Magic with lasers

Known for his animated series on Panchatantra, Manick Sorcar converses with Anita Iyer about his magical animation journey.

• Being son of legendary magician P.C. Sorcar how did laser excite you rather than magic?
  

I am excited more about doing magic with laser than doing traditional magic. Love for art and science is something, I inherited from my father, late P.C. Sorcar. As a youngster, I helped in painting the backdrops and the lightning design for the various magic items, which inspired me to become an electrical engineer and artist. I still remember, my father taught us that anything can be 'magic' when it is 'extraordinary'. So, I create magic through Laser animations!

• How did you get introduced to laser lighting?

It sort of came as a by-product of lighting in which I had hands-on experience as a child, trained as a part of my engineering degree, and still practicing it. Laser is the acronym name for Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation and is a special type of lighting. At my electrical engineering firm in USA we deal with laser lighting for many purposes. Being also an animator and director of our own stage shows, one day it struck me to use the strong beam of laser for animation on stage. The challenge was how to tame the dangerous stick of light to act as a painting brush. One led to another and soon I was using laser animation to act with live actors on stage. The results were astonishing, which brought me recognition and took off like a rocket.

• Tell us something about your initial experiments using laser for animation?

My traditional animation dealt with drawing on papers with a pen, or painting directly on a computer canvas with an electronic pen for animated movements. For laser animation, the strong beam of light is manipulated to be used as a painting brush and then use it either on the screen for 2D or in the space for a 3D animation.

• How difficult was it in 1980's to make an animated character before the revolution in computer graphics?
  

Very difficult, because virtually all art work needed to be done by hand, which needed a great amount of manpower. Computer helped in doing the in-betweens and painting the background scenes, but even today, I prefer to draw some of the important movements of animated characters by hand to give the warmth in it. Computer softwares tend to give a mechanical look in the movements, which I do not like.

• What was the main motive behind making animated series based on Indian stories like ‘Panchtantra’? Was it to revive our Indian culture?

The original purpose was to attract my two US-born daughters to their roots and Indian culture. The first film “Deepa & Rupa” was based on a classic fable from Bengal where live action was uniquely weaved with animated characters. My older daughter Piya (then 12) acted in the lead role. The film bagged over half a dozen top awards from international film festivals and was telecast on TV numerous times. The cultural gap that I was trying to bridge for my daughters, soon got international exposure and was warmly welcomed by mainstream America. It was vividly clear that there was a demand for quality animation for children, which will provide more than just temporary entertainment. I made a series of animation based on fables from the Panchatantra, and other classic sources of India, which became popular at schools, and were repeatedly telecast on prestigious educational channels around the country. I am proud to say, this will be the 16^th straight year my animation films will be aired by the prestigious Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) Channels of Colorado; next telecast will be on the New Years Day, January 1, 2008 when the US state will ring in the first morning with these classic Indian animations.

• Tell us something about the production of 'Deepa and Rupa' in 1990, as it was one of its kinds in India?

Deepa & Rupa was recorded as the Very First Indian animation mixed with live action. It was my first major production and the key actors were my daughter Piya (Rupa), and Deepa Reddy (Deepa). It took me almost three years to make as I could only work on it at nights, weekends, and any time I could spare from my daytime engineering profession. It was made in the late eighties when softwares on character animation and picture scanners were still unheard of. As a result, a good portion of the movements of animated characters and background scenes were hand painted and then frame-grabbed to be digitized. It was a long painstaking process, but the end results were brilliant. The media, newspapers, magazines - all gave rave reviews after watching the show on TV, which made it a household name. We got a surge of invitations from schools to make presentation of the film and take question and answer session with the aspiring students who wanted to learn about Indian culture and/or be animators.

• Your animation films have now become a subject of research for academic degrees? How does it feel?

It is most pleasing that my animation films have now become a subject of research for academic degrees. Two years ago “Manick Sorcar Animations that Teach Indian Cultures” was the topic of research work for an American student’s BFA (Bachelor in Fine Arts) degree with double major in animation and visual effects at the Savannah College of Art and Design in Georgia. It feels great as what started as an attempt to instill Indian culture in my daughters became a cultural bridge between East and West.

• How challenging was weaving the animated character with live character before the revolution of computer graphics?

It wasn’t impossible, but would take a substantial amount of trial and error effort before achieving the proper result.

• Tell us something about the technique ‘SorcarScope’?

Laser shows are fun to watch but laser can be quite dangerous if not used properly. “SorcarScope” is a technique I developed through which live actors on stage can act simultaneously with laser without any danger.

• Tell us something about your initial showcases of animation works?

After some experiments I dared making “Calcutta Forever: A Laser Fantasy”, a documentary on the 300 year old history of Calcutta that was shown at the prestigious Nandan Theater of West Bengal in 2000. This was recorded as the very first laser documentary ever to be shown inside a theater in India, and was a hit. After that, I went a step further where I mixed life-size laser animation with live performers on stage, which resulted in the creation of “Dancing with My Soul”, and later “Enlightenment of Buddha”. I was delighted when at the international contest; “Enlightenment of Buddha” won the First Place in Italy, and received the Artistic Award, from the International Laser Display Association.

• Your show ‘Laser toons’ at Nicco Park had a record of 78 shows in one month, drawing over 140,000 jubilant spectators. How was the experience?

Very, very thrilling! To be very frank, the entire show was mainly designed with children in mind. But its appeal and the magical effects of the laser became so popular that it started drawing crowd exponentially. People of all ages and demographics, ranging from ordinary people, film actors, and nuns of Mother Teresa to Buddhist Monks came to see the show – some repeatedly.

• How does it feel to be internationally acclaimed for your animation and laser works?

By Almighty’s grace, I have been showered with all kinds of awards and acclaim which indeed made me happy. But I will have to confess; none of them are as pleasing or heart contending as seeing the smile the shows bring on a child’s face.

• Coming from a magical background, didn’t you ever think of fusing animation with magic?

No! I have been busy fusing magic with animation. My award- winning laser animations are only a small sample of that.

• Are you planning something innovative on the animation side now?

Absolutely! My target is to take the technique to a level where nobody has gone before. In my next laser animation you will be able to take a physical tour inside the screen, walking around the 3-D characters!

• What would be your advice to budding animators?

Love your work with heart and have full confidence in yourself. Then follow the teaching of Swami Vivekananda: “Stop not till the goal is reached” and success is all yours.