Tumo Center of Creative Technologies Marks 1 Year Anniversary with Acheivements

An innovative, open media studio in the heart of Yerevan opened its doors to Armenian teenagers on August 14, 2011. Today, a year later, the Tumo Center for Creative Technologies has much to boast about, including a creative contribution to the official video for a world-class musician – Serj Tankian.
Equipped with state-of-the-art digital technology, staffed by educators and media professionals, the Center has been providing art, technology and media training to more than 6,000 teenagers aged 12 to 18.
The children work on real-life projects: animations, game development, website development and digital media.
Over the past year I was invited to Tumo on a couple of occasions to share my knowledge of digital media and blogging with the children. One thing I noticed – the amazing creative atmosphere in the Center seems to miraculously transform rather regular Armenian children into inquisitive minds. The feedback I got from them on my presentations (e.g. this one) was more than I ever get when training much more mature university students and NGO representatives.
A recent achievement of Tumo’s children is the official video for Serj Tankian’s ‘Uneducated Democracy.’ The animated video is made by a group of 14 to 18-year-olds at the Center.
I found the “behind the scenes” video on making Tankian’s animated piece especially interesting. Great job, Tumo! And great job, young animators!
[youtube=”http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rDQ4ZNMjeb4″]