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Q&A with Margarita Beglaryan & Amol Ramani: Making “The Last Dance”

Alumni NYFA

09.15.2026

NYFA Alumni Network: Tell us about yourselves, where are you from and how did you come to NYFA?

Margarita Beglaryan (M.B.): I’m Margarita Beglaryan. I was born and raised in Yerevan, Armenia, and my journey into filmmaking actually started pretty early, around the age of five. I grew up in a very creative family-both of my parents work in television-so from a young age, I was able to see and experience how the creative and production process works. I later studied screenwriting, acting, directing, and animation in Armenia, and over time, I realized that animation and visual storytelling were really where I wanted to focus.

I came to NYFA because I wanted to take that background further, especially on the technical side, and learn more about 3D animation, VFX, and the full production pipeline. Moving to Los Angeles was a big step for me, and studying at NYFA gave me the opportunity to be much closer to the industry, meet some incredible mentors, and connect with so many talented people from different backgrounds.

I ended up completing my MFA in 3D Animation and Visual Effects at NYFA, and the experience really helped me bring together the two sides of what I love most-storytelling and the technical side of animation.

Amol Ramani (A.R.): My name is Amol Ramani. I was born in Goa, India and raised in Minnesota and then moved to Mumbai. My journey into films started as a writer during my engineering studies. I went on to pursue a Bachelor’s in Filmmaking and having worked as a filmmaker for 5 years, I decided to explore something new. That journey led me to NYFA where I am currently pursuing my Master of Fine Arts in Acting.

Moving to a new city is always a challenge. But the sense of community at NYFA is unlike any other Film School. Although my major is in acting, I have helped produce many major short films. Over the course of the past two years, I have partnered with numerous creatives at NYFA. That is how I met Margarita. She was looking for a producer for her film and I was drawn to the story she had created.

NYFA Alumni Network: Tell us more about The Last Dance. What inspired the story, and how did the idea first come to you?

M.B.: The Last Dance is actually based on a true story and was inspired by my grandparents and how they first met. They both passed away at a very young age, so for me, creating this film became a way to reconnect with them and bring a piece of their story back to life.

From the beginning, my goal was to tell the story in a universal visual language, so people from anywhere in the world could understand and connect with it. That’s why the film has no dialogue-it tells the story entirely through visuals, sound, and original music. I wanted people to walk away with a warm feeling, something nostalgic and comforting that reminds them of love, family, and home.

NYFA Alumni Network: How did the collaboration between the two of you come together?

M.B.: Amol joined the project a little later, once I had finished the main production and was moving into post-production. I asked him to come on board as a producer and help me with the next stage, especially promoting the film and navigating the festival circuit.

He helped me a lot because it was my first time going through that process, and I quickly realized how complicated and challenging the festival side of filmmaking can be. Having his experience and support made a huge difference, and I learned a lot from working with him throughout that process.

A.R.: I knew Margarita through a few mutual friends in the animation program at NYFA. And one day, I saw her post about wanting a producer for film festivals. I had never been a part of an animation project before, so this already had me excited in terms of the process.

Then I watched the film, the sheer simplicity of the hand drawn animation and the efficacy of storytelling really made me want to push this film out to the masses. It deserved the spotlight and this collaboration was my humble attempt at trying to help get Margarita’s story into the world.

NYFA Alumni Network: Margarita, how did serving as the writer, director, and lead animator shape your creative process, and what was the biggest challenge of balancing all three roles?

M.B.: Taking on all three roles made the film very personal for me because I was involved in almost every creative decision from the beginning to the final animation. Since I had written the story and had been developing the idea for a long time, I already had a very clear vision of the emotions and atmosphere I wanted to create. Being the lead animator allowed me to translate that vision directly onto the screen.

At the same time, balancing all those roles was definitely the biggest challenge. The Last Dance was my thesis film, and I didn’t have a budget or a full production team, so I had to handle a lot of the process myself. I was constantly switching between being a writer, director, animator, and editor. Sometimes I had to pull myself out of the technical details and ask, “Does this actually serve the story?”.

But I’m really grateful for that experience because it gave me the chance to learn almost every part of the animation pipeline, from character design and animation to directing and editing. I was also very lucky to have support from my friends-Lika Dpiryan helped me throughout the creative process, and Arus Nanyan composed the original music for the film, which became a really important part of the storytelling.

It was definitely challenging, but it taught me a lot about collaboration, problem-solving, and how to keep the bigger picture in mind as a director.

NYFA Alumni Network: For people who may not be familiar with animation, what does the process of creating a 2D animated short film look like from start to finish?

M.B.: Creating a 2D animated short is a pretty long process, and I think people are sometimes surprised by how much work happens before you even start animating.

It usually starts with the story, script, and of course, a shot list. From there, you move into character and environment design, storyboarding, and then the animatic, which is basically a rough version of the entire film that helps you establish the timing, camera angles, and overall flow.

If the film has dialogue, you usually want to record your voice actors early so you can include those recordings in the animatic. That also gives the animators the timing they need later for the characters’ performances and lip-sync.

The Last Dance doesn’t have any dialogue, but music was extremely important because I had a long dance sequence. So I needed to have the original music composed early in the process so I could animate the characters’ movements to the rhythm and make sure everything was synchronized with the music and sound.

Once the animatic and timing are locked, you move into rough animation, cleanup, color, backgrounds, effects, and compositing. Then everything comes together in the final edit with sound design and music.

So even though the final film may only be a few minutes long, there are a lot of different stages behind it, and each one takes a lot of time and attention.

NYFA Alumni Network: Amol, as the producer, what was your role in bringing The Last Dance to life, and what was the most rewarding part of the experience?

A.R.: As a producer on The Last Dance, it has been an incredible honor to watch this film grow into where it is today. As Margarita mentioned, I joined the project pretty late into its development. The story she has created is simple and heartfelt. When looking at the potential for films, that is of utmost importance to me. Does this film mean something to you? And to Margarita, this was her world and it showed. I consider myself lucky to have this opportunity and the reward for me lies in the knowledge that we as a team get to share Margarita’s story with the world.

NYFA Alumni Network: The Last Dance recently premiered at the LA Shorts International Film Festival and was nominated for Best Animated Short. Congratulations! What was that experience like, and what did the recognition mean to both of you?

M.B.: Thank you so much! It was honestly such a special experience for both of us. Seeing The Last Dance on the big screen at LA Shorts, especially after spending so much time working on such a personal project, was really emotional and rewarding.

For me personally, one of the most special parts was seeing people from different backgrounds connect with my story. But at the same time, the screening was extremely stressful! I was honestly really nervous about how people were going to react-whether they would like it, whether they would notice the mistakes, or maybe feel like something wasn’t completely finished.

I think as a director, your own film never really feels finished. You always see something you could improve, and especially when you’re just starting out, you make a lot of mistakes along the way. You remember every challenge behind every scene and how difficult some of those problems were to solve, while the audience is simply experiencing the final story.

So when I finally saw how warmly and positively people responded to the film, it was such a relief. People really seemed to enjoy it and connect with the story emotionally, and hearing their reactions and feedback afterward was incredibly rewarding. It made me realize that all of those challenges and long hours were worth it.

And then being nominated for Best Animated Short at an Oscar- and BAFTA-qualifying festival like LA Shorts made the whole experience even more meaningful. For me, that recognition was really encouraging, especially as an independent filmmaker still at the beginning of my journey. It gave me more confidence to keep creating, learning, and growing as a filmmaker.

A.R.: As a Producer, it was so rewarding to see my faith in The Last Dance be recognised. And despite the number of live-action projects I have produced, this nomination felt like a first and that feeling was surreal. Watching it on the big screen made it feel even more beautiful than the first time I watched it with Margarita at a cafe on her laptop. Which was already a wow moment for me from the very first time I saw the film.

This was my initiation into the wonderful world of animation. And to have that first project be recognized on such a large scale makes me feel grateful. So to Margarita, thank you for letting me in. I am humbled and inspired to do better. NYFA Alumni Network: Are you guys currently working on any future projects?

M.B.: Yes, we are! We’re actually starting a completely new project, and we already have the script and are currently in the pre-production stage.

I don’t want to reveal too much about the story yet, but this one is going in a very different direction from The Last Dance. It’s more grounded in reality, with some political and social themes, and it combines dark comedy with tragedy. At the same time, it’s going to be even more experimental visually. We’re planning to explore different animation techniques and incorporate a lot of symbolism, hidden meanings, and elements of mythology throughout the story.

This time, we also want to approach the production process differently. One of the biggest things we learned from The Last Dance was how important it is to build the right team and plan the production properly from the beginning. So our goal is to secure funding and bring more professionals and talented artists onto the project.

It’s still pretty early, so I can’t share too much yet-but we’re really excited about it, and hopefully we’ll have a lot more to share soon!

NYFA Alumni Network congratulates Margarita and Amol on their success!

Q&A with Margarita Beglaryan & Amol Ramani: Making “The Last Dance”

2026-09-15 23:49:00

network.nyfa.edu

https://network.nyfa.edu/medias/image/111610086163eec4395fa93.jpg

2026-09-30 01:47:20

2026-09-16 00:54:29

Alumni NYFA

NYFA alum Margarita Beglaryan (Director) and student Amol Ramani (Producer) found a creative partnership through their shared passion for storytelling and filmmaking. Their collaboration recently led to a major milestone when their film The Last Dance premiered at the LA Shorts International Film Festival and was nominated for Best Animated Short. We spoke with Margarita and Amol about the inspiration behind the film, their creative partnership, the process of bringing an animated short to life, and how their experiences at NYFA helped shape their journeys as filmmakers.NYFA Alumni Network: Tell us about yourselves, where are you from and how did you come to NYFA?Margarita Beglaryan (M.B.): I’m Margarita Beglaryan. I was born and raised in Yerevan, Armenia, and my journey into filmmaking actually started pretty early, around the age of five. I grew up in a very creative family-both of my parents work in television-so from a young age, I was able to see and experience how the creative and production process works. I later studied screenwriting, acting, directing, and animation in Armenia, and over time, I realized that animation and visual storytelling were really where I wanted to focus.I came to NYFA because I wanted to take that background further, especially on the technical side, and learn more about 3D animation, VFX, and the full production pipeline. Moving to Los Angeles was a big step for me, and studying at NYFA gave me the opportunity to be much closer to the industry, meet some incredible mentors, and connect with so many talented people from different backgrounds.I ended up completing my MFA in 3D Animation and Visual Effects at NYFA, and the experience really helped me bring together the two sides of what I love most-storytelling and the technical side of animation.Amol Ramani (A.R.): My name is Amol Ramani. I was born in Goa, India and raised in Minnesota and then moved to Mumbai. My journey into films started as a writer during my engineering studies. I went on to pursue a Bachelor’s in Filmmaking and having worked as a filmmaker for 5 years, I decided to explore something new. That journey led me to NYFA where I am currently pursuing my Master of Fine Arts in Acting.Moving to a new city is always a challenge. But the sense of community at NYFA is unlike any other Film School. Although my major is in acting, I have helped produce many major short films. Over the course of the past two years, I have partnered with numerous creatives at NYFA. That is how I met Margarita. She was looking for a producer for her film and I was drawn to the story she had created. NYFA Alumni Network:  Tell us more about The Last Dance. What inspired the story, and how did the idea first come to you?M.B.: The Last Dance is actually based on a true story and was inspired by my grandparents and how they first met. They both passed away at a very young age, so for me, creating this film became a way to reconnect with them and bring a piece of their story back to life.From the beginning, my goal was to tell the story in a universal visual language, so people from anywhere in the world could understand and connect with it. That’s why the film has no dialogue-it tells the story entirely through visuals, sound, and original music. I wanted people to walk away with a warm feeling, something nostalgic and comforting that reminds them of love, family, and home.NYFA Alumni Network: How did the collaboration between the two of you come together?M.B.: Amol joined the project a little later, once I had finished the main production and was moving into post-production. I asked him to come on board as a producer and help me with the next stage, especially promoting the film and navigating the festival circuit.He helped me a lot because it was my first time going through that process, and I quickly realized how complicated and challenging the festival side of filmmaking can be. Having his experience and support made a huge difference, and I learned a lot from working with him throughout that process.A.R.: I knew Margarita through a few mutual friends in the animation program at NYFA. And one day, I saw her post about wanting a producer for film festivals. I had never been a part of an animation project before, so this already had me excited in terms of the process. Then I watched the film, the sheer simplicity of the hand drawn animation and the efficacy of storytelling really made me want to push this film out to the masses. It deserved the spotlight and this collaboration was my humble attempt at trying to help get Margarita’s story into the world.NYFA Alumni Network: Margarita, how did serving as the writer, director, and lead animator shape your creative process, and what was the biggest challenge of balancing all three roles?M.B.: Taking on all three roles made the film very personal for me because I was involved in almost every creative decision from the beginning to the final animation. Since I had written the story and had been developing the idea for a long time, I already had a very clear vision of the emotions and atmosphere I wanted to create. Being the lead animator allowed me to translate that vision directly onto the screen.At the same time, balancing all those roles was definitely the biggest challenge. The Last Dance was my thesis film, and I didn’t have a budget or a full production team, so I had to handle a lot of the process myself. I was constantly switching between being a writer, director, animator, and editor. Sometimes I had to pull myself out of the technical details and ask, “Does this actually serve the story?”.But I’m really grateful for that experience because it gave me the chance to learn almost every part of the animation pipeline, from character design and animation to directing and editing. I was also very lucky to have support from my friends-Lika Dpiryan helped me throughout the creative process, and Arus Nanyan composed the original music for the film, which became a really important part of the storytelling.It was definitely challenging, but it taught me a lot about collaboration, problem-solving, and how to keep the bigger picture in mind as a director.NYFA Alumni Network: For people who may not be familiar with animation, what does the process of creating a 2D animated short film look like from start to finish?M.B.: Creating a 2D animated short is a pretty long process, and I think people are sometimes surprised by how much work happens before you even start animating.It usually starts with the story, script, and of course, a shot list. From there, you move into character and environment design, storyboarding, and then the animatic, which is basically a rough version of the entire film that helps you establish the timing, camera angles, and overall flow.If the film has dialogue, you usually want to record your voice actors early so you can include those recordings in the animatic. That also gives the animators the timing they need later for the characters’ performances and lip-sync.The Last Dance doesn’t have any dialogue, but music was extremely important because I had a long dance sequence. So I needed to have the original music composed early in the process so I could animate the characters’ movements to the rhythm and make sure everything was synchronized with the music and sound.Once the animatic and timing are locked, you move into rough animation, cleanup, color, backgrounds, effects, and compositing. Then everything comes together in the final edit with sound design and music.So even though the final film may only be a few minutes long, there are a lot of different stages behind it, and each one takes a lot of time and attention.NYFA Alumni Network: Amol, as the producer, what was your role in bringing The Last Dance to life, and what was the most rewarding part of the experience?A.R.: As a producer on The Last Dance, it has been an incredible honor to watch this film grow into where it is today. As Margarita mentioned, I joined the project pretty late into its development. The story she has created is simple and heartfelt. When looking at the potential for films, that is of utmost importance to me. Does this film mean something to you? And to Margarita, this was her world and it showed. I consider myself lucky to have this opportunity and the reward for me lies in the knowledge that we as a team get to share Margarita’s story with the world.NYFA Alumni Network: The Last Dance recently premiered at the LA Shorts International Film Festival and was nominated for Best Animated Short. Congratulations! What was that experience like, and what did the recognition mean to both of you?M.B.: Thank you so much! It was honestly such a special experience for both of us. Seeing The Last Dance on the big screen at LA Shorts, especially after spending so much time working on such a personal project, was really emotional and rewarding.For me personally, one of the most special parts was seeing people from different backgrounds connect with my story. But at the same time, the screening was extremely stressful! I was honestly really nervous about how people were going to react-whether they would like it, whether they would notice the mistakes, or maybe feel like something wasn’t completely finished.I think as a director, your own film never really feels finished. You always see something you could improve, and especially when you’re just starting out, you make a lot of mistakes along the way. You remember every challenge behind every scene and how difficult some of those problems were to solve, while the audience is simply experiencing the final story.So when I finally saw how warmly and positively people responded to the film, it was such a relief. People really seemed to enjoy it and connect with the story emotionally, and hearing their reactions and feedback afterward was incredibly rewarding. It made me realize that all of those challenges and long hours were worth it.And then being nominated for Best Animated Short at an Oscar- and BAFTA-qualifying festival like LA Shorts made the whole experience even more meaningful. For me, that recognition was really encouraging, especially as an independent filmmaker still at the beginning of my journey. It gave me more confidence to keep creating, learning, and growing as a filmmaker.A.R.: As a Producer, it was so rewarding to see my faith in The Last Dance be recognised. And despite the number of live-action projects I have produced, this nomination felt like a first and that feeling was surreal. Watching it on the big screen made it feel even more beautiful than the first time I watched it with Margarita at a cafe on her laptop. Which was already a wow moment for me from the very first time I saw the film.This was my initiation into the wonderful world of animation. And to have that first project be recognized on such a large scale makes me feel grateful. So to Margarita, thank you for letting me in. I am humbled and inspired to do better. NYFA Alumni Network:  Are you guys currently working on any future projects?M.B.: Yes, we are! We’re actually starting a completely new project, and we already have the script and are currently in the pre-production stage.I don’t want to reveal too much about the story yet, but this one is going in a very different direction from The Last Dance. It’s more grounded in reality, with some political and social themes, and it combines dark comedy with tragedy. At the same time, it’s going to be even more experimental visually. We’re planning to explore different animation techniques and incorporate a lot of symbolism, hidden meanings, and elements of mythology throughout the story.This time, we also want to approach the production process differently. One of the biggest things we learned from The Last Dance was how important it is to build the right team and plan the production properly from the beginning. So our goal is to secure funding and bring more professionals and talented artists onto the project.It’s still pretty early, so I can’t share too much yet-but we’re really excited about it, and hopefully we’ll have a lot more to share soon!NYFA Alumni Network congratulates Margarita and Amol on their success!  