Subject: Re: don't quit your day job
From: "Ernest Gusella (FA)" <[email-masked]>
To: Multiple recipients of list <[email-masked]>
Date: Mon, 15 Jan 1996 00:51:28 -0500

I teach computer imaging at the University of South Florida- coming out of
a background in painting [MFA], and doing video in New York for 25 years. 
These days, trade schools and universities are filled with students who
want to get into 3D computer animation and get into the big houses in
Hollywood and New York.  After teaching computer imaging in an art
department for the past couple of years, let me make this observation:
there are people who understand software, and then there are people who
understand art- meaning composition, timing, point of view, etc.  I would
say that even students who have an artistic or film background, have
difficulty understanding that basic artistic and movie-making skills apply
in the computer area.  Most students are seduced by the technology and in
this yuppie, white bread, suburban culture of ours, most of them have NO
IDEAS! It has been 'bread' out of them.  Getting students to research
projects at the library prior to working is like pulling teeth!  Most of
them prefer to sit there and jam with the mouse, with no conception of how
things might look if the project was story-boarded.  Of course, the good
students follow instruction, do the research, and end up in the grad
schools working on Silicon graphics, etc.  Just thought I would point out
what's going on in the hinterlands.  Good luck to everyone!