Has DEI killed Canada's finest animation school?

[@sebbenforte]

This mirrors my experience going into the technology industry. There were only three men on our team of 12, and I was the only straight white one. I expect that was perfectly by design, because the team makeup made it extremely difficult for me to be impactful-- I wasn't in the symbolic union. Because the team wouldn't run with my ideas, I was relegated to being the driving workforce behind other, more diverse ideas. I know that I was qualified to be there, because I earned my way in, but once I was in I was treated like I had very little to offer.

[@dbsommers1]

It's 'revenge' for slights they never experienced, visited on people who did nothing to anyone. And the more power they get, the worse it will get.

[@RambleOn07]

The 'Enlightened' love having worker bees.

[@sethflix]

@@dbsommers1 You get it. It's basically neo-fascism coming from the left.

[@jamalisujang2712]

Just put the least effort you can get away with and push responsiblities to the diverse individuals and see if they earn it or not. 😂😂😂

[@en--ev]

It's crazy just how collectively regressive all of these organizations and institutions have really become. Recreating the exact same things in history that they claim to hate.

[@EasyZee69]

I am a former Sheridan animation student, 1989 to 1991. I know a lot of friends and colleagues that went to the program after I left, and by all accounts it started declining in the mid to late 90's. My younger brother is also a former Sheridan animation graduate, and he is also a mentor there to this day. There are a lot of problems with the program nowadays, DEI is just one of them. When the program went from a degree to a bachelor, they fired all the teachers, whether it's the law or just a preference, they wanted the teachers to have bachelor degrees themselves... and the animation teachers obviously didn't have that. So what ended up happening, as ridiculous as this sounds, the newly hired teachers were not animators, they were people with degrees in film, editing, sound design, kinda sorta film adjacent, but not animators. Which is why they rely on mentors like my brother to actually teach the fundamentals of animation. They got rid of their best teachers. Once the head of the animation program, Wayne Gilbert, left in 1996, it was all down hill from then. The other problem is the quality of the students they admit into the program. Back in the day, it was hard to get into Sheridan's Animation program. These days, they will take anyone with the money... and the money is a lot more than it was back in my day. My tuition was like 700 bucks, these days they are milking the students for tens of thousands. Is DEI a problem, probably, but it's not what brought the animation program down. Oh, and one more thing: when I went to school there, it was like the movie, Animal House, but worse. Animal House seems tame compared to my time at Sheridan. It is sad that these days the students are boring and lack a zest for life.

[@CallMeChato]

Thanks for the great comment.

[@dudsummon3803]

So credentialism and the managerial class

[@portocredito]

As a prof in another department from that time, your account matches what I heard through the grapevine. My only contact with the department was regularly bumping into the head of the program waiting in line for coffee. He was so pleasant to talk to. Given the high reputation of the program at the time, he didn't let it go to his head.

[@HenryWong-ol8fh]

We were Wayne Gilbert’s last students in his vis communication class. He left for ILM and now he’s here in Vancouver. Yes, after Wayne left, the school was crap. My friend in first year saw what was happening to us in second year that he decided to go to Capilano to further his animation studies. They replaced Wayne with David Howe. David was so bad, he never taught and I don’t think he knows how to teach animation. He was a producer for commercials who was hired to teach animation. We signed a petition wanting our money back so Sheridan decided to get Charlie Bonifacio to teach animation, but David Howe had to mark the animation homework. That was screwed up.

[@valeriemcdonald440]

I was there the first year of the bachelor of applied arts (I did not stick out the 4 years). I can confirm that Sheridan had a bit of a tarnished reputation at the time already (the grads were known to have egos), and the teachers were under pressure to get degrees or quit. I know the life drawing teacher at the time had declined accepting an honorary degree because he thought it was stupid. Also they raised the price of the program and accepted too many students, so there weren't enough desks and equipment for everyone and people became super competitive about getting the desks. I have no comment on the DEI stuff though, it wasn't a buzzword at the time. There was always a lot of countercultural people attracted to the field, who wanted to make art rather than commercial films.

[@michaelreich4827]

DEI: Didn't Earn It

[@denroy3]

Because most can't...no secret that the IQ levels have caused the left to punish Asians and Whites and just give stuff...you know. The dumbing down of education is also an attempt the level the field.

[@primmakinsofis614]

DEI = Destructive Evil Ideology ESG = Entirely Stupid Garbage BRIDGE = Bloody Ridiculous Ideology Destroying Great Endeavors

[@theALTF4]

D I E: Dying In Equity

[@luigivincenz3843]

Discrimination Exclusion Intimidation

[@metaljacket8128]

Lol

[@gallendugall8913]

Anyone else remember the last time we went through this back in the '70s? Then it was called "quotas" and every business and organization that adopted it suffered. Judging by characteristics instead of merit does not work.

[@andyandreson3989]

The vast majority do not remember 5 years ago.

[@pheunithpsychic-watertype9881]

I remember there was a good times episode that touched on this subject

[@andyandreson3989]

@@pheunithpsychic-watertype9881 Dy-no-mite!!

[@badlaamaurukehu]

​@@pheunithpsychic-watertype9881Dirty Harry had an observation as well.

[@pheunithpsychic-watertype9881]

@@badlaamaurukehu My first reaction to the submarine and boeing incidents "That's a heck of a price to pay for looking stylish"

[@liaminwales]

My dad always tells me about Canada's animation from the 70/80/90's, it was world renowned.

[@mtlreiner]

Rock N’ Rule

[@sonicsnake44]

Reboot

[@mtlreiner]

@@sonicsnake44 What a great show. Still have it on DVD.

[@johnnymidnight2982]

There's a Scottish band called "Boards of Canada" that samples quite a bit of the soundtracks from that kind of animation. Really good stuff.

[@kevangeorge1357]

It was when i was there in the 70's

[@MrTickleTrunk]

Even 20 years aago, when I went to Sheridan for Art Fundamentals when I was deciding what I wanted to do, the animation department wasn't the bastion of animation it used to be. I got to know a few of the animation students and they all said that companies like Disney used to walk through and just point at ppl and tell them they had a job when they finish... that practice had already stopped during the year I spent there.

[@marcogenovesi8570]

yeah now they recruit from tumblr

[@carloshenriquezimmer7543]

Well, if the last financial report of the "flopping D" Studios is anythyng to go by, pretty soon the practice of having any jobs at all will not last very long... They are yet to profit enough with SW and Marvel to be able to pay for those two, let alone all the rest...

[@Jonas-lj8ul]

Heh. I took Art Fun for Mentals as well. 1992 - we're upper sixth, and we cheat. Total waste of time, on my part. I kinda wish the admission board had looked at my resume and just said "You're not good enough, kid - get a real job" rather than accept me for AF. Unfortunately, honesty doesn't get the school those sweet, sweet OSAP dollars.

[@MrTickleTrunk]

@@Jonas-lj8ul Art Fundies did 1 good thing for me - NETWORKING. 3/4 of it was an utter waste of my time and money.

[@willpower8061]

When I trained at Disney (long ago) it was things like anatomy, structure, color theory and motion. This news clearly explains why everything is so bad.

[@CallMeChato]

They still try to do that.

[@willpower8061]

@@CallMeChato yeeea.."try" they may, but clearly not a focus. Most new artist I've met don't even know things like "form follows function"

[@AvengerII]

@@willpower8061 "form follows function" That's pretty obvious in character designs! I'm not convinced anyone working in comics today knows how to design a superhero costume! The iconic designs are decades old. I never thought any of the Image characters were that well-designed. For some reason, these guys thought after they came into power at DC that it was wise to redesign the DC characters. I prefer the original character designs which are still being used in merchandizing and licensing. I never liked any of the DC-52 designs. The Flash's 1956 Carmine Infantino design is still far superior to anything they've used for the character in the last 14 years!

[@phoenixrising4995]

Now you can't use simple color terms whites and blacks anymore. We love DEI, F color calibration 🤣🤣🤣

[@tobycameron317]

@@CallMeChato The only color theory they care about now is the one involving shades of brown.

[@Crimson_Hawk_01]

Women of animation makes me think of Velma season II. We all see how well that show is going.

[@Marinealver]

A Scooby-Doo show without Scooby-Doo, what Genius came up with that concept? Must have been some office washout.

[@RambleOn07]

​@@Marinealvershe was just mad that Scooby Doo wasn't about her.

[@AldrickExGladius]

No they don't, I don't think anybody is watching actually 🤣

[@Darrylizer1]

I have tried 3 times to get through episode 1 of season 1. The humor just isn't humorous.

[@nofutureproductions9242]

There's a season 2!?

[@MisterBooSky]

I'm the father of a college-age son. I just went back to school to finish my degree. That student's description of Sheridan is exactly what I've experienced in the Massachusetts college that I'm attending (except for the stuff about wanting to work for Disney).

[@Klee99zeno]

I was a student at Sheridan back in 1997. I was doing their one year post-graduate certificate in computer graphics. I did meet you once when you did a guest lecture. You may not remember when Gillian asked you about a new video format Sony was creating ( it may have been the Blu-Ray ), to which you responded by calling Sony a bunch of Fuck-heads. I did work at a company afterwards and made CD ROMs and websites for four years. Thanks for your help.

[@RambleOn07]

That sounds like the kind of lecture I'd like to listen to lol

[@dinkmartini3236]

Terry-Thomas

[@cynthiacarter9055]

Sad, but not unexpected. Too many incompetent people have been patted on the head and given power they neither deserve nor know how to weild wisely, and it is making life worse for all of those around them.

[@MichaelLeBlanc-p4f]

Pleased to learn of your Sheridan connection. Was an Illustration/Graphics grad in 76/77. Returned for 2 semesters of Computer Graphic Annimation in 86/87. The force of 'Woke' was just getting started then . . .

[@shrapnelface5978]

My wife and I have been in animation and VFX for almost 20 years each and run a small 3rd tier studio. This makes me want to make an animation school for people who are interested in learning animation + vfx instead of wokeism. But then again, I wouldn't want to be responsible for bringing people into this industry.

[@LionKimbro]

Please DO make your school. There are going to be new storytellers. People don’t like what’s going on and there are going to be new people telling new stories.

[@XSquidbeatsX]

You can start teaching online, thus it’s global.

[@irisfainberg7623]

Im a digital media student in tel aviv university, in the vfx department. I would love to study with you!

[@CalOShaughnessy]

'...responsible for bringing people into this industry.' spoken like someone that's actually worked in the industry. I feel your conundrum. on one hand I miss the excitement and love of the medium with others, on the other I avoided the industry due to enmeshed exploitation of the artists and the constant stress of trying to find work and the threat of a studio closing looming over you like the sword of Damocles.

[@stevebishop9468]

Help create an alternative to Hollywood

[@Gloops01]

When I worked as an animator, which was last about 25 years ago, they were a bunch of hard drinking, hard swearing pirates, men and women. There weren't any degree courses when I entered the industry, you learned on the job. I started as a cel painter. Happy days, consigned to oblivion by the new puritans, it would appear.

[@GerarddeSouza-yt3fc]

I don't know if Steve Williams would have remembered me, but we graduated the same time (1984). This was Classical Animation (drawn, paper, film, cels, paint) . He didn't take Computer Animation as it wasn't a course on its own (but a part of Technical Animation, which was mostly film special effects which one could branch off in 2nd year). Then, Sheridan had one computer room of VIC 20 computers and we were given a couple talks by our administrator Tom Halley about the computer's potential. Steve stood out to me because he sat down at one, typed in something, and had a bunch of vectors moving on the screen. Around the time that you said you would have been lecturing, I too was working at the company that was acquired by EA. It was a great time to get into computers because it was so new, one learned it on the job, usually on proprietary programs, and many animators were not interested in working on computers (because they were looking at current computer animation results rather than its potential). Anyone with the slightest animation knowledge willing to work on a computer were highly appreciated. "The only computer I need is a bank machine.", I heard an animator say. As for the current reported state of affairs at Sheridan, I taught here in Vancouver for a few years. Now I think I'm a very open-minded sensitive guy. I try to respect everyone and address individuals (within reason) how they wish to be addressed...but I could see myself not lasting 3 days teaching at the Sheridan you describe; this old guy will (and have) "put my foot in it".

[@kpsk8031]

That's the inevitable side effect of DEI.

[@theevermind]

It's the main effect, not the side effect.

[@nikitaw1982]

and feminism.

[@BlastBoyX]

Nelvana was a powerhouse when I was a kid. I enjoyed both Ewoks and Droids, so thanks for your part in that. I freaking loved the Ewoks when I was growing up. People complain but getting anything from Lucasfilm use to be such a rare and precious treat that you just felt like even the slightest little guest spot from one of the original Star Wars cast here and there felt special. I felt like Droids was actually this incredible set of adventures into day to day life among smugglers and freedom fighters, and come on the theme song is catchy as hell plus Anthony Daniels did the actual voice for C-3PO. Inspector Gadget is in the same wheelhouse, great formula, classic old school actor, running gags, memorable characters, catchy theme song. There was also this incredibly excellent cartoon called The Raccoons that the CBC put out, but as a kid in a America I would only catch glimpses of it here and there. Also, The Disney Channel used to be a paid subscription channel in the 80s and 90s and it was really just everything a kid could want in a channel, hands down. We never got the Disney Channel because my Dad was only paying for a channel if it showed titties after 10PM, but sometimes it would go free and I would catch The Raccoons and it was just so heartfelt and wholesome. Sometimes I could find it on VHS in various rentals stores as well. Good stuff, cheers to Canada, my hopes for your speedy recovery.

[@dcarr8816]

Such a shame….I used to love watching the occasional PBS specials we would get here in the US featuring the Film Board of Canadas animation festival entries and were amazed by how creative and talented Canadian animators were. I’m sure many of those animated projects and their creators came out of Sheridan…how the mighty have fallen.

[@casualcausalityy]

I hate that this movement has me questioning the competency of any minority I see in an important position

[@zonzillamagnus5902]

I can't imagine with AI coming and productions dropping getting into the industry with paid school

[@TheWickedFanboy58]

DEI has killed just about everything my dude. It's a darn shame. Now you fine folks in Canadia are getting shanked. Didn't earn it has to stop! I'm goñ a start a campaign on my You Tube channel soon to try and stop it. We can do it!👍

[@jdpolo8679]

With all these experienced animators, writers, and showrunners that have been pushed out of the industry based on their gender or melinin content, youd think someone with a little vision and a lot of money would create a new studio and snatch up all this unused talent on the cheap. Imagine the art AND money that could be made.

[@carloshenriquezimmer7543]

Give it some time and the Japane will be doing it, look at "Godzila: minus one". All that they need to take over is to produce a decent "pet project" from some celebrity (or a random guy with cash) to afford better special effects equipment, world class actors and proper distribution deals, and they are gold. Just picture that: A movie based in a obscure gem of a 70's manga, directed by the same legend that ruled over G: -1, financed by an Saudi Prince (the manga's fan), starring the likes of Casper van Dien, Lucy Liu, Jenna Ortega or Chris Hemsworth, alongside some unknown actors from different countries, like Argentina, Germany, Turquey, S. Korea. And, the most important, THE JAPANESE MOVIE MAKING ATTITUDE! You know, the "this is MY movie, you like it, good, you don't, your problem'. I would by a ticket to the movies for that...

[@kikrinman1450]

I was recently a post-graduate high school student here in Canada, trying to get into the industry. Our in house animation department in high school was always working hand-in hand with groups like Women in Animation and even multiple high-ranking studios like Disney, Pixar and Nickelodeon. They were always going on how they were leading this "new generation" of young people onto the industry. I was barred entry to this cohort since they supposedly "couldn't find room for me", despite being one of the first people to apply for their program. They're actively showing us young people the opportunity to actually advance their creative career, like a carrot on a stick, only to pull away if you don't fit their quota. I got to see all of these people get a free ride to all of these animation schools like Sheridan, VFS and others, while I was left in the dust, working elbow to elbow with them doing coding work, knowing I'll never be doing they're doing. I guess I should ultimately count myself lucky, because the truth is we never had a chance.

[@atomixfang]

Sounds more like a skill issue.

[@interrobangings]

Oakville is also entirely unaffordable nowadays, but that's a separate issue

[@keithbell6866]

When I retired, I took the Video Game Design & Animation Associate Diploma offered by the Toronto Film School. I did it online as I don't really live too close to Toronto. It was excellent and I never had to put up with any non course specific stuff. No DEI or any other time wasting garbage. I feel very fortunate to have been able to spend so much actual online time with my instructors. They were absolutely brilliant. The other students in my class were awesome too. Spent many, many hours with them on Discord or doing our own video chats while working through ideas or issues we may have had while learning the new (to us) software that has been at the fore front of so many great games and movies.

[@ktblue2bass]

"Lost in a Roman wilderness of pain. And all the children are insane. All the children are insane. Waiting for the summer rain." The Doors.

[@maxis2k]

While I'm sure this school has gotten far more DEI over the years, this isn't exactly new. Richard Williams famously pointed out in the 90s how colleges were dropping actual learning and replacing it with worthless classes. Becoming nothing more than daycare centers. And my college was the same in the early 2000s. But it is nice to have more confirmation that Disney is driving this junk. All the more reason animation (and all of media) is probably going to need to go more towards indie works and bypass the studios. Thankfully animation can do this on KZbin and in foreign markets like Japan (for now...).

[@TheVagolfer]

Chato, it's always gratifying to hear you share your perspective on social commentary, it's sad such wise and experienced voices are on the decline in today's gutless and misguided culture, with fear and acquiescence replacing common sense, integrity and free speech. Well done, please continue your secular sermons, you are a needed voice.

[@cellshade87]

When I was at Seneca for animation 15 years ago. The instructors I had have said they all went to Sheridan for their animation schooling & it was even bad for them then. They didn't get the proper training they needed until they actually worked in the industry.

[@gnarwhal7562]

Af this point, if you're Canadian and wanting to make it as an animator, your options are either studying abroad or uploading videos online. Our animation schools are an expensive waste of time

[@hunted4blood]

I'm an engineering graduate taking a short post-grad certificate at Sheridan and my expectations of a college program might be too high so take some of this with a grain of salt. In my experience, professors at Sheridan are not held to the most basic of administrative standards. Almost none of the information about due dates or the weights for each assignment was out of date. After we were given the "correct" due dates, assignments still had to be frequently pushed back because the profs simply _forgot_ to assign them, sometimes multiple times in succession. Even the simplest of assignments took over a month to be graded, and this is for a class with less than a dozen students mind you, so there's no way it was an insurmountable task. This meant that in terms of available marks, we were often most of the way through the course before receiving any kind of feedback on our work. Like for example if we had 3 assignments worth ~23% each and a final exam worth 30%, we'd be writing the third assignment without any way to know how well we were doing. And in 2 of my courses we literally got our grades back less than an hour before the final exam, so there was no way to act on any of that information. And then the last thing, that's more a complaint about the content my program than how it's run, is that we were taking 8 courses at once, and 4 of them covered nearly the exact same topics. It's like they were just trying to pad out the certificate with repetition. Definetely not getting an education that feels worth my time. I don't know if it's DEI or simple institutional decay, but based on my experience, Sheridan is absolutely not a college I would ever recommend to anyone.

[@phoenixrising4995]

Its decay, this happened before the pandemic, before they partnered with Ontario Colleges and even during their years as an independent institution. The 90s/00s was the end of the College era plain and simple.

[@calvinchan8511]

I was in the animation program during 2004-08, that was the first year the program became a bachelor's degree program. From what I remember, the teachers told us they are expected to have at least a masters degree because they are now teaching in a degree granting program. Most of them at the time did not have that as they were former professionals in the field, not academics. Seems like most of the teachers that I had during my time were gone soon after. Now it sounds to be even worse with the DEI crap that I didn't encounter during my 4 years.

[@JerBearTeo]

Oh wow, went there same period as you did but in Illustration. Been hearing stories of how bad its getting over the years.

[@BOYDWILSONFILMS]

I was a graduate from Sheridan's Classical Animation (1986). It was a great time and great experience. Sorry and sad to hear this update. Although I'm not surprised.

[@Dr.Cosmar]

Have faith Chato. You and I may live long enough to see a renaissance. It's in the making right now. The stage was set, the actors are rehearsing their roles, and many people are hungry for something good... something that will remove them from the plights we face... long enough to stop contributing to them.

[@ClintOrris]

The same thing is happening across engineering schools at US and Canadian universities. They are taking time and focus away from real practical STEM skills to mandate DEI classes under various names.

[@mtlreiner]

“Electives”. Sounds like the ol’ days at CEGEP when I took illustration. Who could forget such hits as “Ancient and Modern Cosmology” and “Intro to Chemistry”.

[@dragonchaserkev]

I took Classical animation in '99-00 taught by a couple Sheridan grads. Sheridan was once the place to learn but like most of Canada has gone down the woke crapper.

[@Halo1138]

I am an Ontario animation school graduate. I put 3 years into the program. Though this was a few years back I still remember much of what I was taught. I didn't end up going into the industry, but if how it's looking is any indication, I'm kind of glad I didn't. Things were already changing even back then. A shame really. There was and still is a lot of good talent out there, but they seem hamstrung by the directives of the industry.

[@GartheKnightReturns]

Must a hip happening day in the Chato household if he’s breaking out the cardigan.

[@CGunterPortfolio]

Also Disney fired young animation employees and hired overseas worker for their Animation department. Told them teach the new hires or else who will work in their home countries. Young man testified in front congress in the US.

[@dj1NM3]

At 05:00 that shovelling-in of rubbish and apparently irrelevant electives, rather than expanding the core subjects, seems to be the fate of many practical-based qualifications which went from (Advanced) Diploma to Bachelor, as a sort of "inflation" also affects the qualifications framework, not just a phenomenom which shrinks the value of our money.

[@jkleylein]

Whenever you force things, you're likely to break things.

[@manmoth8833]

Remember that episode of the Simpsons, (cant some body else do it.) when the town,s working people decide to neglect their jobs, and society breaks down under the weight of incompetence. That is what DEI is, and every company is now paying the price.

[@caedrewan]

Thanks for the Canadian update - though I'm definitely not surprised to hear about it

[@joemadden4160]

Was asked to supply my "pronouns" during a meeting yesterday. I was one of about 3 people in a room of 30 who refused. Proving Milgram right every single day.

[@gretaeberhardt541]

@joemadden4160 Thank you for not participating in that divisive, self righteous BS. I crossed off every instance of “pronouns” on a form from a female attorney and I think I’m paying for it in her putting some very simple work on the back burner, a 2 page document not done 3 months and waiting. These are not nice people, though that’s what they wish to portray.

[@Oceanfoxy]

Good on you! I will not participate.

[@vonpredator]

Sad story…. It’s a shame that one prestigious academies have fallen…

[@jw1548]

DEI ruined my employer. Consequences evaporated when people were certain races or genders.

[@batterymakermarkii2654]

Love the Party. Fear the Party. Defend the Party. All for the Party....

[@djhrecordhound4391]

"Party on, Wayne." "Party on, Garth."--(Wayne's World) "TOGA!!!!"--(Bluto in Animal House)

[@dereksookdeo1720]

Man I went to OCAD instead of Sheridan. Always thought i should've gone there instead since i leaned more toward animation. Shame to see what it has become

[@Sephylis-tl4ll]

Best to pay for a mentorship with an experienced animator instead of paying institutions. It's a damn shame what schools have become. They're no longer a bastion of learning.

[@andrewmacgregor8717]

Thank you for the VERY helpful insight. I'm very near to Loyalist College Graphic Artist program that offers a three year program which does feed into the animation machines like Disney. I have not heard of extreme DEI there, but the electives in year two appear to be creeping into that verge. I'd be grateful if you continue to visit this subject.

[@gaving.griffon2703]

As you probably know, Paul, that Disney TVA keeps canceling its popular animated shows. For example, while the Owl House was too quirky for my taste (and often got quite woke), I saw the appeal of the show. And the show was very popular. But it somehow didn't fit the 'Disney Brand'. Despite the fact that half the cast is canonically not straight, the main character is in a lesbian relationship, and the presence of 'non-binary' characters. I mean, they didn't even sell merch of the show.

[@theALTF4]

to be fair, brony... studios DO ACKNOWLEDGE fandoms, and secretly, one of the reasons to cancel a "popular" cartoon is.... toxic fandoms: it gives you quick bucks, but poisons the company image, and in capitalism: brand and image are ALL. people remember with romanticizing glasses TOH... but not their raimbow retarded, harrassing, hiper-demanding and kind-of-pedo fanbase. i think Disney saw what happened to Cartoon Network with steven universe scandal after scandal and...bailed (have you ever wondered why Netflix wont bother to acknowledge the horrid she-ra reboot? with its inmund cult following? despite being "very popular"?... or why hasbro tried to distance themselves from lauren fausten's MLP wiht their... mediocre 3d reboot?)

[@GenVirtu]

Breaks my heart to hear this I’m old enough to remember the old classic animations from the late 60s 70s 80s and just the ability to be creatively free to do and create so many wonderful ideas and concepts and see it be devastated by political ideology.

[@joemadden4160]

Sheridan is probably trying to erase the legacy of one John K, creator of the BEST Ren and Stimpy seasons. He maybe/was a ______ I don't know him, but he's still the only animator over the last 30-40 years to capture the same LOONEYNESS of the early Warner Bros cartoons, which figures since his idol was Bob Clampett, another genius.

[@CallMeChato]

He was not tameable 😅

[@joemadden4160]

@@CallMeChato 'Tis true.

[@badaoe3stratsonly130]

Make a New Grounds account. There are tons of Indie animators out their who capture the same Looneyness as the Early Warner Bro's Animators. You just have to seek them out. And the vast majority of them aren't child predators. John K. was an brilliant animator. But his work does leave a bad taste in the mouth. And there are plenty of new animators who took inspiration from the best of him. Without taking inspiration from the worst parts of him.

[@Fra_Sausageball]

I wonder if this is the school Colin (often a guest on RedLetterMedia) attended.

[@GartheKnightReturns]

All of this makes me recall the Power of Grayskull documentary. Lou Schiemer of Filmation, the granddaddy of Saturday Morning cartoons hired women. Many of which worked on many series. Because for the most part it was a boys club back then. Even back then they had to contend with overreaching dogmatic censorship. For one instance it was pointed out in the documentary that the censors asked that they do not portray He-Man uprooting trees, small children will be moved to emulate. They think children are that stupid. I mean sure, yeah some are but… This is something else far more insidious than equality in the industry. This is reverse discrimination. Chato, I recommend the mini documentary Jurassic Punk. It’s all about Steve Spaz Williams and his contributions in fallout in the cgi animation industry.

[@GartheKnightReturns]

*and fallout.

[@pedroares6562]

It's fun in an era of huge challenges and changes, like the apparition of AI and the issues with streaming, entertainment industry seem obsessed with DEI, which instead of unity people as intended seem to work to split them. Sad times for the industry.

[@2Sherm]

As a graduate...this saddens me.

[@SleepyE_xx]

I go to this sheridan College in Trafalgar for computer programming. It's only the art students who are more left wing and have pronouns etc. There is significantly less common with the tech students. The issue is more with the professors and language barrier because most have very poor English so it can be hard to follow lectures. But the "wokeness" is not that out of control. The art kids are good kids overall. Though there is an insane amout of international students from India here for the computer programming. And they tend to not take the education seriously so I'm not sure why they bothered coming all they do is just use chatgpt to generate everything and they don't even try to hide it either.

[@rockon8174]

5:04 that degree transition makes immigration easy. 4 year degree means a Canadian and Mexican citizen can fill out paperwork for a TN-1 Visa. There is no cap on the TN-1 visa.

[@wretneck]

My friend was a character design teacher at that school, he and I can say yes! It all started as early as 2016

[@PrettyWeirdDuck]

Speaking as a WASP-ish woman [you can look up what WASP means] I had never near of the "Women In Animation" thing until they finished making their not-worth-pirating animation "High Guardian Spice". Had I known, I would've applied, whipped all their buts, telling them we're going to make HGS worth pirating. But what I really want to do is make a big fat animation production company. I've got production bibles of movies and series ready & waiting.

[@markmunroe-hz8rf]

Bad news. Velma got green lit for a THIRD SEASON!

[@MagMar-kv9ne]

ROFL.

[@gaving.griffon2703]

Feels bad man.

[@markmunroe-hz8rf]

@foolserrand-lu7ym no lie. Sorry!

[@vonfaustien3957]

Isn't Warner at risk of Bankruptcy already? I get season 2 because they proably ordered both at once but dear God why is a third on the table?

[@HandGrenadeDivision]

I did a communications degree in Canada in the mid-90s. I never questioned the necessity to take electives, which at that time had to be focused on a world area other than our own. So alongside learning what syllogisms are and who Plato was, I was learning about the history of Catherine the Great. Never occurred to me at all that they were simply padding out the four year program. I guess I helped employ some professors and TAs. It wasn't as politically correct then, so if the profs were left leaning, they were a little more covert about it.

[@seanmc7128]

We're witnessing the death of modern civilization

[@sketchframestudio]

thats wild , i briefly attended seneca back in 2016 and even than it felt like courses were overstuffed but not so much with bad electives more so with just not enough equipment on site for people to be able to achieve things and adding additional courses to compete with sherdian. had friends who switched over in 2017 to sherdian and graduated in 20189/2020 during the time when it was still a 3 year course with optional branch offs for specific types of animation . meanwhile i moved to mohawk college cuz of a number of things .left mohawk myself and struggled to get the confidence to find work while jobs were still pretty strong. i ended up hopping around indie projects while friends of mine ended up still getting pretty decent work. now i have that confidence and theres no work for anyone. im not sure how much of that is linkedin being broken verse just no work in ontario but ive noticed a shift since like 2023 where despite the mild excitement that some companies in the states would be moving more chunks of production here there wasnt any influx of work . i cant imagine what it must be like for people who worked incredibly hard getting into a program this year only to find the course in shambles and no work or even big mentorship programs around . heartbreaking

[@noitamrofnisiM]

this just in: old man yells at cloud

[@elliotwalton6159]

Speaking confidentially (out loud), I felt compelled to take a mental health break from the then #1 animated show in Canada after carrying the show on my back in season one and shaping it in my image. Season two was a different story and the pressures mounted quickly. My job is totally dependent on the scripts being professionally crafted and entertaining enough to keep me engaged or at least provide a springboard for me to add my contributions. Not an issue with season one. In season two the scripts I received were noticeably inferior (more work for me). Worse yet, they were boring. Then tedious. Then 'The Message' began to appear. I was done. 60 hours a week is a short week for me. These scripts were pushing me to the brink of physical and mental collapse. The studio was supportive of my decision to step away. A person higher up confessed to me that there had been some DEI hires in the writing room. Say no more.

[@NeoVault_]

Mainstream western animation is suffering too. Not just Canada. Bad writing plagues it. Though independent animation has been doing much better despite hurdles like costs, and fewer labor workers.

[@nothanks3236]

I'm going to take a wild guess and say: Yes.

[@Wichitan]

The young men in the class just want the skills and the pigskin. They'll make their own way after graduation. Fun fact: Did you know that the three actors who voiced the main characters in Disney's 'Bambi' were all men? And they're all still alive. The man who voiced Bambi, Don Dunagan, went on to a successful career in the Marines before retiring as a Major. And NO, he never told ANYONE he was the original Bambi... 🤣🤣

[@ZeopoZero]

What makes me sad to hear. Because Canada has produced good animated shows. Like classic Reboot. And to think now that they're going to be producing a lot of Dei stuff is even more saddening. Also, on another note, I have been hearing rumors that Megan stallion is going to be playing boa Hancock for Netflix, one piece season 2. Which is a huge No-No in my books. But I'm not 100% sure how accurate it is. And also thing I would like to recommend Netflix put another anime up called World Trigger which I really enjoy.

[@acutelilmint8035]

Thats crazy.. Sheridan was so hard to get in a decade ago.. even for ‘minorities’.. none of us got in and not even the top student in our school.

[@wisnoskij]

Anatomy of injury sounds like an animation course?

[@nufosmatic]

1:32 HP? NSA’s favorite computer company?

[@steffimaier7297]

I think that decay is going on for years. My friend told me that even the school she went to (Algonquin college) is better than Sheridan. That was over ten years ago. I can imagine that things got worse. Even Gobelins is getting worse. And from my experience there is a high chance they lack talent and aren't good workers. And the ones I did came across are also some of the most rude and entitled people I ever met.

[@DrBananananananananananananana]

yes sir I can atest to this, just dropped out of a artschool and frankly the male students were TERRIFIED to speak at all. I was a outlayer I gotta big mouth.

[@suulix4065]

Great video Chato (I didnt know you were a prof!!). Thanks so much for everything 😁👍

[@robwhitebrook8580]

The experience of applying to the Vic Film school (now Victorian College of the Arts - Film) many years ago, had been blocked from my mind until seeing your video. I now believe that it may have been the first woke educational institute in the world. The course was essentially run by older women with impeccable credentials, none of whom had produced any film of note (or I imagine any film at all), the courses were populated by earnest young radically minded socialists who looked forward to producing items on inner urban life, drug culture and how badly Whitey had treated the indigenous pop. They had in fact been pumping this dreck out since the early eighties and the final result is clear to see. Once quirky, clever and occasionally brilliant, the Aust film output is now a thin stream of diarrhea running down the leg of a slowly calcifying culture of PC, post Marxism and badly run service industries. Australian film is the George A Romano of dead and shambling film houses, moving but long dead.

[@dra6o0n]

I remember Sheridan College. And then I remember the trauma.

[@luigivincenz3843]

Animation for the past 40 years belongs to the Vietnamese and the Koreans. Since year 10 of the Simpsons (yes, that far back) the actual animation post-production is assigned to the Vietnamese and Korean art houses. Even the juggernaut anime studios like Madhouse, they assign to Korean post production to finish the animes. Netflix does it too.

[@neilhollands8448]

There were some great teachers back in the 1980's... Jim Macaulay, Dick Friesen, Kaj Pindal, Zlako Grgic

[@kokomo74149]

I loved the abyss. Great work.

[@deborahsoutar6308]

DIE kills everything it touches. Division, isolation, exclusion. It is never fair or correct or progress when you take from someone else and give something to another. You've now made the first person not only poorer but angrier and more frustrated and made the second either guilty of or blind to theft.

[@sweethistortea]

My friend is going to Sheridan for animation, and she is super talented and can draw photo realistic dragons. I hope she succeeds.

[@padawanmage71]

I do wonder what kind of passion, synergy, creativity could exist when in an environment that is based on fear?

[@kyleshockley1573]

Just look at the Soviet Union for an example. _"It is the land of smothered opportunities."_

[@padawanmage71]

@@kyleshockley1573 Or during the Red Scare of McCarthyism in the 1950s? Blacklisting, anyone?

[@kyleshockley1573]

@@padawanmage71 When you have folks at high levels in the State Department that were card carrying Communists, and who were known to be working with the Soviet Union at the time... was it really paranoia?

[@padawanmage71]

@@kyleshockley1573 I don’t know the full transcripts of those proceedings from start to finish, but I thought that majority of those brought before HUAC were those in the entertainment industry: writers, directors, actors, actresses, script writers, etc.? How many State Department people were blacklisted?

[@kyleshockley1573]

@@padawanmage71 Search for The Venona Project, the Venona Papers, or a list of American names. Take note of Harry Dexter White, Alger Hiss, Lauchlin Currie. The last one probably played a role in China going the way it did during WWII, and with our own economic policies that we're currently paying the price for. There are also names on the list associated with the Manhattan Project.

[@BrianSmithCanman]

So many broadcast courses have also been extended (Padded) from 2 or 3 year highly focused courses into 4 year degrees. Most of those added courses are of the DEI variety. Just another way for the universities to make more money. You always have to realize that universities are educators, yes, but primarily they are businesses in it to make money. Why are there still radio courses when there are very few jobs left? Same with TV. Shrinking job market. Shrinking fast. Yet universities and colleges are still pumping out grads.

[@jim-es8qk]

What we are witnessing is the slow death of culture. Film, music, education, and sport. It's destroying everything.

[@LornRoberts]

What's the best example of Canadian animation in your opinion?

[@sitoudien9816]

There is none. Most of it is contract work for Hollywood productions.

[@CallMeChato]

Lots. Non-commercial stuff look up old National film board animations like The Cat Came Back. A good film The Triplets of Belleville.

[@ran_red]

@@CallMeChato oh man, The Triplets of Belleville is a masterpiece of animation

[@canuck3169]

⁠@@CallMeChato The Log Driver's Waltz…

[@CallMeChato]

@@canuck3169 Kate and Anna.

[@kevangeorge1357]

So glad i was in the Media Arts program there back in the mid 70's

[@adamcrofts58]

It all seems rather sad. When did we lose sight of the fact that education is to open the possibilities of what we are and our place in the universe. That it should be value free. You should learn to become better within yourself, more informed, by so doing that allows you to see the world as it is not what the shouty people think it should be. Keep up the good work Cato

[@adamcrofts58]

No problem. You must feel like Sisyphus at times.

[@quatore-5886]

I love your sweater, very Canadian. 😊

[@denroy3]

Very British.

[@sitoudien9816]

Canada doesn't have an animation industry. There are fine examples of handmade animation but if it doesn't put food on the table and a roof over your head, it ain't an industry. At best canada is a vfx subcontractor for hollywood productions.

[@vonfaustien3957]

As a laymen i never got the focus on degrees in any art program beyond maybe teaching the fundamentals. The only thing that should matter is your portfolio you either have art or you dont and no mount of school will make someone without a crestive bone in there body an artist. A self taught amature with Talent should be worth more than some smuck with nothing but a expensive piece of paper

[@ChrisCarlos64]

My children watch various shows and movies, and they always end up on classic animation shows and movies. I'm talking Disney's early days and the Renaissance period. Aristocats, 101 Dalmations, Snow White, up to Lilo and Stitch and Beauty and the Beast, etc.

[@rockon8174]

2:18 Sheridan only admits 10 percent of out of Province students. It's an exclusive Ontario Residents school for the animation program. Don't need to go to Sheridan to get training in animation. Many online schools have replaced the need to go to any college or university to learn art and animation.

[@ambrosewetherbee8301]

It's great to see fellow Sheridan alumni in the comment section! It's not great, however, to hear about how Sheridan has become.

[@raymondsmith6870]

There is a pretty good German movie called Never Look Away(2018) which covers what happens to art when it is controlled by authoritarian ideologies in prewar Germany and then Soviet East Germany. Is it really art anymore? Done by the same director of The Lives of Others. Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck

[@Slitheringpeanut]

The Anatomy course sounds like it would be good to help with fight scenes, but every thing else??? What does it have to do with drawing?

[@johnny718bravo]

On the one hand, it makes me glad that I grew up with 80's and 90's cartoons. On the other, this generation is being robbed of excellent animation and stories for fear of *gasp* offending somebody. Thank god for dvds and downloads.