Animation Guild | We are 839 Digital Magazine
Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1535742
opposite page (from top): Vilppu in high school; working (at left) at Disney; and teaching anatomy as part of his drawing classes. this page: The principles in Vilppu's traditional Renaissance drawing (top right) translated into his animation work. Although his time at Disney included teaching at their in-house university, he also learned from the craft: "One thing I never dealt with until I got into animation was the idea of expression. I was always focused on the more technical aspects." He has also incorporated animation's focus on story into his own personal work. In 1985, Vilppu left Disney to focus again on teaching, as well as on writing the Vilppu Drawing Manual, but the money couldn't compare to his salary in animation, so he balanced teaching with jobs at Fox, Marvel, Warner Bros., and Phil Mendez. On top of this, he continued to do his own solo shows and hone his craft. Over the years, Vilppu's experiences have ranged far and wide. The tip of the iceberg includes teaching drawing at Disney's international studios, serving as the Acting Director of the Character Animation Department at CalArts, starting the day program at the American Animation Institute housed at The Animation Guild, and ultimately opening the online Vilppu Academy in 2012. While some people in animation resisted technology, Vilppu saw it as something to embrace. He first experimented with a computer for animation while working with Phil Mendez in 1988, but the resolution for layouts was too low. And while he never used a computer on a production, he says: "I told people, hey, you better get with computers because that's the way it's going to go." As a teacher, Vilppu started using an Amiga 2000 personal computer back in 1989 to create handouts for his classes at CalArts. He believes that technology allows him to communicate better. These days, by drawing and projecting on a big screen or students' monitors, he can show what he's doing in real time. He also records, so he can make time-lapse videos of the drawing process and share them with his students. "My drawings on the iPad are absolutely no different than what I draw on paper," he says. With the rise of technology, though, Vilppu has seen fundamental drawing skills decline. But there's still a need for them. It's one of the things that makes his classes popular, especially with those in animation. "I am a bridge from a whole different generation," he says. Not just a generation of artists, but also a generation of teachers. What he notes in classes today is an emphasis on copying— trying to duplicate reality. "It leaves no room for the imagination," he says. "I teach my students to use the photo, but not let the photo use them." In this way, Vilppu is very much like the approach he takes, letting art use him and his talents to keep classic drawing techniques alive. —Kim Fay T H E C L I M B SUMMER 2025 11