By Jahir Olvera
On Oct. 13, Long Beach State art students gathered in teams of five prepared to create 30-second animations from scratch over the course of a 24-hour period in the Fine Arts 4 building.
Participants had to work together in teams, using the medium of their choice to create an animated short that meets the theme, which is revealed at the beginning of the event.
The 24 Hours Animation Contest originated here at CSULB, created by animation professor Aubry Mintz 21 years ago. Feeling that his students weren’t motivated back then, Mintz challenged his class to stay and work as late as they could. Some students stayed as late as 18 hours working on their assignments. Mintz found the reception to the challenge to be positive as students were more productive and took more ownership of their work.
Today, the contest has grown to become an international event with over 2000 students from 23 countries around the world participating from their respective campuses. Sponsored by major studios such as Walt Disney Animation Studios and DreamWorks, the contest features a prize pool worth over $165,000 for the winning teams.
The contest has a total of seven winning places, which include the top five teams, the best high school team and the best behind-the-scenes video. Last year, Cal State Long Beach had two teams placed within the top five. This year, CSULB didn’t place, with the winning teams coming from Florida, Lebanon, Brazil and Taiwan. Team “finalfinal.mp4” from Ringling College of Art & Design in Florida took home the first-place prize.
