A month ago, José Pedro Giosca, who holds a degree in Animation and Video Games from Universidad ORT Uruguay, received a call from Ancap. He was invited to create a children’s book that would be distributed at gas stations on Sunday, August 18, for Children’s Day.
The initiative, which takes place every year, aims to tell a story or create an educational game, whether it’s about traffic rules, road safety, or the environment. This year, the goal was to tell the life story of Uruguayan race car driver Santiago Urrutia, with the aim of inspiring children to pursue their dreams.
“They contacted me and asked if we made children’s books. I told them yes, why not? We do all kinds of illustrations, and making a children’s book wasn’t anything we couldn’t handle. The Bachelor’s Degree in Animation and Video Games prepares us for anything,” said Gioscia.
It was there that he asked María Noel Bonjour—his girlfriend, who also holds a degree in Animation and Video Games from ORT—to collaborate on the book. “She agreed right away. She’d always wanted to work as an illustrator for children’s books, and she’s also a very talented writer,” Gioscia said.
Putting into practice what they had learned during their years of study, the challenge at that point was to finish the book within a limited timeframe: they had three weeks to complete it. The first thing they did was draw up a schedule outlining their workflow, and then they created the story and a black-and-white sketch showing, in broad strokes, what the book’s illustrations would look like.
“María Noel took care of the writing and drawing, and I devoted myself entirely to the illustrations,” said the graduate.
During the second week, they met with Urrutia for the first time so he could review the draft, offer his feedback, and suggest any changes. Once they received his approval, it was time to digitize the entire project and add color to the illustrations.
As Gioscia explained, the Bachelor’s Degree in Animation and Video Games was essential to carrying out the project. “The program gave me practically everything. I think that if I hadn’t taken it, I wouldn’t have been able to complete the project. The program provides tools ranging from the most basic—such as communicating with a client, organizing, planning, and managing a project—to developing stories, scripts, storyboards, and designing characters and settings,” Gioscia explained.
He also notes that the program provides an opportunity to build relationships and make connections that can be leveraged in one’s future professional career. “That’s where I met my girlfriend, and since projects are usually done in teams, the program allows you to form the creative bonds you need to thrive in your professional life,” he said.
The book has a total of 16 pages and is intended for children ages 5 to 11. Starting Sunday, August 18, 2019, the 100,000 books will be available at Ancap stations nationwide and can be picked up for free.
As for the experience, Gioscia said it was the first time he had the opportunity to work, at the local level, with a company as large as Ancap. “It was a tremendous opportunity to take advantage of and add to our portfolio, which serves as our calling card for illustrators and designers,” he concluded.