Computer-generated imagery projects by U.S. graduate's startup in Thailand
Walking past the two-storey building situated in a quiet Bangkok soi, few could imagine that secrets behind the success of some major Hollywood films are produced here.
An animator works on perfecting a CGI animation feature in The Monk Studio in Bangkok.
At The Monk Studio Co, a group of young creators is carefully working on eye-popping graphics for future studio projects, weaving computer-generated imagery (CGI) skills into moving characters on computer screens.
The Monk Studio was born in 2007 as a computer graphics and animation house, a small but growing effort from sought-after animator Suponwich Somsaman. Mr Suponwich, better known as Juck Somsaman in the Hollywood CGI world, worked on more than 30 Hollywood films during 16 years at the renowned American CGI and animation house Rhythm & Hues Studios. He helped bring to life characters such as Garfield and Scooby-Doo. Other projects include Night at the Museum, Superman Returns, Daredevil, Hollow Man, Mystery Men, The Nutty Professor, Babe and Batman Forever.
A turning point in his career came when he was sent to Mumbai to be in charge of skills training for the Indian staff of Rhythm & Hues for eight months while supervising CGI work for the films Garfield 2 and Night at the Museum. It was then he decided to return home and start his own animation house. "I was envious because Thai students didn't have the same opportunity," said the 42-year-old US graduate. "It was my inspiration that if I could train Indians, then I could pass on my experience and techniques so that Thais could develop CGI skills that reach international standards."
The Monk Studio has served as a subcontractor for CGI and animation production for both Asian and Western markets. It produced an international animated commercial series for Unilever's Walls ice-cream shown in Asian countries such as China, India and Indonesia. And the company is the animation art director for the new Hollywood film Howl to open next year.
Starting with only three staff members three years ago, the company today has more than 60 employees, most in their mid-twenties. The animation team from The Monk Studio won the FJORG 2009 International Animation Contest in New Orleans. The studio has also been developing its own animation projects, one of which is Escape of the Gingerbread Man, a short film looking for joint investors so it can be released next year.
Despite clients' wishes that they work on only their projects, Mr Suponwich still schedules OEM (original equipment manufacturer) work, which contributes a major revenue stream for the company. "OEM projects develop the skills of our staff as we need to keep our work up to the standard required in the world market," he said. "This has helped them to establish a strong skill set for a long-term career path."
Nitipat Somsaman, managing director of the Monk Studio, said a major difficulty in the Thai CGI industry remains costly software as the international market will not accept companies using pirated software. In this regard, open-source software helps the company save costs. "Another concern is that our universities teach students all kinds of skills but hardly anyone has a specialty," said Mr Nitipat. "We need for them to focus on becoming an expert in one skill."
His younger brother agreed. Mr Suponwich said that in order for the Thai CGI industry to move forward, it needed to develop not only the skills of animators, but also those engaged in the whole film production industry, be it production designers, editors, IT employees or screenwriters. "English proficiency is very important as we constantly deal with foreign clients. We may have the animators, but it's hard to find a middleman who is able to speak both English and film languages at the same time," Mr Suponwich said. "Otherwise, we have to hire a foreign supervisor who may not understand Thai culture."
With a strong will to create skilled personnel to support the growth of the Thai CGI industry, The Monk Studio created The Monk Studio Apprentice Programme offering a free five-week training programme to CGI and animation lovers seeking to experience how their medium is produced. "CGI companies in Thailand are not competing with one another. Rather, we're driving the Thai CGI industry forward through producing quality products," he added.
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