Focused on fine artistry
BRANDING herself first as a problem- solver and a persistent fighter second, at a young age of 24, Andrea Goh Siau Wei from Kuala Lumpur seems to have sorted out her career pathway with opportunities and success in hand.
Goh has been a graduate of Diploma in Digital Animation from The One Academy since 2013.
Two years later, she was conferred the Malaysia Top 10 Outstanding Creative Youth Award, which identifies and acknowledges individuals who have attained remarkable progress and achievements in the creative fields, by Malaysian Deputy Education Minister of Education Datuk Kamalanathan.
Goh’s mentor, who described her as an “immensely talented candidate with strong skill sets and knowledge”, nominated her for the award.
Her abilities were evident when her application to Pixar Animation Studios headquarters was accepted where she took on the role of a technical director.
At Pixar, she was a select few who received intensive training and worked on different aspects of the pipeline.
It was then and there Goh found herself immersing in and specialising in rigging – essentially a process of assigning digital skeletons to characters in a 3D animation, allowing animators to bend animated characters into a desired pose.
She also ventured into camera and staging during her stay at Pixar.
Through the opportunities presented, coupled with her mentors’ guidance and a competitive yet learning environment that is conducive, Goh believes that a designer/ artist must be adaptable to different situations and remain flexible.
A trip to her personal site will reveal some of her notable projects for Pixar and LilyPad game where she was involved as a rigger.
Goh is fluent in tech languages ( Python, JavaScript and such) and many cutting- edge software ( Presto, Maya, Houdini and such). She also took up digital painting/ concept art and photography, which she proudly displays on her dedicated website.
“It is important to be the master of one, and at the same time the Jack of all trades. It’s not easy, but if there is a will, there is always a way,” she said.
The training provided at the giant corporation will be useful when the workload gets heavy. She also advised aspiring artists to pay attention to every subject in class despite thinking they are of no use in the future.
“I have never thought I needed math in creating film until I got into scripting and VFX,” she said.
As an extremely hard worker, Goh takes every opportunity, reminding herself of the hardship her family has gone through, and also her unrelenting desire to do what she loves the most.
She dreams of directing her own short film one day. Therefore, she is constantly honing her skills by working on personal short film projects of her own.
Goh credited The One Academy in shaping her to be an accomplished artist, especially the drawing, design and film classes that gave her an artistic eye, the importance of collaboration and also team management.
“I would not have gotten to where I am now without these classes,” she said.
Do you have the same ambitions as Goh? Then, don’t wait and get the ball rolling. Courses are open for registration for April intake.
The One Academy offers Digital Animation with Game Development, Interior Architecture and Design, Advertising and Graphic Design, Film Visual Effects, Multimedia Design with Digital Media and Interactive Design, Illustration, Movie and Game Art, ESMOD Fashion Design and Pattern Making and Fine Arts.
For details on The One Academy, visit www. toa. edu. my or call 03- 5637 5510 or e- mail enquiry@ toa. edu. my.