Binita Desai is an Indian animator, designer and a professor who designed the animation programme for postgraduate studies at the National Institute of Design, Ahmedabad along with Nina Sabnani, I. S. Mathur and R. L. Mistry.[1] She is currently a professor at Dhirubhai Ambani Institute of Information and Communication Technology (DA-IICT).[2]

Binita Desai
Binita Desai at the National Institute of Design Ahmedabad during her time as a faculty member in Visual Communication discipline.
NationalityIndian
Alma materMaharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda
Occupations
  • Animator
  • designer
  • educator
Employer(s)DA-IICT, Gandhinagar, National Institute of Design, Ahmedabad (former)

Life and work

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Desai graduated from Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda where she completed her BFA in Applied Arts. She then joined the National Institute of Design (NID), Ahmedabad post her graduation with her friends Nina Sabnani and Chitra Sarathy in 1980 where she attended an animation workshop conducted by Claire Weeks. Post this, she was invited to stay at NID and trained with Roger Noake under the United Nations Development Programme training program.[3] During this time, she made two films Cirrus Skies (1984) and Patang (Kite, 1984). The former film depicted the changes observed in the sky's cloud formations. Whereas, the latter film traced the movement of a kite through the eyes of its flier.[4] In 1985, Desai, along with Nina Sabnani, I. S. Mathur and R. L. Mistry conceived a program for postgraduate studies in animation at NID. They became the first coordinators of the program.[5] A two and a half year advanced entry programme was started in 1985 and a short one-year course was introduced next year.[6] Along with their students, they created animated films that focused on educational and developmental topics like road safety, family planning, dowry, energy as well as literary and artistic themes.[7] Desai also co-edited the magazine Young Designers from 1990 to 1994 which featured projects of graduating students from NID.[8][9][10] She taught at NID until 1997 before working as a freelance designer till 2002. Since 2002, she is a professor at DA-IICT, Gandhinagar where she teaches graphic design and animation to undergraduate and postgraduate students.[11] Subsequently, she has been a visiting faculty for the Character Design module and semester jury of the Animation Film Design course at NID Ahmedabad, most recently being in the 2019-20 academic year.[12]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Lent, John A. (2009). "Animation in South Asia". Studies in South Asian Film and Media. 1 (1): 104 – via Academia.edu.
  2. ^ "Faculty | Dhirubhai Ambani Institute of Information and Communication Technology". www.daiict.ac.in. Retrieved 9 August 2022.
  3. ^ Akshata. "20 years of NID : Presentation by Binita Desai at the Chitrakatha 2007 Festival | All About Animation". Retrieved 9 August 2022.
  4. ^ Bendazzi, Giannalberto (23 October 2015). Animation: A World History: Volume II: The Birth of a Style - The Three Markets. CRC Press. p. 390. ISBN 978-1-317-51991-1.
  5. ^ Prakash Moorthy; Mistry, Ramanlal (2005). Animating an Indian story, Ramanlal Mistry. National Institute of Design. p. 73. ISBN 978-81-86199-53-4.
  6. ^ Lent, John A. (2001). Animation in Asia and the Pacific. Bloomington, IN: Indiana University Press. p. 203. ISBN 978-0-253-34035-1.
  7. ^ Wanvari, Anil (2008). "India's animation boom". Gale General OneFile. Retrieved 13 August 2022.
  8. ^ Young Designers: 1990-1991. National Institute of Design.[permanent dead link]
  9. ^ "Young designers, '91-'92 : graduates from the National Institute of Design". Canadian Centre for Architecture. Retrieved 13 August 2022.
  10. ^ Young Designers: 1992-1994. National Institute of Design.[permanent dead link]
  11. ^ "Understanding Design | IITBombayX". www.iitbombayx.in. Archived from the original on 4 July 2022. Retrieved 13 August 2022.
  12. ^ 59th Annual Report 2019-20 (PDF). National Institute of Design. pp. 138, 162.
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