Four degrees, eight arms, one man
By Michelle Castillo
Feb. 18, 2009 4:54 a.m.
After getting his undergraduate degree in computer science at UCLA’s School of Engineering and Applied Science, Emud Mokhberi took the next logical step and went for his master’s of science in computer science. Little did he know that an animation class that he took for fun would eventually lead to a form of professional success known by many but received by a select few: an Oscar nomination.
“I found out that there were animation classes, and, unlike the rest of the film school at that time, animation was open to everybody,” said Mokhberi, co-director of “Oktapodi,” which is up for the Best Short Film (Animated) category at the 81st Annual Academy Awards.
“Obviously at that point, I didn’t really have any drawing skills. One of the things that separated them from the other animation departments out there was they stress the fact that being a good draftsman was not a prerequisite. I ended up taking that class, something that I thought was going to end up being a background study.”
Actually, Mokhberi had been on the fast track to being a skilled computer programmer after completing an internship with Microsoft during his third year. Upon graduation, he found a job with Digital Domain, which provided the special effects for “Titanic” among other films. Getting a taste of the film industry helped shift Mokhberi’s interest from programming to computer graphics, which prompted him to go back for his master’s degree.
“At that point, I wanted to learn how to get individual effects,” Mokhberi said. “In order to flesh out my background, even if you get to be a technical director in a studio, the more you understand about art the better off you are. The more you understand what the artists are doing, the better you can communicate.”
Before he knew it, Mokhberi had completed the first year of the master’s program in animation. Instead of choosing to enter the work force, Mokhberi opted for more schooling ““ this time at UCLA’s School of Theater, Film and Television.
“My parents always supported whatever we were studying and whatever we enjoyed doing,” Mokhberi said. “I wasn’t studying computer science because they thought it was a good idea. I studied computer science because I had enjoyed it when I took my first class. I never got up one day and said, “˜I hate programming. I’m going to throw that all away and do animation.’ It wasn’t that radical of a change. I finished my degree, and I knew I was going to use it when I was doing animation.”
While working on his second master’s degree, Mokhberi decided to move with his wife to France in 2006, thinking that he could finish up his last year at UCLA ““ and thesis project ““ abroad. After requesting a leave of absence, Mokhberi soon discovered the Gobelins L’École de L’Image, a French animation school that accepted students who were in their final year of their master’s programs at a different school.
“I thought that would be a better use of my time, not only to meet more animators, but see how they do it in France as opposed to the United States, as opposed to sitting in an apartment by myself working on my thesis film,” Mokhberi said.
The Gobelins program consisted of creating a short film over the course of the school year with other students in the class. After getting to know the other students in the class, Mokhberi partnered with Julien Bocabeille, FX Chanioux, Olivier Delabarre, Thierry Marchand and Quentin Marmier to create the animated short “Oktapodi,” a love story about two octopi who battle all odds, including a seafood chef, to stay together. Since it was a class project, all the students were animators as well as directors, meaning every decision had to be approved by the group. Seven months later, the group was able to produce the final film, each member bringing his own talents to the table.
“The film we made last year, “˜Oktapodi,’ wouldn’t have been possible if both me and Thierry didn’t have a degree in computer science,” Mokhberi said. “I don’t think we would have been able to pull it off because technically there are some challenging things in there that, unless you are comfortable with figuring things out on your own and really knowing your way around programming and technical problem-solving, it wouldn’t have been possible. It wasn’t like I threw my degree away; I kept what I had and built on it.”
Keeping in tradition with the other films from Gobelins, which in past years have made a buzz in the animation community through numerous wins, Mokhberi and his co-directors entered their project in film competitions including the Academy Awards, not really thinking that they had a chance of getting nominated. After being short-listed in December and recently receiving a slew of awards from within the animation community, the prospect of taking home the Oscar for “Oktapodi” is something that he is daring to think about.
“As we got closer and closer to the Oscars, the gravity of what could happen if we got nominated … but it started to actually settle that it may happen and what that would mean,” Mokhberi said. “It’s an honor to be mentioned in the same category (as Pixar). … We would never imagine being nominated in the same category as them.”
Even though the Oscars are still a few days away, Mokhberi and his fellow directors have already come out winners in the industry. Some members of the group have been snatched up by DreamWorks, while Mokhberi decided to take a job with Sony Pictures Imageworks. Though he still has yet to complete his final film for UCLA, Mokhberi is taking each day at a time, eagerly awaiting Oscar night.
“I try not to think about it too much and try to enjoy the night and take in the moment,” Mokhberi said. “I’m assuming that it will be quite overwhelming.”
