*experimentation *self-reflection *taking risks *all senses – film means image&sound together
Thomas Renoldner is one of the most recognized contemporary avant garde animation artist. He is interested in the various areas of art: music, painting, film, installation and performance. His filmography includes numerous experimental, animated and documentary films, including “Sunny Afternoon” and “Don’t Know What”. The latter has been selected to more than 100 festivals, won the main awards at Annecy and Ottawa, and was qualified for the Oscards and was an Annie Awards finalist. He is also an experienced tutor, he led animation workshops and seminars for children, youngsters & professionals and leads the Animation Lab at the Academy of Fine Arts in Vienna. He is a founder and co-curator of the Animation Avantgarde competition programme at Vienna Independent Shorts Film Festival and founded and directs the BAAF (The Best Austrian Animation Festival).
I have been leading workshops for many years. I worked with kids and youngsters, two of the workshops I even led with the participation of my daughters. There is this magic moment of creation, which fascinates me. The moment of pleasure and probably the feeling of having the power to create something. And there is the surprise, that something starts to move kind of unexpectedly. These strong emotions make the kids addicted to trying out more, to continue, to explore, to experiment – and also to discover themselves. Later with adults I found it rewarding when they can come to this level of joy of exploration. Of course, with all my yearslong experience I can see the repetition of ideas, the danger of cliches they might follow, or the domination of mainstream media invading our imagination. I am trying to find methods to avoid these possible downsides. I was very happy to work with Marzie and Sina, who like me concentrated on the central concept of giving the Jumpstart participants the space to realise themselves. The concept of not focusing on the mainstream approach of storytelling and searching for new ways including installation art – projections outside cinema or TV – helped participants to find their ideas, and to experience the joy of new experiences, as I have described in the beginning for them.
A 2022-es Primanima Jumpstart egy tehetséggondozó kezdeményezés, amely „kettő az egyben” lehetőség egy gyakorlati workshopon és egy forgatókönyv-fejlesztő programban való részvételre, amely már a 10. Primanima Nemzetközi Elsőfilmes Animációs Fesztivál előtt elkezdődött, és utána egész évben folytatódott online és személyes konzultációk formájában. Az egyedülálló műhelymunkában 12 kiválasztott tehetségnek van lehetősége részt venni, akik a gyakorlati munka után egy dramaturg segítségével dolgoznak filmtervük forgatókönyvén.
A program első eleme egy négynapos, gyakorlatközpontú műhely, amelyet az Thomas Renoldner, Marzieh Emadi és Sina Saadat alkotók tartottak a Primanima előtt. A résztvevők itt egy közös animációs projektet hoztak létre, amelyet a fesztiválon mutattak be a budaörsi Majorban. A műhely résztvevői magára a fesztiválra is meghívást kaptak, ahol vetítéseken, fórumokon és mesterkurzusokon vehettek részt. A fesztivál hetének második felében saját animációs filmterveikhez is tanácsot kérhettek a magyar animációs filmrendező és dramaturg Hermán Árpádtól, illetve csoportos megbeszéléseken is prezentálhatták önálló projektjeiket. A fiatal tehetségeknek a közös élmény folytán lehetőségük van erős kapcsolatot építeni egymással, és még 11 alkalommal, havonta vehetnek részt konzultációkon forgatókönyvük fejlesztése érdekében. A Primanima Jumpstart tehetségfejlesztő programja egyedülálló abban, hogy a résztvevők a gyakorlati workshop eseménye után hosszútávú szakmai támogatást kapnak.
A 10. Primanimán startolt Jumpstart megvalósításában partnereink is aktívan részt vesznek. A visegrádi térség kiemelkedő filmes és animációs szakmai platformjaival működünk együtt. Nagy segítséget nyújtott nekünk a lengyelországi MOMAKIN, akik csapata révén résztvevőink meghívást kaptak a 2022-es ANIMARKT Stop Motion Forumra, a CEE Animation Forum, akik gyakorlati útmutatást adtak a fórumra történő jelentkezésről, és a szlovák StoryLab, akik az egyik résztvevőnket delegálták. A programban mentorált alkotóknak eszerint nagyobb lehetőségük adódik a térség más animációs szakmai programjainak a látogatására, valamint lehetőségük van a már létező és jól működő regionális hálózatokhoz is csatlakozni.
Primanima Jumpstart 2022 is a talent development initiative that offers a "two-in-one" opportunity to participate in a practical workshop and a script development programme that started before the 10th Primanima World Festival of First Animation and continued throughout the year in the form of online and in-person consultations. The unique opportunity for 12 selected talents to take part in the experimental workshop is followed by a practical session in which they are working on the script of their film project with the help of a dramaturg.
The first part of the programme was a four-day, practice-oriented workshop held right before Primanima by experienced tutors and filmmakers from Vienna, Thomas Renoldner, Marzieh Emadi and Sina Saadat . Here the participants created a collaborative animation project, which was presented at the festival in the exhibition space of Major in Budaörs. The participants were also invited to the festival itself, where they had the opportunity to participate in screenings, forums, master classes and the festival's vibrant life. During the second half of the festival week, they could also consult a Hungarian animation filmmaker and dramaturg Árpád Hermán for their own animation film projects and present their individual works in group sessions. The young talents have the opportunity to build strong relationships with each other through the experience and will have 11 more monthly consultations to develop their scripts. Primanima Jumpstart talent development programme is particularly unique in that participants receive long-term support after the practical workshop event.
Our partners are also actively involved in the implementation of Jumpstart 2022. We collaborate with prominent film and animation professional platforms in the Visegrad region. We have received great help from MOMAKIN in Poland, whose team enabled our participants to be invited to the 2022 ANIMARKT Stop Motion Forum, we have collaborated with the CEE Animation Forum, who provided practical guidance on how to apply to their well known event, and we have the chance to work on our partnership with StoryLab in Slovakia, who delegated one of our participants.All in all, one of our main goal was to provide a wider access to the creators mentored in this programme other animation industry events in the Visegrad region, as well as the chance to join existing and well-established regional networks and promote international cooperation among them.