Workshops

Since the first Feral! in 1998 workshops have been an important part of programming!  Helping furries learn and hone their skills in art, writing, costuming and more is something we're proud of, and some of our students have even become instructors!

The following list of workshops is made up of traditional classes taught year after year, and it may change as instructors confirm.  New ideas and guest instructors in special fields (such as Flain Falcon in 2009 who held a panel on Podcasting and New Media, or 2's Comedy workshop) will likely pop up as well!  We will let you know what is set in stone here once it's confirmed!

ART

• Basic Art: Start with shapes, learn how to fill them in, and you're on your way to mad skillz!
• Action and Expression: Take your basic skills and learn how to give characters the sense of motion and emotion!
• Inking and Colouring: Learn how to ink and colour the manual way!
• Advanced Art Panel: Artists answer your questions!

WRITING

• Intro to Writing: A refresher or an introduction to the central elements of writing: Plot, Character, Setting, Theme and Style!
• Furry World Creation: Led by Guest of Honour Rikoshi! Always a favourite! Learn how to build a furry world for your characters to live in by doing it!  A big brainstorm that always leads to interesting conversation...and in one case, a novel written in the world!
• Guest of Honour Rikoshi will be leading a seminar for five lucky campers.  Each will submit a short story to the group in advance of camp, and will read everyone else's story.  With Rikoshi as a moderator, the group will discuss the stories and offer help for improving writing style, character development, and all aspects of storywriting!  Again, this is a limited workshop, so let us know if you are interested and keep an eye on the site for submission guidelines and announcements!

COSTUMING

• Ears and Tails: Learn to start a fursuit by making your own set of ears or a tail!  And to make things better...you get to take it home! (materials cost based on the quantity of fur used, generally between $2 and $10)

POETRY

• Basic Poetry: Learn the basics of writing a poem and understand poetry appreciation.
• Advanced Poetry: Become more adept on writing your own poem, and perhaps create one to read at the Poetry Corner!

LEATHERWORKING

• Leatherworking: Learn how to create something with leather and take your project home! In the past we've made collars, bracers, and bracelets! (materials cost based on the project is charged and will be announced here)

MUSIC

• Songwriting: A crew of furry songwriters will gather together for this workshop/panel to discuss songwriting techniques, and how they wrote their favourite songs!
• I'm a musician, now what??: Potoroo will draw on his experience in the music industry to give musicians...and really, artists and writers too...ideas on how to get your songs out there, what to look for, what to avoid, and maybe even how to make some money doing it!

PANELS

We generally have only held special panels in the past depending on special guests, and the advanced art panel, but are interested in helping facilitate one if you have a proposal!  Get in touch with us with your ideas!

PROPOSED NEW WORKSHOPS

New workshops that either we have thought up, or someone has suggested, will be put here!  Please let us know if you find the idea interesting and we'll find a slot for it! We will be asking on forums, Twitter and Facebook for your input, so please take note.  Otherwise, contact the Workshops Coordinator directly!

• Plushie and Fursuit Repair: Basically, a workshop in hand sewing!! A skill that is very helpful in this community.  Fursuiters commonly get small tears, and sometimes older plushies get damaged around the neck or arms.  This workshop would teach hand sewing techniques and offer tips on how to repair your suit or your favourite plushie!