The ASWF Summer Learning Program: A Review and Reflection

Thumbnail Courtesy of the Academy Software Foundation

Creative industries are typically regarded for being a diverse and accepting field, while their counterparts in STEM industries are not quite known for their diversity. The visual effects/ animation industry is an interesting case, being the odd halfway point between the two. However, as it stands today, the VFX/ animation industry is notably lacking in the diversity aspect- especially with the more STEM oriented jobs within it. For this reason, the Academy Software Foundation took initiative to bring forth change.

The Academy Software Foundation (ASWF) was founded by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences, and is on a mission to create and improve open source software to be used throughout the motion picture industry. Three years ago, the ASWF began a summer learning program known as the ASWF Summer Learning Program, with the goal to help educate, connect, and give experience to underrepresented people for technical careers in vfx/animation. This past summer, I had the opportunity to participate in this program. With many students beginning to think about their summer plans, I will be sharing my experiences in this program in hopes someone may find this opportunity to be something they wish to pursue.

What it Was

Over the course of the summer, the ASWF fostered a community completely remote between both learners, mentors, team leads, and guest mentors. We as learners were provided with online courses of our choosing to spend our summer indulging in. Personally, I took the opportunity to learn some programs I had yet to explore, such as Nuke, Houdini, and more of Maya’s technical side. We also all learned Python coding in Maya. Personally, the self-paced learning was amazing, and worked very well with my schedule for the summer. It gave me the opportunity to explore things I have been aching to learn, but was not sure where to begin.

On top of the courses, we also had our personal mentor, who helped us with career advice, deciding goals, technical questions, resume/ website reviews, and much more. Personally, my mentor was amazing, and helped me out in many ways that I am still so grateful for- and many other learners seemed to have similarly positive experiences with theirs. We also had the occasional guest mentor, who may be someone in an industry or role we were curious about. The last key aspect was the guest panels and presentations, in which talented industry professionals shared their experiences and insight on a variety of topics.

Was it Worth it?

Absolutely. This summer I am more than grateful to have had the opportunity to learn alongside such a motivated group of people. The technical skills I learned have already helped me immensely through my coursework as well as personal projects. Additionally, the connections and people that took the time to share the knowledge they learned throughout their journey was priceless and something that I will forever be grateful for. As a young artist, this program truly gave me the jump start down my own path, and laid a great foundation for me to build off of in the years to come.

If you, like myself, are just starting your journey into the industry, it is important to always look for opportunities to learn such as this one. As cliche as it sounds, if I learned anything from this summer, it is to take every chance you can to learn. In an ever changing industry like VFX, film, and animation, it is important to grow with the world around you. Never back down from an opportunity to do so, not only to help your career, but because it can just be fun to explore what the world has to offer.