool doesn’t define what they do” they define what the tool does for them.

4. Some of the major challenges you face in the industry and possible solutions?

Like any other venture there will always be challenges to overcome, the main one for SHP is getting Kenyans to realize quality animation is now available as compared to what we previously had.

“We will offer unique quality production that is how we at SHP studios will tackle this challenge and let the product speak for itself.”

““One of our main aims Is to be able to compete with international animation studios and to achieve this We have acquired a never give up attitude towards our work and fueling ourselves with ambition to succeed by constantly motivating each other to work hard, “talent is nothing without hard work” Harto says. ”” 

5. Current projects we should know about/be expecting?

We have projects and short films expected from the studio, among them is a local animated music video (in 2D) that will be out in 2-3 months time.

6. What are your sources of inspiration and motivation (what keeps you going)?

The crew at SHP Studios draw their inspiration from different sources. They would like to make a product that Kenyans can relate to e.g.animated cartoons (since most of the content aired in Kenya’s is foreign)

• Bob a.k.a Mr. Paul, likes to get paid for what he likes to do which is drawing.
• Wangari a.k.a Cookie, the only female in the group appreciates the chance of being part of a team that will be creating quality, local media content for the Kenyan people.
• Harto a.k.a Huge was inspired from a young age by shows such as Thundercats, Heman, SaberRider, the Star Sheriffs, The Incredible hulk and Danger Mouse. His motivation is to one day to create an animated series or movie that captivates and inspires as much as this animated series did for him.
• Tito a.k.a the Model, is motivated by a lot of the visual effects and animation he sees on TV inspiring him to create better and greater visuals and 3D models.
• Shaddie a.k.a JR’s inspiration is Disney and DC comics and wants someday to work in a studio that compels as much as Disney and DC.

7. Word of advice to local budding animators and interested parties (e.g. steps they should take to join the industry e.g. training etc)?

“Nothing that is worth it, comes easy” animation is a rigorous and involving process, passion is key.

Different skill sets are brought out in animation such as; 2D and 3D animation, comic art, script writing, sound engineering, storyboarding, compositing and graphic art. So there is definitely a skill for an animator to pick up on and grow in strength. Animation needs team work, we advise local animators to come together to better the industry.

Animation is the wave of the future in film production and not just advertisement, to all those upcoming animators ,lets come together to tell the African story-animation style.

8. What are some of the services that one can expect from your company?

The company is involved in all aspects of animation production from start to finish. They offer traditional 2D animation, 3D animation and 2D cut out animation, storyboards, comic, motion comics, we also offer digital art, edutainment and visual effects.

9. What are some of your interests apart from animation?

Of course all work and no play makes…..Miguna a dull boy. The crew at Shout huge productions have other interests they enjoy such as reading, playing with Lego’s, watching movies, listening to Dub Step music and skateboarding .They also have a soft spot for basketball as evidenced by the mini Basketball Rim in the office used for practice when taking a break from animating.

Shout Huge Productions Studio mini basketball hoop

All in all we all start form somewhere. Shout Huge Productions have made their first step and we all expect the best. Another plus is the effort they made to incorporate a female team member.

Remember……YOU ARE THE INDUSTRY!