Rohit Dass

Rohit Dass is a Graphics Artist working with SMCI Digi Media. This is his first job after completing a career program in 2008 from Arena Animation, Preet Vihar centre in Delhi. Moving up the ladder, Rohit is now the Head Graphics Artist in the same company. Apart from Digi Media, Rohit also works with the ACN Group of Institutions as a web-graphics designer.

Read the rest of Rohit’s story in his own words:

I always wanted to get into Animation since I was influenced by my cousins, who are also working and earning handsomely in the same field. Also, since it’s an era of dual qualifications, going for an Arena course was a very lucrative option.

Arena has a strong track record of success within my family. This factor alone made me go directly there for admission; I didn’t visit any other animation academy.

When I went there for the first time, there were many questions in my mind such as: My job prospects after completing my course and the placements provided by Arena. But my doubts were cleared at the very first meeting itself.

The one-and-a-half years that I spent there were entertaining and educative; the faculty was very helpful indeed - from print to web and from web to 3D, they were always there with me as a strong support system.

Apart from classroom sessions, we had regular seminars on Saturdays along with picnics and parties too. The seminars were what I enjoyed the most, as Arena does have a tendency to rope in the best in the industry for seminar sessions, and it’s this knowledge that still helps me today.

If one can see the market scenario today, where would one find placement opportunities as good as those that Arena offers? Besides this, Arena does not concentrate on a particular software or stream. The Academy deals with all the current software used in the designing modules today, so that there are ample opportunities for students to showcase their talent in the field of their choice.

My prime concern was job security and Arena assured me of ample opportunities in the job market. As regards the rest, it’s up to the creativity of the student.

A newcomer to any field needs to be versatile. Since I was trained in Arena, the guidance provided at the Academy helped. The only new thing that I had to get on-the-job was ‘experience’. The rest, they taught me at Arena.

In any job, creativity is the exciting factor; one has to explore it in each and every minute of one’s life, making the journey to success an exciting one.

In terms of experience, I have created various websites, static and flash advertisements for web, print materials like pamphlets, flex, catalogues, card designs, hoardings, newspaper advertisements, graphics for newspaper, magazine advertisements, image editing for brand promotions and also a series of brand labels for a Unani healthcare firm.

My message to newcomers in this field is:

Those seeking a career in animation/ multimedia/ gaming, always stay focused towards your goal till you achieve success, as success at times does arrive late. But never give up.

Studied at Arena? Get featured on this website! Click here to email us your details and we will get in touch with you.

Chaitree Basak

Chaitree Basak is a US-based Multimedia Consultant who freelances with various companies there. After her Bachelor’s degree in commerce, Chaitree was looking for a long-term career path. So she joined Arena Multimedia at Kankurgachi, Kolkata, mainly because she wished to hone her skills in Graphic Designing. She enrolled for Arena’s 12-month Professional Certificate in Web Designing (PCWD)* and passed out in August 2005. Then she went on to complete her Master’s Degree in Media Designing from the US.

(Note: Currently, Arena has replaced this course with the more intensive Graphics & Web Design course).

Read the rest of her story, in Chaitree’s own words:

After my first semester with Arena, I got admission to Laroche College in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, US, for my Master’s degree.

Arena helped me a lot. I had joined the PCWD course to gain knowledge of multimedia to help me create my first portfolio. This portfolio helped me gain admission to a US University.

After I came to the US, I changed my first college and switched to the Digital Media Arts College in Florida. Having completed my first semester here, I got selected to become a Teaching and Graduate Assistant - which was my first job as a Designer. Also, I received a good Scholarship from my college, again based on the first portfolio which I had created with Arena.

Having completed my Master’s Degree here in the US, I worked as a Multimedia Designer with Verizon IT, which is the best 3G network company in the USA. I got paid around US $3000 (approximately Rs. 1,44,000) for a 15-day project.

Currently, I work as a Consultant & Freelancer with various companies in the US. My whole career is dedicated to multimedia.

A career in this field is exciting but it can also be rather demanding. To cite an example, there is one instance I would like to mention in particular. I was working with Verizon IT and was asked to make a film on their new products’ presentation. For this project, I had to work from 7 a.m. to 3 a.m. the next day! It was very challenging. I completed the project in time, using Flash & Premier software.

For newcomers to this field, I have the following advice

• First of all, try to understand which is the best media for you - Printing or Web or Audio or Visual. In multimedia, there are many different paths. Just be sure of what you are most comfortable with.
• Remember the 3 Ps: Practice, Patience & Presentation.

Practice working with various software as much as possible. I would practice for 7-9 hours daily.

Patience means you have to go through loads of detailing, adjustments & better approaches for each project that you do. You should also be patient about your career as it picks up at a very slow speed. It’s only after a few years that you will see your efforts paying off in the form of your bank balance.

Presentation is very important for people like us. After a certain age, you need to showcase your own portfolio, have your own branding and also advertise your own skills.

That’s it from me! All the best!

Sharpened your skills at Arena? Share your story with us! Click here to mail in your details and we will get in touch with you...and who knows, you might just be the next person we feature here!

Sachin Singhi

Arena ex-student Sachin Singhi tells us about his exciting journey into animation & multimedia and how it led to a fulfilling career for life:

I currently work with Symphony Services, Pune. After completing Arena’s Diploma in Web Engineering from Indore, I started as a graphic designer and then moved into web development, before taking on my current role as a Lead UI Developer. In my current job, I lead a team of web designers & developers.

To go back to the beginning, I was mad about multimedia right since my high school days. I felt that Arena was the best institute to join to get my dreams fulfilled. Those days, Arena had a full-fledged Diploma in Web Engineering course. The course duration was 2.5 years.

Through the Web Engineering course, Arena showed me the path to fulfill my dreams. The faculty was good and helped me understand the basic concepts of web development. For all-round development, they organized several extracurricular events & competitions including the September bash, various logo design & graphic design competitions as well as some training projects.

In fact, I even got my first job during my first year of studying at Arena. I joined MasterMind Computers as a ‘Multimedia Designer’. My first salary was rather low since I was still a student but once I completed the course, my salary grew as quickly as my career did!

My first job required all the skills I had learned at Arena. But I learnt to keep myself alert to learn on-the-job in order to grow with the industry.

In 2003, I completed my course and received job placement assistance from Arena. Sanjay sir (Head, Arena Multimedia, Indore) too helped me a lot. He recommended me to his contacts and I got a job quickly.

Fast-forward a few years. My current job includes a lot of web development. It is very interesting and requires keeping up pace with the industry. This is because there is much happening in the field of web development and lots of innovative technologies are in the market today.

Sharpened your skills at Arena? Share your story with us! Click here to mail in your details and we will get in touch with you...and who knows, you might just be the next person we feature here!

Abhishek Kumar

Currently working with Patni Computers, Mumbai, as a Web Analyst, Abhishek Kumar came to Mumbai in 2004.

Abhishek was born and brought up in Patna, Bihar, and dreamt of making it big in computers.

Having understood the various career options in animation and multimedia, Abhishek joined Arena Animation. He completed the Arena Animation Academy Specialist Programme (AAASP) in 2007.

Here’s Abhishek’s story, in his own words

I’d completed my BCA from Bihar. In 2004, I came to Mumbai to make a career in computers. Animation seemed the right choice for me and so I joined Arena. A lot of institutes offer animation training, but I found Arena’s AAASP to be the best course that also fit into my budget.

Though my course was supposed to last for only 18 months, it took me three years to complete it. This is because I took up various jobs in between and returned to Arena after some time gaps.

My experience with Arena was good, especially because of their helpful faculty. I became very good at Graphic and Web Animation. The extra-curricular activities organised by Arena too helped me in my job.

One year after I joined, immediately after my first semester, Arena helped me get my first break as a Graphic Designer with Datamatics Technologies Ltd. My salary there was just Rs. 6,000 per month. As the course went on, I got more and more job offers.

Thus, after Datamatics, I worked with InterWorld Digital Ltd. and later with Cognizant Technology Solutions and Shobiz Event Solutions Pvt. Ltd. as a Graphic and Web Designer.

Currently, I am with Patni Computer Systems Ltd, Mumbai, as a Web Analyst. My salary is Rs. 20,000 per month.

Though Arena gave me most of the skills I need at work, I also learnt a lot on the job. It is important to understand your job and learn from your seniors.

My job gives me the chance to work on many interesting projects. I provide graphic support as per project requirements and design the company’s newsletters and presentations. Further, I create banners and pamphlets, design print ads and company brochures as well as develop large-scale websites for Patni’s various businesses.

Lastly, I would just like to say that Arena Animation changed my life. I learnt a lot from Arena and their faculty really helped me do well.

You just need dedication and commitment towards learning – then everything is possible. Ultimately, it is up to the student to learn and utilise his or her skills.

Sharpened your skills at Arena? Share your story with us! Click here to mail in your details and we will get in touch with you...and who knows, you might just be the next Abhishek we feature here!