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PROVO — In continuing their winning tradition, Brigham Young University animation students recently brought home another student Emmy and received praise for their film from the president of Walt Disney and Pixar.
The recent award brings the total to 17 student Emmys in 12 years for the BYU animation program, according to a BYU news release. This year’s animated short, “Ram’s Horn” won in the category of animation at the 2015 College Television Awards.
“Ram’s Horn” tells the story of a cocky mountaineer on a quest to reach the peak of a large mountain when he faces an unexpected rival in the form of a mountain goat with his loveable offspring.
“ ‘Ram’s Horn’ is a bit of a nutty film, where we explore all of the insane things that a person can do, but in the end, we find that everyone has a good heart,” “Ram’s Horn” producer Garrett Hoyos said in the news release.
The short film was inspired by the style of Warner Bros. animator, producer and director, Chuck Jones, and the students said they tried to channel Wile E. Coyote in the film.
“Ram’s Horn is unique, and a winning project, because it’s our first foray into Warner Brothers,” BYU animation professor and project mentor Kelly Loosli said in the news release. “The students really like Chuck Jones and this is an homage to him.”
However, creating the short film was challenging, and even with 50 students working on it, it took a year to complete. The students did their best to immerse themselves in the film’s subject matter by studying lambs, sheep and rams from every angle, even bringing taxidermied animals into the animation lab, the news release said. They also went to a local climbing gym to study the art of mountain climbing.
Students working on the film had the opportunity to work with several professionals from DreamWorks, BlueSky and Sony, and they also received feedback from Chris Buck, the director of “Frozen,” when he visited BYU in November 2014, the news release said.
Toward the end of the project, many students worked eight hours a day and 50 hours a week on it.
“A lot of people mistakenly believe that animating is just pressing a button,” “Ram’s Horn” director Jenna Hamzawi said in the news release. “We’re creating another world, an entire story from scratch.”
After the film was completed, it was shown at BYU as part of an address given by Walt Disney and Pixar Animation Studios president Ed Catmull. Catmull talked to some of the animators after seeing “Ram’s Horn,” calling it “an exception film.”
The film can't be posted online in full because it is competing for other awards. However, the BYU Center for Animation has posted all of the past student Emmy-winning videos on its website.
