Academy Archives - Page 8 of 12

Summer Intensives for Teens: Creative Writing Camps, Fine Art Camps, Acting Camps and More!

Summer is a special time at Centauri Arts – young writers, artists, actors and filmmakers from all over the city come together to build community around a shared interest, as they take part in Acting Camps, Creative Writing Camps, Fine Art Camps, Film Camps and more. If you have a child aged 11-18 who loves creative writing, painting, drawing, cartoon creation, acting, podcasting or film, there is something for them at our Toronto studio – or virtually – this summer Our Creative Writing Camps in Bloor West Village, Toronto – and Virtually Our creative writing campers explore poetry, short stories, plays, podcasts… whether they are experienced writers, or complete beginners! In the summer, there’s time to sink into plot, to play with character, learn new [...]

May 25th, 2022|Academy|

Summer Day Camp for TEENAGERS!

Our day camps are pretty unique. Firstly, we offer film camps, fine art camps, acting camps, animation camps… everything to do with the arts! Secondly, we offer the choice of day camps in Bloor West Village (close to Jane Subway, near Swansea and Etobicoke) or virtual arts camps. Finally our summer day camps are geared specifically for older children and teenagers – ages 11-18 to be precise. Day Camps for Teens? Our summer arts camps are designed with the older crowd in mind. We know parents don’t need day care, and teens prefer to get up later in the summer, so our arts camps in Bloor West Village run for 4 hours each day, with a choice of afternoon or evening blocks. Teens work with [...]

March 31st, 2022|Academy|

Young Writers: 5 Places to Submit Your Work!

If you are a young writer working on a manuscript, then you are probably wondering which markets exist for your work. There are many literary magazines and publishing houses that accept work from young writers – and there are creative writing competitions for young writers, too! Here are some opportunities for young writers, to start you on your way. Remember a strong cover letter is always important when you are submitting your manuscript for consideration: Young Voices Magazine The Toronto Public Library publishes an annual magazine - Young Voices - which publishes the work of young writers and artists. You can check it out here: https://www.torontopubliclibrary.ca/teens/young-voices.jsp The Walrus Magazine & Amazon Awards for Youth The magazine’s Youth Short Story Category invites authors between the ages [...]

March 31st, 2022|Academy, Writing Classes for Teens|

Creative Writing Classes at Centauri Arts: a Place for Young Writers to Grow

If you love creative writing – poetry, short fiction, writing novels, screenplays and more – then Centauri is the place for you. For 27 years, we’ve brought together young writers, and talented creative writing teachers to inspire them… and we continue to do so with creative writing classes AND creative writing summer camps, all starting in the next few weeks. Creative Writing Classes this Spring (starting April 2022). Julie Hartley is our instructor for the next Saturday creative writing class, which begins in our Bloor West studio on Saturday 23rd April. If you live in Bloor West Village, Swansea or anywhere else in Etobicoke and Mississauga, join us for a creative writing class that focusses on fantasy and science fiction. VIRTUAL Creative Writing Classes and [...]

March 30th, 2022|Academy, Writing Classes for Teens|

Top 10 Tips: How to Take Terrific Photographs

While understanding aperture, shutter speed, ASA and the manual workings of your camera can help, anyone can take a great photo if you cultivate a great eye, and learn a little about aesthetics! Here are 10 tips to help you take amazing photographs. 1) Focal Point Your first step is deciding what to photograph! This is a photo’s focal point or main point of interest. Ask yourself, “will my viewers find this interesting?”. If the answer is no, but you still want to take a photo of the subject, the next few tips will help change your response to a yes. 2) The Rule of Thirds When taking any photograph, try to imagine two horizontal and two vertical invisible lines dividing the image into [...]

March 7th, 2022|Academy, photography|

Top 5 Free and Open-Source Animation Software Tools

Animation, and animation classes, are hugely popular with teenagers these days: bringing digital artwork to life on the screen can be riveting! Deciding which animation software to use, however, can be tough - especially if you are on a budget. To help you, we’ve assembled a list of some of the best free and open-source animation software tools available to digital artists today. OpenToonz - 2D Animation Software Not only is OpenToonz one of the best 2D animation software available, it has also been used by famous animation studios like Studio Ghibli and Rough Draft Studios. OnlyToonz is user friendly and great for animation students just starting out, but you may need to read through their manual to truly master its features. https://opentoonz.github.io/e/ Synfig [...]

February 2nd, 2022|Academy, Digital Art, Digital Art Resources|

New Creative Writing Class for Teenagers in Our Bloor West Village Location!

Short fiction… poetry… novels… if your teenager loves writing in any of these forms, they would likely LOVE our new Creative Writing class, which begins in our Bloor West Village studio on Wednesday 23 February. The instructor for this program is centre director Julie Hartley; read all about her publications and experience at www.juliehartley.ca Creative Writing: From Prompts to Finished Product Most of our creative writing classes in Toronto and virtually focus on technique and inspiration; they combine imaginative creative writing prompts with a chance to learn about character development, plot structure, genre fiction and more. This class is a little different – it’s aimed at high school students who have experience as writers, and the goal is to help young writers to finish a [...]

January 25th, 2022|Academy, Writing Classes for Teens|

The Best FREE Digital Art Software on the Market!

Starting out in Digital Art can be a struggle for teenagers, especially if they are on a budget. Programs like Adobe Photoshop, Corel Paint, Clip Studio Paint, Affinity Photo or even Procreate are powerful: but they cost money. Thankfully, we all have access to free/open-source Digital Art Software - but with so many free/open-source programs to choose from, it can be difficult to choose between them. To help you, we have put together a list of the Best Free Digital Art Software on the market. KRITA - Digital Painting Program If you are a fan of Photoshop, you’ll like KRITA. With similar layouts, tools and interface, KRITA is an amazing professional digital painting program made and designed by artists. It works on all systems and [...]

January 25th, 2022|Academy, Digital Art, Digital Art Resources, Resources|

Top 10 Challenges Students Face in Their Reading and Writing

Our virtual English Tutoring Programs and English Tutoring Programs in Bloor West Village are available to students in Grades 4-university, but whatever the grade, there are reading and writing skills – from essay writing to paragraphing and reading between the lines - that most students struggle with these days. 1. Essay writing Research, planning, first drafts, editing… middle and high school students all struggle with this, regardless of ability. When I ask what they know about writing essays, the response is usually: “Oh, I know that! We learned how to do it in school!” But there is a difference between learning how to do it, and knowing how to do it. There simply isn’t enough time allotted to essay writing in schools – so students [...]

January 20th, 2022|English Tutoring|

New Arts Classes for Kids & Teens Starting January 2022!

Young writers, actors, artists and filmmakers can choose from 10 new after-school classes and weekend classes at Centauri Arts, starting January 2022. Creative Writing Classes include Short Fiction, and a broader Writing Salon for ages 12-18. Acting Classes for Kids and Teens include a new Junior Acting program for ages 9-14. Film Production Classes include an opportunity to make a short movie as you learn directing, screenwriting, audio, lighting, production design and more. Film and writing enthusiasts can choose to explore Screenwriting on Saturday mornings, and artists have two programs to choose from: a virtual Digital Arts Class, and a Fine Art Class for children and teenagers, in our Toronto studio. Join our talented teaching team for classes in creative writing, acting, filmmaking, fine art [...]

January 5th, 2022|Academy|