Season 3 of Dragons: The Nine Realms, is now available on Peacock and Hulu!
We spoke to the Mikros Animation teams in Bangalore who contributed to the fabrication of DRAGONS : THE NINE REALMS. In this first #MeetTheMakers interview, Anoob George Varkey – Animation Team Lead, gives us his point of view on this unique project and on the challenges he faced.
Can you tell us about your journey in the animation industry?
While working as an EDP In Charge in Bahrain, I became fascinated with the VFX and Animation industry. My journey began as an animator with Toonz Animation, and I’ve worked at other studios prior to joining Technicolor India. Being in the company for 12 years, I’ve worked on many great projects, including Fanboy & Chum Chum, Spirit: Riding Free, Dragon: Riders of Berk, Dragon: Rescue Riders, The Boss Baby, Dragons: The Nine Realms, and many more!
The ‘How to Train Your Dragon’ franchise is well-known but with Dragons: The Nine Realms, we see a modern-day setting with dragons. What was your reaction when you learnt you’ll collaborate on this sequel?
Since dragons are a legend, I was extremely curious to see how the modern kids in the show were going to deal with their discovery. I can now see modern kids going on thrilling adventures with the legendary dragons, and it’s a visual treat for everyone.
What is unique about this show?
All the episodes are filled with lots of adventure. It’s a fun and visually amazing series for people to watch, right from kids to young adults. The final output of the show is remarkably graceful. This is a must watch for those who love following dragon adventures.
What were the main artistic and/or technical challenges you had to overcome in your department?
Initially we faced some challenges in getting the style and performance of the dragons right, because we were slightly influenced by the project we worked on before this. The transition period was quiet challenging for us. We were able to overcome this and now we have all merged with the dragons so well that the team is flying along with the show now. Everything becomes flawless because of the immense support and hard work of all the team members. We receive great guidance and support form Avanish S Phatak, Head of Animation, for both creative and technical aspects of the project. And the assistance from Jibana Hota, Supervisor, ensures we have wonderfully refined and polished final passes of the shots. We could overcome all the challenges we faced on the show because of the great team work from every member in the crew.
Do you have a favourite sequence?
I have many favourite sequences from all the episodes. Each one is special to me, but I think the pursuit sequences of “GronckleFires” and the sequences of “Quaken” in the episode “Dr. Catastrophe” are outstanding. The final output of the episode looks awesome.
What are you looking forward to now that two seasons are out in the world?
I feel proud to be the part of the new age of the How To Train Your Dragon franchise. We are setting new benchmarks with every episode in terms of animation quality. The upcoming seasons and episodes are going to be mind-blowing for those who love dragons’ adventures. With our learning and experiences from previous episodes, our team is ready to face any challenges and adventures on future episodes.
More information on the series here!
