Videos by 10 artists and teachers, which were rolled out in November and will continue through 2024, are available on the partnership's website. Collectively, the instructors’ skill set includes animation, illustration, content creation, and video and film production, according to a news release last week. It said Skillshare by itself offers about 26,000 video-based classes.
"This partnership underscores the powerful synergy between Procreate and Skillshare, both dedicated to bringing creative education and exploration to the fore," Alicia Hamilton-Morales, Skillshare senior vice president of content, community and marketing, said in a public statement. “Our goal is to demystify creative disciplines like animation by inviting students to explore classes taught by our exceptional teachers and ignite their passion for learning something new and innovative."
In 2D animation, the traditional frame-by-frame method for making cartoons, the creator or team of creators draws a series of pictures containing only slight differences from each other. As those frames are displayed or flipped in a rapid succession, the objects drawn on them appear to be moving.
In a public statement, Procreate's Chief Marketing Officer Nathan Clegg said the tool used in the video demonstrations, Procreate Dreams, which took five years to develop, “is approachable for beginners and powerful for professionals.”
Qued Up, an Illinois-based nonprofit agency focused entirely on promoting 2D-animation education for children between the ages of 5 and 17 in low-income families, touts the benefits of this art form as accessible, engaging and important for children’s mental well-being. Founder and Executive Director Quittman “Q” Farmer said the free videos will hopefully bring much-needed attention to the importance of teaching the building blocks of animation as a springboard to so many different artistic outlets and careers, including computer automation outside of the entertainment industry.
He challenges anyone, whether a shy adolescent or their teacher or grandparent, to say they can’t fondly recall watching a cartoon at some point in their lives. The 12 principles of animation dating back to Walt Disney, Farmer said, touch everyone.
“The 2D foundation is the best place to start because animation brings art to life, and then you’re talking about integrating technology,” said Farmer, who worked as a graphic artist and taught high school animation classes in Chicago. “It’s a lot of work, but you navigate through it and build confidence. The benefits go beyond just the digital medium.”
