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What are the options that come to mind when someone asks, “what do you plan
as a career for yourself?” Doctors, engineers, journalists or MBAs are common
answers. But if you're like many young go-getters today, a career in gaming and
animation might be somewhere at the back of your mind. And it's a lucrative
option too; this $43 billion worldwide industry has a lot to offer.
Why Gaming and Animation?
Gaming and animation is one of the most interesting newer fields, and it
offers everything-challenges, creative satisfaction and not to mention big
bucks. Game development is a full-fledged industry where creativity is the
keyword and it requires professionals like programmers, testers, visual arts
designers, creative writers, and even PR reps. Our country's talent pool has
been slowly increasing, bolstered by the gaming cafes and high-end PCs.
As en extension to gaming, you can also look at animation. Both have
essentially the same required skill set. The industry has also suddenly come
into the limelight because of movies like Hanuman and Ganesha which have
received critical acclaim. Infact, big animation studios like Disney and Pixar
are also coming to India to source talent. For them, the main attraction is
Indian tales and epics, which they feel can be told in the animated form. And it
is because of these factors, that new job opportunities are opening up for
animators in India.
Agrees Atindriya Bose, Country Manager, Sony Computer Entertainment and he
also adds “India has a very developed IT industry, animation industry and a
story-telling industry in form of a film industry. A game is nothing but
combining these three things together. Since we have all the necessary resources
there is no doubt we can also excel in this field. ”
Who should opt for it?
The road to game development/animation seems to be smooth , but the inside
world is rather complex. Game developers or animators have to begin from
scratch; they have to first conceive an exciting thought and then finally give
it a shape which is captivating and appealing at the same time. It is difficult
because they have nothing to refer to.
So how can you decide whether you are perfect for this field? What are the
basic qualifications? Excellence in academics is an added advantage but not a
prerequisite. Giving a piece of advice to those who desperately want to be in
this field Ajay Sartape, Business Head, Ibexis said, "Play more and more games;
this is the basic qualification for becoming a gaming developer or tester. And
apart from creativity, it is the passion for gaming that you need to build your
career in gaming. He further adds, “B.E. is the perfect degree for game
developers, and game designers have to be commercial artists from a reputed
institute. Moreover, some experience in digital art will also help.”
Challenges for this industry
The most prominent challenges faced by this field are the ever-changing
trends of the gaming market with respect to the target audience. Mr. Salil
Bhargave , CEO, Jump Games explains,”India is a very dynamic market as far as
gaming is concerned. There are a lot of factors that determine audience's taste
as all the games are not received well here. Bollywood, cricket and even
religious festivals can turn the flavor. So, it's a challenge to keep your
audiences hooked on to your content and a good one at that.”
Animation industry in India is still in its nascent stages, unlike the
industry which exists in US and Canada. So, it will be a real challenge for us
to prove ourselves against them. There is not even a single hit title in console
gameing from India. Initially it may take some time but finally things will only
go upwards from there. Manoj Dawane, CEO, People Infocom (Mauj) who adds “ The
potential is big. We just have to let our imagination run wild.”
Interested? Start learning here:
- Arena animation
- National Institute of Design, Ahmedabad
- C-DAC's National Multimedia Resource Centre, Pune
- Film and Television Institute of India (FTII)- Pune
- S.N.D.T. Women's University- Mumbai
- MS University- Baroda
- Symbiosis Institute of Design, Pune
- NIIT
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