The Higher Education Review

When Wiztoonz Academy of Media and Design started its operations in JP Nagar, Bangalore, Sunil M - an office boy from a nearby building - was one of the regular visitors to the campus. Every day, he would come, meet one of the academic counselors to ask about the institute's design programs and would go back without giving any hint of taking admission. When this practice became a never-ending process, the counselors took Sunil to the cabin of Sreedhar V. T., the founder, and CEO of Wiztoonz. After a detailed discussion, Sreedhar understood that Sunil, despite being a gifted child with great hand drawing skills, was apprehensive about learning professional design, because, his monthly earning was not more than Rs. 2000. That meeting with Sreedhar, however, changed Sunil's life forever.

Sunil took up Diploma program and eventually started working in the graphic designing field. It did not take much time for Sunil being an expert in his chosen field. In the next three years, Sunil saw his salary soaring from Rs. 5000 to Rs. 50, 000. Now, Sunil is a successful entrepreneur, running his own game development company, and he is a regular recruiter of Wiztoonz. The story of Sunil - from being an office boy to running a successful venture - is one of the many that Wiztoonz has created in its short span of existence.

Sreedhar, an ardent art lover, says, "There are numerous creative youngsters in our nation who gets suppressed while accomplishing their parents' dreams of getting into more lucrative fields such as engineering and medicine. We, hence, provide an alternative career platform to students where they can work on their passion for creativity." Sreedhar has been instrumental in establishing Wiztoonz with a vision to create an efficient education ecosystem that prepares students for a remarkable and successful career in the Multimedia Industry.

Assuring the Best
Celebrating ten years of academic excellence, Wiztoonz

Academy of Media and Design is a training division of Wiztoons Animations Private Limited, which initiated its operations in 2007. The courses that are offered to students include Diploma in Communication, Diploma in Visual Effects, Diploma in Animation and Game Design, Diploma in Film Making, Diploma in Broadcast Media, and Diploma in Photography. The students are also open to taking up short-term certificate programs in Painting, Pottery, and Photography. Sreedhar pinpoints, "Our admission procedure is quite different from other institutes where students do not get the chance to select the course according to their will." The institute organizes an entrance test for all the aspirants and evaluates them based on their creative skills. The only criterion that the institute has set is the students have to be above 17 years and an interest in art. A Career Advisor team is present at the institute who guide them into the right path of specialization depending upon the result of the test that they have attempted.

"It is a completely black and white process. We inform them during the admission regarding the things that they will be needing as these essentials are required for their personal practice, the rest of the advanced equipment are available in the institute that they can use while learning," opines Sreedhar. The evaluation procedure that the institute abides by is credited based on assignments completed instead of regular written examinations.

Blend of Art, Creativity, and Technology
At Wiztoonz, a team of experienced and qualified teachers takes the charge of the classroom and reaches out to each student on an individual basis, developing a very friendly relationship. The classroom environment is not at all conventional one and is rather very informal in terms of the teaching-learning process, where the students sit in a cluster form, experiencing an interactive atmosphere. "Our teachers adhere to parallel lecture system where explanation and demonstration go side by side," states Sreedhar. The students attend classes carrying their laptop where they can transfer their paperwork to the computer in no time. This also enables the students to practice simultaneously with the classroom sessions, which lead them to learn better and faster.

Sreedhar shares, "Irrespective of

the program, our students are motivated to go through the soft skill training, which is specially designed to bridge the communication gap between the recruiters and students." The institute also organizes essential value additions like guided workshops, industry tours, seminars by leading experts. Giving a platform to the works done by the students, the institute hosts "Wizcraftz student bazaar" where the materials prepared by students are kept for sale and exhibition.

A Right Place to Prosper
Maintaining 100 percent placement record since 2011, Wiztoons has evolved into a favorite destination for recruiters who search for highly skilled and practically trained candidates. There is a long list of organizations, which are partnered with the institute and are active job providers. TV 9 Kannada, IBM India, Prinkraft, Prime Focus Technologies, Indegene, Closerbuy and Sci-Fi Animations are few to name among them. "From resume writing, mock interviews to entrepreneurship development workshops, we assist our students in all possible ways," says Sreedhar.

The companies are invited by the institute way before the completion of courses, and there the faculty members and the employers have a discussion on what is the current market demands coupled with what kind of skills they require in the candidates. "After this healthy interaction, we add the particular requirement in our curriculum and train our students accordingly in the six months of their last semester," claims Sreedhar. Rendering personalized programs and emanating blended learning mechanism, today the institute has turned 3000+ students into professionals and entrepreneurs.

Sreedhar V T, Founder
A lawyer by profession, Sreedhar V T dared to be different and chose passion over the profession. Not only Sreedhar pioneered Wiztoonz to be one of the well-known Animation, Media & Design Academy in India, he has also contributed to the animation Creative Industry by creating entrepreneurship opportunities for artistic students through Wizcraftz, a division of Wiztoonz.