Animation in Pakistan | Usman Riaz | TEDxKL

There is no hand draw animation in Pakistan and TED Senior Fellow Usman Riaz is breaking new ground by starting the first hand drawn animation there.

Usman Riaz is an artist and Pakistani musician making a worldwide mark with his astonishing and fun-to-listen-to technique. Influenced by percussive guitarists — who move beyond strumming to striking, treating their fret board like the soundboard of a piano — he makes a sound that feels larger than the instrument itself, with a compelling pattern of repetition and variation that harkens to mystical music traditions.

In 2011, a viral video for his song “Fire Fly” helped bring his sound from the small-but-thriving Pakistani music community to a global audience.

Currently directing Pakistan’s first hand-drawn animated film The Glassworker (funded by supporters through Kickstarter) through Mano Animation Studios which he leads, Usman is working with a team of talented animators from his home country, UK, South Africa and Malaysia.

Usman continues to be the youngest TED Senior Fellow

This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at http://ted.com/tedx