The Department of Animation and Visual Effects at the K. R. Narayanan National Institute of Visual Science & Arts (KRNNIVSA) successfully organised a five-day Story Development Workshop for Animation for the 2nd-semester (2024 batch) students. Held from August 31 to September 4, 2025, the workshop was led by the esteemed resource person, Ms. Gitanjali Rao, a renowned filmmaker, animator, and storyteller.
The workshop aimed to enhance students' storytelling skills with a strong emphasis on narrative development for animation and VFX
Workshop Highlights and Activities
Ms. Rao adopted a mentoring-based approach, engaging with each participant individually to provide constructive feedback on their original story concepts and ensuring personalized attention. The structured, step-by-step sessions allowed students to refine their ideas and strengthen their narratives.
Day 1: Introduction to the Art of Storytelling and Story Elements. Students presented their initial stories and were tasked with defining their story's intent.
Day 2: Discussion on Developing Ideas, Understanding Structure, and Character Development. Students presented their character backstories and made revisions to their main stories.
Day 3: Focus on the importance of dialogues and their formulation based on different characters and story types. Students wrote their character dialogues and participated in a discussion about production design with Ms. Rupali Gatti.
Day 4: Lecture on the importance of Plot and Structure and script formation methods. Students presented a restructured version of their stories.
Day 5: Discussion on the role of sound and music in animation and choosing the appropriate medium/style for a story. The workshop culminated with a storytelling session of the students' finalized stories.
Short film screenings and discussions were also a regular feature throughout the five days, providing valuable context and examples.
The workshop successfully achieved its objectives , equipping students with practical and theoretical knowledge in narrative building for animation. Participants gained a deeper understanding of storytelling fundamentals, developed structured stories, and became familiar with script formatting techniques. It also strengthened their ability to integrate subplots and thematic depth in their animation stories
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