Academy Archives - Page 6 of 12

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

Summer Intensives for Teens: Creative Writing Camps, Fine Art Camps, Film 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, web comics or film, there is something for them at our Toronto studio – or virtually – this summer. You can read about our summer programs here: https://www.centauriarts.com/summer Our Creative Writing Camps in Bloor West Village, Toronto – and Virtually Our creative writing campers explore poetry, short [...]

May 19th, 2023|Academy, Bloor West Village|

Digital Art & Animation

Offered hybrid; join virtually, or in-person at our Toronto studio. Mondays, 7pm-8.30pm (ET), Ages 11-17, Semester 2 (14 weeks) Monday 27 January-Monday 12 May ** Students can join semester 1 or 2 (or both). Instructor: Aaron Alviano Develop your digital art skills as you work on fabulous original art in our weekly after-school digital art classes. Become proficient with open-source sketching and painting programs. Explore digital painting, illustration and even digital cartooning as you create your own dossier of work. Create fantastical and futuristic characters, landscapes and stories… and bring them to life using animation techniques. Explore real-world applications for digital art as you design a product, create a marketing campaign, and create everything from carousels to cars, clothing to condos! Whether you’re a [...]

May 18th, 2023|Digital Art Classes, Fine Art Classes, Online Virtual Classes|

Best FREE Animation Software

With most modern animations being created digitally, there is a continual growth in demand for easy-to-use software allowing anyone to make their own animation creations. If you are taking our summer animation or digital art programs, or our year-round virtual classes in digital art and animation, you may be interested in this list of the top 5 FREE animation programs. Top 5 FREE animation software programs 1. Pixilart This is an easy to use web-based program. With a simple layout and easy to understand functions, it is ideal for anyone of any age to use for their first attempt at animation. https://www.pixilart.com/draw 2. Pencil2D Similar to Pixilart, Pencil2D is an animation program that focuses solely on 2D animation. However, since Pencil2D is downloadable, there are [...]

May 12th, 2023|Academy, Digital Art, Digital Art Resources, Resources|

Best FREE Photo Editing Software

If you love photography, or taking photography workshops such as the ones offered through Centauri Arts, you will be aware of some of the great FREE and open source photo editing software options. Whether you are a teenager looking for photography camps, or a student hoping to take our photography and digital art classes, check out our list of the top 5 FREE photo editing programs: Top 5 FREE photo editing software programs 1. Fotor A very simple, easy to use web-based photo editing program. Iif you are looking to do simple edits for social media, or create a photo album, and you don’t want anything too complex, Fotor may be the best software choice for you. https://www.fotor.com/ 2. Photoscape Photoscape is an easy-to-use [...]

May 12th, 2023|Academy, Digital Art Resources, photography, Resources|

Top Five FREE and Open Source Software Tools for Creative Writing

Google Docs! Tech Radar voted Google Docs the BEST free software for authors and poets – which is great news, since this writing software is likely the one most of us already use! https://docs.google.com/document/u/0/ Focus Writer is a great software tool for creative writers because it is designed to take away the distractions you do not need – all the traditional features of word processing software that you do not need if you are writing a novel, poetry or short stories. You see no tools or windows – just your text. If you’re easily distracted when you write fiction, this might be just the thing for you: https://focuswriter.en.softonic.com/?ex=DINS-635.2 Write Monkey also allows you to remove screen distractions and is terrific for creative writing (novels, poetry, [...]

May 4th, 2023|Academy, Resources, Writing Advice, Writing Resources|

Summer Arts Camps in Bloor West Village

Registration Now Open for Arts Enrichment Camps This Summer! Centauri Arts offers intensive, week-long arts enrichment programs for ages 11-18 throughout July and August, virtually and in our Toronto arts studio in Bloor West Village. Programs run for four hours each day, and all courses are led by qualified and experienced arts professionals. Immerse yourself in the arts this summer! While we call these ‘day camps’, they focus only on the arts – and they are designed for middle and high school students. You choose your activity! Our summer programs run for 4 hours a day, in 2 blocks: 11am to 3.30pm and 4pm to 8.30pm. We’re offering Creative Writing, Fine Art, Digital Art, Film Production, Acting, Cartoon Creation, Devised Theatre and more. You can [...]

April 27th, 2023|Academy, Bloor West Village|

Young Writers and Artists: Five Places to Send Your Work

If you are a young writer hoping to publish your creative writing, or a young artist looking for places to submit your work, here are five writing and art competitions you may want to check out: 1. Scholastic Magazine holds annual competitions for young artists and young writers. Check out their website for the submission details and annual deadlines: https://www.artandwriting.org/ 2. The New York Times Learning Centre has a number of writing and art awards open to high school-aged writers and artists. Check this site for their upcoming competitions, including creative writing awards, book review awards and student essays: https://www.nytimes.com/spotlight/learning-contests 3. Toronto-based young writers and artists should also check out the Young Voices Magazine Published annually, this magazine for young writers and artists accepts submissions [...]

March 21st, 2023|Academy, Resources, Writing Advice, Writing Resources|

Ten Reasons to Register for Film Camps in Toronto This Summer 2023!

Choose from three different film production camps at Centauri Arts this summer – all of them at our studio in Bloor West Village and easily accessible from Swansea, The Junction, Roncesvalles and anywhere in Etobicoke, Mississauga or Toronto. Why choose a film camp this summer? Here’s TEN reasons: 1. Learn a wide variety of film production and acting skills in just one week. Discover screenwriting, storyboarding, directing, DOP, audio, lighting, design, marketing, editing and acting for the camera – all in one camp. 2. Movie-making skills connect to STEAM in school. Learn technical and artistic skills and discover how they intersect, at film camp and in the real world. 3. Movie-making is a collaborative art form. Movie camp teaches skills you can use later with [...]

March 16th, 2023|Academy|

Creative Writing Camps: 8 Reasons to Join our Writing Camps in Toronto This Summer!

1. Creative Writing Camp is All About Creativity We’ll inspire you with a wealth of creative writing prompts, exploring science fiction, fantasy, poetry, comedy, playwriting, screenwriting and more. 2. Creative Writing Camps are Good for Emotional Wellbeing Creative writing is about self-expression, whether you are composing poetry, journalling, plotting a novel or writing flash fiction. When we express ourselves in writing we feel empowered – and unburdened. 3. Creative Writing Camps Offer the Time for Discovery Through the year, teenagers have very little time to dig deep into writing – the summer is the perfect time to do so. 4. Creative Writing Camps are a Terrific Way to Learn Writing Techniques Our creative writing campers learn essential creative writing techniques: how to create characters, sculpt [...]

March 13th, 2023|Academy|

10 Reasons to Join our Drama Camps This Summer!

1. Our Drama Camps Focus on Acting Skills Voice training, movement, improvisation, character creation, scene study, stage presence and more… our drama camps are a great way to develop essential acting skills. 2. Drama Camps are a Terrific Way to Make Friends There’s a huge amount of laughter that happens in an acting camp as our campers discover the importance of ensemble playing and team skills. Many of our young actors stay in touch long after their acting camp is done. 3. Drama Camp Teaches Devised Theatre and Story Creation Skills Story structure and playwriting are transferable skills, making drama camp a fun way to see your marks go up in English class, and other subjects, too. 4. Drama Camps at Centauri Arts are Designed [...]

March 13th, 2023|Academy|