Tree Guardians Spotlight: Q&A with Sprite Animator Agung Setya Nugraha
Today The Learning Partnership has released our newest curriculum unit, Tree Guardians, which is an NSF-funded two-week middle school unit on oak restoration based on forest ecology research at the Morton Arboretum in Illinois. The website is designed in a comic book theme and features two superheroes, a squirrel and a woodpecker. In one of the activities, students build an oak woodland food web. Each of the species in the food web is represented by an animated sprite. I had a conversation with our Indonesian sprite developer – Agung Setya Nugraha.
Cat: You’ve done several sprites for the Tree Guardians website. What is exciting about this project?
Agung: I am a former teacher, and all of my family members are teachers, so I am enthusiastic about the Tree Guardians website; it’s very exciting. Outside of graphic design, I have a passion for World History. I have a personal project about the creation of history-teaching media for elementary, junior high, and high school students. A passion I have held on to since my teaching days. Perhaps this is what is left of my previous career as a teacher.
Cat: Can you please tell me about your journey to becoming a sprite maker?
Agung: I grew up playing arcade video games like Super Mario, Golden Axe, Super Contra, etc., and watching many Japanese Manga movies like Voltus V. At that time, video game technology and animation were not super complex. Growing up in Indonesia, I did not have much exposure to great entertainment, but I would dream about being inside movies and video game universes often. I was crazy about movies; I would visit the movie theater 2-4 times a week. The National TV broadcasted Disney Animated Movies and programs on how to make cartoon animation, which sparked an interest in learning how cartoon animation works. Ever since I was a kid, I would create simple animations either in my flip books or schoolbooks. It gave me the desire to learn. I am completely self-taught.
Cat: What pivotal moments led you to find this as your calling?
Agung: My parents are teachers and sent me and my two siblings to a teacher preparation program in the hope that all of us would also become teachers. I live in an Asian country where most decisions are made solely by parents, so children do not really have the power to object. So, I worked as a teacher for almost 12 years. In 2010, I started using the internet, and it was mind-blowing because, all of a sudden, I found abundant learning sources about cartoon animation and video games. I built an online portfolio and started working on my dream job. I stopped teaching and changed careers to be an illustrator and graphic designer, including an animation sprite creator. I am happy to live in an internet era where I can pursue my dream job.
Cat: What is the range of types of projects you’ve worked on?
Agung: Mostly, I work on game assets, which include the creation of 2D animation sprites and cartoon, logo, and mascot animations for websites.
Cat: What is your process when you are hired for a project as a sprite maker?
Agung: It is actually a very common process for online work. Most of my clients find me through my portfolios online and through Instagram, which can lead them to my portfolio website. Once in contact, I ask for a detailed brief of their project and what they are looking for from me. From there, I calculate the time needed and cost, and once I receive a deposit, I begin. During the process, especially in the early phases, clients are free to review the sketches, character building, and storyboarding and ask for revisions. After the designs are agreed upon by the clients, the next phase is carried out. Once the work is finished, clients can ask for minor revisions until they are satisfied with the final product.
Cat: What medium do you work in when creating sprites?
Agung: I sketch, character design, and storyboard on my iPad with Procreate. The actual animation I do is through Procreate or Adobe Animate, sometimes Adobe Illustrator.
Cat: What kind of things might you tell someone who is interested in pursuing sprite making as a career?
Agung: When you do what you have loved since childhood, it stays fun even after you have children of your own. Work is play for me. I often forget that because it is tiring at points. I know there are people who do not enjoy what they do for work, but I feel lucky because I do.