Saint John ‘Toon Dojo’ offers stress-free course on finer points of animation

Toon Dojo is a new animation program in Saint John. (Source: Brian Finlay)

A new dojo in Saint John, N.B., doesn’t teach students how to chop through boards of wood with one mighty blow or how to land precise kicks on enemies, but it is aiming to give their fingers a workout.

The “Toon Dojo” is offering a new route for people to explore the craft of animation in a workshop-oriented format.

“Although college is a really good path for people, I wanted to offer a more accessible path,” said Brian Finlay. “Very tiny classes with only four students per class. That just allows for one-on-one time and gives students time to put in the line mileage.”

Finlay, who worked as an animator with Disney, is the founder of Drawn to It Studios, which has been involved in projects like the Saint John-based “Ug Wug” film. He’s taught animation at different levels for the last 20 years.

“I’m very passionate about the craft,” he said. “I take it as seriously as you can take something that involves you drawing cartoons all day.”

Finlay designed the program to provide an outlet for people to delve into animation without the rigorous demands of a college-level course.

“Level up without the stress of accomplishing specific things at certain times,” he said. “None of that stress.”

Toon Dojo is not just a name for the workshop; Finlay is incorporating elements of martial arts into his teaching philosophy.

“Students begin with white pencils and graduate with black pencil,” he said. “They move from pencil colour to pencil colour until they reach the industry standard of entry level.”

Finlay offers one key tip for everyone considering working in animation: Don’t be afraid to fail.

“Everybody who gets into it, the hardest part is to forget what they think they know about drawing,” he said. “A lot of students approach it like every line has to be perfect. They don’t like using erasers. We try to deprogram that. The best way to get better is to fail.”

The Toon Dojo will offer sessions for teenagers and adults starting in August at the studio’s office space on Carleton Street.

“We’re definitely starting small and humble,” Finlay said. “The hope is to grow the classroom size by a few workstations. We don’t want to grow too big because that can cut down on the one-on-one time.

“We hope it will be part of an animation industry growth in Saint John.”

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