Animated about real issues

Animated characters that highlight the plight of rag-pickers, especially children. That is the dream-come-true story of aspiring animation artists who have used their skill to spread awareness about underprivileged children in a 12-minute movie, The Rag-pickers.The film — made by Arena Animation Centre students — also focuses on safe disposal of plastic.With the aim to create awareness at the grass-roots, the film was produced with a budget of Rs40,000-Rs50,000.“We visited the BBMP office and obtained statistics about garbage in the city and the BBMP’s collection and disposal methods. We found that the condition of rag-pickers is appalling. Furthermore, animals die due to consumption of plastic littered on roads. This is when we conceived the film idea,” said Nayna Shet, an animator.“Though this project was not a part of their course, we encouraged the students as we sensed that stop-motion animation gives a realistic feel and drives home the point, unlike other forms of animation that are artificial, fictional and lacks a real-life appeal. If our students succeed in spreading awareness about safe and appropriate garbage disposal and educate people about the plight of rag-pickers, it is a major achievement as their skills are being put to use,” said Indira Gupta, centre head, Arena Animation Centre.On a lighter note, Vinod Kumar and Vishwas K recall their experience during filming. “We used to reach the spot by 6.30am and wait for the garbage to pile up and before the BBMP vans cleared it. We also had to train our pet dog and its puppies to portray stray dogs, and it was not an easy job. At times, they would become violent and cranky and we had to put up with all that,” they chuckle.The other members of the group are Kareem Meppadi, Parikshith BA, Radhakanth Barik, Ravi Chavan, and Nagarjun BS.