AN EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW WITH OUR ANIMATION TEAM
If you have the opportunity to interview our team of animators at Nsibidi Fables, what is that
one question you would most definitely ask? Well, while you are still giving it a thought, we
had an exclusive interview with our talented animation team to bring you an insider
perspective on their workflow and everything in-between. Who knows? We just might
answer your question. Let’s meet the creative minds in the team first.
- David Ezefuna – Chief Technical Officer / Animation Director
- Omiji Richard – 3D Animator /3D Environment Artist
- Philemon Phinehas Osebi – Character Designer / Storyboard Artist
- Tolulope AdeOjo – Art Director
- Ahonsi Clever Oiseole – Inbetweener Animator
- Emmanuel Onyekachi Emmanuel – Key Animator
Now, let’s get into the interview.
- Walk us through the overall process of creating an animation documentary or series from concept to final product.
David: “Animation workflows can vary depending on the style and goals, but a
common process includes rough key animation, followed by in-between, cleanup, and
coloring. Backgrounds and some animations can be enhanced with AI under an art
director’s supervision. Everything then comes together in compositing and post
effects to polish the final look.” - Talk about your role in overseeing the animation department and how you ensure that
all stages of production align with the creative vision.
David: “As a lead in the animation department, my job is to ensure that every stage of
production follows the creative direction set at the beginning. I work closely with the
storyboard artists, animators, and editors to maintain consistency in style and
storytelling. Regular check-ins, feedback sessions, and creative meetings help keep
everything on track.” - What role do storyboarding and animatics play in the early stages of animation?
Phinehas: “Storyboarding is like creating a visual script. Each panel represents a key
scene, helping the team visualize the narrative flow and pacing. Animatics take
storyboards a step further by adding timing and sound, giving a clearer sense of how the final animation will feel. They help in identifying any pacing issues early on. Both storyboards and animatics serve as essential communication tools, aligning the creative vision among directors, animators, and other departments. They make it easier to discuss changes and improvements.” - Animation requires a lot of collaboration. How do you foster communication between
the animation team and other departments during production?
David: “Collaborating with people from different disciplines can be challenging, but
we maintain strong communication through regular meetings and focused discussions
with adjacent teams to ensure smooth workflow and alignment.” - How do you approach the creation of character design, environment and overall visual
style?
Phinehas (Approach to Character Design): “I start with gathering references and
inspiration from various sources, art, culture, and even nature, to create a unique
character concept. Focus on the character’s silhouette, ensuring it’s distinct. Different
shapes can convey personality traits (e.g., circles for friendliness, sharp angles for
edginess). I sketch a range of expressions to capture the character’s personality. This
helps in understanding how they will react in different situations. I seek feedback and
make adjustments, ensuring the character feels authentic and relatable.”
Richard (Approach to Creation of Environment): “The first thing I do is to reach
out to the art director, who shares with me the style we’re looking to hit for a
particular scene. After that, gather references similar to that style by checking
Pinterest. I take a look at the animatic, following the directions of the art director, I
start modeling background assets and the environments, making sure to put in more
details in things closer to the camera and less details in things really far away from
the camera. Recently, I have started seeing the environment creation like I’m creating
it like a 2D artist. This way of thinking makes me more flexible because I have no
issues moving things and adding things to the scene as long as the shot is sold.”
Tolulope (Approach to Visual Style): “I start by gathering references, from other
artists and real world locations/objects/poses.” - What software or tools does your team rely on and how do they help streamline the
production process?
David: “The team primarily use free and open-source tools, including OpenToonz for
animation, DaVinci Resolve for compositing, and AI models to enhance the
workflow.” - How do you ensure consistency of character movements throughout the production
process?
Emmanuel: “Usually, before we start, we are given character designs which we have
to adhere to. That is, characters have to look a specific way throughout. Before the
process of animating, I take these character design and try to break them down. I find
the simplest shapes I can use to draw them, to make it as easy as possible when i am
doing my key animations. While I am drawing, there are animation software help my
work process, such as Onion Skin, Shift and Thrift or cells animation tool in clip
Studio which allows you to make reference to a previously drawn animation frame. It
helps in keeping track of the character proportion and making sure everything is
consistent. Also, when i am done with the roughs for the key animations, I always
have the character design on one side of my screen so that there is no guess work.”
Clever: “It’s quite simple. Most animation software have something called an Onion
Skin. The Onion Skin shows the last frame and the second frame. As an Inbetweener, I
am putting in the in-between frames of an animation in an animator’s work. So, I am
going in step by step and filling in the blanks to make the movement smooth and to
make it rich, sometimes, that’s twelve frames for the second mark or twenty-four
frames for the second mark. The Onion Skin allows me to see the frame before that
particular frame I am working on and the one after it, so that I can be able to easily
match each one, then calculate the angles of movement I need to fill in that gap to
make the movement smooth.” - How do you handle creative feedback or revisions during the animation process?
David: “Feedback is essential for continuous improvement and maintaining passion
for the project. We encourage this mindset across the team by conducting regular
reviews at every stage to refine and enhance the final result.” Richard: “I have faith in the art director and animation head, I trust their judgment,
so when I get feedback from them, I try to see the issue they point out. There is a lot to
learn from them, and I want to grow as a creative. So, I put in my best effort to make
adjustments and corrections.”
Phinehas: “I approach feedback with an open mind, viewing it as an opportunity for
growth. Some changes may be minor, while others could require significant
reworking. So, I collaborate closely with the director and other artists to clarify
feedback and brainstorm solutions.”
Clever: “Well, it’s never an easy thing to always get creative feedback and handle
revision. I just try to stay positive about it as a learning experience and go through
the motions again. Animation tends to be like that, because when you miss one part, it
affects the whole thing. So, i just try to keep a positive attitude towards it.”
Emmanuel: “Whenever I am done animating a shot or during the animation process,
I send progress shots when necessary. When the Animation Director or the Art
Director goes through the file and informs me of whatever changes they want, since I
still have the animation file, I open it, make the changes and export it again. It helps nowadays that we use digital tools because most times you are able to make non-
destructive editing to what you have done. When you are working digitally, it allows you to separate different element to different layers and different folders. So whenever
a correction needs to be made, I single out whatever folder or whatever element needs
to be changed or edited, make the change accordingly and replace the file.”
Tolulope: “I’m not an animator. I’m more of an illustrator and the art director but
I’ve gotten feedbacks in the past and I’d say I use them as an avenue to improve the
art work. Most times, it even gives me a fresh perspective of the entire piece.” - What are some emerging trends in the animation industry that you are excited about?
David: “There’s been a growing demand for African storytelling in animation,
highlighting the world’s increasing appreciation for our culture. I’m excited to
contribute by showcasing the richness and vibrancy of our stories from our own
perspective.” Richard: “Some emerging trends I’m excited about in the animation industry are the
stylized animation we are beginning to see more of now. The likes of ‘Arcane,’
‘Spiderman,’ ‘Puss in Boots.’ 3D animations that have a 2D feel and look to them.
Also, the use of AI in making animated content. I look forward to combining my work
and these available tools. I believe it will be a powerful synergy.”
Emmanuel: “For now, I will make reference to the trend we used in our NOK
documentary project, AI. Since the dawn of AI Art, it hasn’t been received favourably
into the art community because people are wondering whether AI Art would replace
artist. The way I see it, AI art should be seen as a form of assistance to artists because
no matter what happens, AI will never be able to do exactly what artists do but the
fact that we can speed up the workflow, create assets from the scratch in no time,
makes it very exciting to want to see how much more we can apply AI Art in telling
our own stories and conveying ideas.”
Phinehas: “Interactive animation. Stories that allow their watchers to be a part of,
especially with the rise of gaming. This is the one thing I think I’m most excited
about.”
Tolulope: “AI powered animation, and immersive experiences with AR and VR.”
Clever: “A lot of artist say that AI is going to take their jobs. I really want to see how
tech influences the animation industry, because there are so many parts of the
animation process that are just laborious. They are not necessarily interesting. For
instance, filling in colour in some parts. Even this work of In-between, if there was
a way to actually get software around it that could track it, it will make the whole
process fast, and each animator can focus on creating the best animation possible.
Truthfully, I am looking forward to see how AI and tech affect the animation
industry.”
This interview has given us an insight into the devotion and ingenuity that go into every
animated project, from inception to completion, demonstrating that animation is a
combination of creativity, technical expertise, and collaboration. As the animation business
grows, we are devoted to pushing the frontiers of visual storytelling. Did you get an answer to
your question? If not, drop your question. You might get an answer to it in our next feature.