"Picture Us" Wins "Best Director" in Halicarnassus

"Picture Us" wins "Best Director" award

Congratulations to the makers of "Picture Us", which has won "Best Director (Short Film)" at the Halicarnassus Film Festival.

“Picture Us” is an animated short film set inside an art gallery, in which two old master paintings fall in love, and must find a way to be together.   

Picture Us was written and directed by Tom Perry and produced by Charlotte Ann Gimbird.   This is its third film festival award.  

IT Support at Escape Studios

IT Dept: 2nd floor at 190 High Holborn

How does IT support work at Escape Studios? IT problems are a feature of modern life, endlessly frustrating - but always solvable in the end. We have a great IT team at Escape who are always willing to out staff and students.  

We also have technical support from Pearson, our parent company. So, depending on what has gone wrong, and what you need, there are a number of ways to get help.

"Character & Creature Creation" Taster: 4th Oct 2022

Character & Creature Creation is back: we're hosting a Taster Day in Character & Creature Creation on Tuesday 4th October 2022. 

The free taster takes place at 5pm and is run by Escape Studios tutor and animation veteran Michael Davies, who will introduce students to to facial anatomy - and how this can used to help create a character from a 2D concept.  

Character & Creature Creation is one of our most technically advanced courses; it involves the creation of characters and creatures from start to finish - from rough concept art all the way through to the final animation, lighting and rendering of characters and creatures. 

Kevin Richards Returns to Escape Mon 10 Oct 2022

Kevin Richards

Lead Animator and Escapee Kevin Richards will be returning to Escape Studios on Monday 10th October to teach our second year animation students who are currently studying Module AN5002 - Animal and Creature Animation.

Kevin is a traditional 2D animator who took our 12 week short course in animation at Escape Studios, and successfully made the transition to 3D animation in Maya.

Kevin is currently working as a Lead Animator on the new Aardman Animation TV Series "Pop Paper City", produced by LoveLove Films.

Producing for VFX is Back on 25 Oct 2022

Our evening class in Producing for VFX is back, starting on 25 October 2022. Producing for VFX is an eight week evening class, taught two nights a week (Tuesdays and Thursdays from 7-10pm). Producing for VFX is designed to give students a thorough understanding of how the VFX production pipeline works, and how to apply it in practice.  What does a VFX Producer actually do? Students will learn the full ecosystem of VFX production, taught by veteran VFX producer Martin Gabriel. 

"Explosive Love" Wins "Best No Budget" Award

Congratulations to the makers of "Explosive Love", which has won an award for "Best No Budget Film" at the Dreamer's Short Film Festival.

"Explosive Love" was directed by Alba Rodriguez and produced by Rohnak Sharma.  

"Explosive Love" tells the story of a lonely puffer fish looking for love - in an unlikely place. 

"Giles & Rupert" Wins Best Trailer at FOF Awards

Best Trailer at the Future of Film Awards

Congratulations to the makers of Giles and Rupert's Prehistoric Predicament, which has won its fifth festival award - Best Trailer at the Future of Film Awards.

Giles and Rupert's Prehistoric Predicament is a teaser/trailer for an original animated TV series created at Escape Studios by director Toby Haslam and producers Samia Chowdhury and Georgia Baird.  Giles and Rupert are Victorian inventors whose time machine invention goes horribly wrong - creating a world of Jurassic trouble. 

"How Animators Get Hired" by Kevin Richards

Kevin Richards teaching at Escape Studios

Escapee Kevin Richards took our short course in 3D animation at Escape Studios and is now working as a Lead Animator at the new Aardman Animation TV Series "Pop Paper City", produced by LoveLove Films. 

As a production lead, Kevin reviews animation reels and makes hiring decisions on new talent.

In the guest blog below, Kevin explains how our students can maximise their chances of getting hired in the animation industry. 

"Our Ocean" Wins Best Animated Film at NIFF

Best Animation at the Nawada International Film Festival

Congratulations to the makers of "Our Ocean", which has won an award for Best Animation at the Nawada International Film Festival.  

Our Ocean was created by our fourth year animation and vfx students, studying the Art of Computer Animation and VFX.  

Written and Directed by Priya Shah, and produced by Ethen Dent, Our Ocean was a collaboration with the charity "Ocean Generation".  This is the latest of many festival awards.

Liminal Wins Best Horror Film at Art Film Awards

"Best Horror Film" at the Art Film Awards

Many congratulations to the makers of "Liminal", which has won "Best Horror Film" at the Art Film Awards.

"Liminal" tells the story of a young girl in a hospital ward who is beset by demons of the imagination.  It was written and directed by Zoe Walker, and produced by Alex Sellen.  

This is the fourth festival award. for Liminal.

"The Crash" Wins Best VFX at Athens Fest

"Best VFX" (Hon Mention) in Athens

Many congratulations to the makers of "The Crash", the short VFX film created by students at Escape Studios, which has won an Honourable Mention in the category of "Best VFX" at the Athens International Film Festival.

"The Crash" is a sci-fi VFX short written and directed by Lewys Rhodes, and produced by Daniel Rowe.  Cinematography was by Benjamin Stevuliak.  The Crash has won many festival awards. 

Rola Hafez Animator at Mighty Studios

Rola Hafez

Many congratulations to Escapee Rola Hafez who has started work as an animator at Mighty Studios. 

Rola took our MA in 3D Animation at Escape Studios, and directed the short animated sci-fi film "Alma" which has won multiple festival awards. She also worked on the award-winning short "Mafia Mix-Up".

We congratulate Rola on her first job in the animation industry. 

"Stellar Rescue" Wins "Best Production" at HEI Fest

The Stellar Rescue Best Production at the HEI Festival

Congratulations to the makers of "The Stellar Rescue", which has won an award for Best Production at the HEI Festival.

"The Stellar Rescue" was written and directed by Anthony Sarmiento, and produced by Wiktoria Swierk.  It was created as part of a group project by second-year animation students, working together as a team. 

The Stellar Rescue tells the story of a young boy who must rescue a fallen baby star and return it to its parents.

VFX Veteran Sagar Rathod Joins Escape Studios

Sagar Rathod 

A warm welcome to our newest VFX tutor Sagar Rathod who joins us at Escape Studios tomorrow.  Sagar is the latest addition to the VFX team at Escape Studios; he is a veteran 3D digital artist with almost 20 years' experience in the visual effects industry.

Sagar's many film credits include Fantastic Beasts, Kingsman, Alien: Covenant, and Guardians of the Galaxy.

Sagar will be teaching the 3rd year VFX and animation students as they join forces on the VFX Project, which runs from September 2022 until the end of December.

"Explosive Love" Wins Honourable Mention in Tokyo

Congratulations to the makers of "Explosive Love", which has won an Honourable Mention in the category of Best Production Design at the Tokyo International Film Festival.

"Explosive Love" was directed by Alba Rodriguez and produced by Rohnak Sharma.  

"Explosive Love" tells the story of a lonely puffer fish looking for love - in an unlikely place. 

"Giles & Rupert" Wins Best Trailer at Onyko Awards

Giles and Rupert Best Trailer at the Onyko Film Awards

Congratulations to the makers of Giles and Rupert's Prehistoric Predicament, which has won its fourth festival award - Best Trailer at the Onyko Film Awards.

Giles and Rupert's Prehistoric Predicament is a teaser/trailer for an original animated TV series created at Escape Studios by director Toby Haslam and producers Samia Chowdhury and Georgia Baird.  Giles and Rupert are Victorian inventors whose time machine invention goes horribly wrong - creating a world of Jurassic trouble. 

"Freefall" Hon Mention for "Best Super Short Film"

Best Super Short Film at the Art Film Awards

Congratulations to the makers of "Freefall", which has won an Honourable Mention in the category of "Best Super Short Film" at the Art Film Awards.

"Freefall" was written and directed by Jessa Timog-Santiago, co-directed by Rohnak Sharma, and produced by Sebastian Petre.  Alex Maynard was Lead Animator and CG Supervisor.  

Freefall was created as part of a group project by second-year animation students, working together as a team.  This is its second festival award. 

Gun Flare and Smoke in After Effects Tutorial

Veteran animator and VFX tutor Marc Stevenson has recorded a new animation tutorial - "How to Animate Gun Flare and Smoke in After Effects". The tutorial explains how to use Adobe After Effects (part of the Adobe Suite, and available to all our students in our classrooms at Escape Studios) to create gun flare and smoke.  So, if you're animating a character Maya firing a gun - you might want to add the FX work in After Effects, rather than try to run a simulation in Maya. The video tutorial is aimed at beginners and runs for 20 minutes.  You can see more of Marc's excellent animation tutorials at his YouTube Channel. 

Animation Recruiters with Kevin Richards

Kevin Richards took our short course in 3D animation at Escape Studios and is now working as a Lead Animator at the new Aardman Animation TV Series "Pop Paper City". 

As a production lead, Kevin reviews animation reels and makes hiring decisions on new talent.

In the guest blog below, Kevin explains the role of recruiters in the animation industry, and how our graduates can get the best out of them. 

"Post-Mortem" Wins "Best VFX" at FOF Awards

"Best VFX" at the Future of Film Awards festival

Congratulations to the makers of  the VFX short "Post Mortem" which has won "Best VFX" at the Future of Film Awards.

Post Mortem was directed by Toby Haslam and Ridma Suriyagoda, and produced by Aidan Callaghan, who was also the 3D Lead.  Scott Middleton was the 2D Lead. 

Post Mortem takes place in a futuristic secure facility, where a surgeon performs an autopsy on a mysterious patient.  This is Post Mortem's seventh festival award.

"Threaded Together" Best Animation at FOF Awards

Best Animation at the Future of Film Awards

Congratulations to the makers of "Threaded Together", which has won an award for Best Animation at the Future of Film Awards. 

Threaded Together was directed by Shauna Ludgate and produced by Manos Zervoudakis. The original score was composed by Maria Cortes-Monroy.

Threaded Together tells the story of a needle who longs to be reunited with his friends.  

This is the third festival award for Threaded Together. 

"Wanderer" Wins "Best Creative" at Halicarnassus

"The Wanderer" wins Best Creative at Halicarnassus

Congratulations to the makers of  "The Wanderer", which has won an award for "Best Creative" at the Halicarnassus Film Festival. 

"The Wanderer" tells the story of a traveller who encounters a mysterious spirit that guards an ancient temple.  

The Wanderer was directed by Chiyoko Coyte and produced by Wiktoria Swierk.  

This is the film's fifth festival award. 

Should Graduates Accept a Job as a Runner?

Running - is it just about making coffee?

Should animation, games and VFX graduates work as runners? Working as a runner is a standard entry-level position in our industry, but is it really necessary?  And should our students and graduates do it - or perhaps hold out for a more creative entry-level role?

Here at Escape Studios we support our students who take running positions.  Running isn't glamorous, but it can - and often does - lead to better things.  Hang in there, put up with a bit of drudgery, and it can pay big dividends. 

"Liminal" Wins "Best Micro Short" at Vesuvius Fest

"Best Micro Short" at the Vesuvius Film Festival

Many congratulations to the makers of "Liminal", which has won "Best Micro Short" at the Vesuvius Film Festival.

"Liminal" tells the story of a young girl in a hospital ward who is beset by demons of the imagination.  It was written and directed by Zoe Walker, and produced by Alex Sellen.  

This is the third festival award. for Liminal.

"Giles & Rupert" Wins Best Trailer at Art Film Awards

Best Trailer at the Art Film Awards

Congratulations to the makers of Giles and Rupert's Prehistoric Predicament, which has won its third festival award - Best Trailer at the Art Film Awards.

Giles and Rupert's Prehistoric Predicament is a teaser/trailer for an original animated TV series created at Escape Studios by director Toby Haslam and producers Samia Chowdhury and Georgia Baird.  Giles and Rupert are Victorian inventors whose time machine invention goes horribly wrong - creating a world of Jurassic trouble. 

Escapee Karla Tarazon Runner at HireWorks Post

Karla Tarazon

Congratulations to Escapee Karla Tarazon who is currently working as a runner at HireWorks Post. 

Karla took our BA in 3D Animation at Escape Studios, and contributed her skills as an animator to many of our short animated films, including Nefertiti, Hat Shop, Animal Lover, Little Gestures, Death From Above and Alma, all of which have won multiple festival awards.

Working as a runner in the industry is a recognised first step into animation, vfx and games, and often leads to a more permanent position. Congratulations to Karla for taking the first steps in her animation career.

Last Call for Character Design 10 October 2022

character design by Escapee Leroy Dias

Last call for our online Character Design Evening Class - which returns to Escape Studios on 10th October 2022.

  
Character Design is an eight week evening class taught by industry veteran and Escape Studios' Head of Character Design Steve Sole.

Steve will guide students through the principles of character design, building up to an industry brief.

There is also an eight week period of aftercare at the end of the course, where students are encouraged to continue working on their portfolios, polishing their work to industry standards. 

"The Crash" Wins Best "60-Second" at Fortean Festival

Best 60-Second Challenge at the Fortean Film Festival

Many congratulations to the makers of "The Crash", a short VFX film created by students at Escape Studios, which has won "Best 60-Second Short" at the Fortean Film Festival.

"The Crash" is a sci-fi VFX short written and directed by Lewys Rhodes, and produced by Daniel Rowe.  Cinematography was by Benjamin Stevuliak.  The Crash has won many festival awards. 

"Threaded Together" Wins "Best Student Director"

Best Student Filmmaker at the Eastern Europe Film Festival

Congratulations to the makers of "Threaded Together", which has won an award for Best Student Filmmaker at the Eastern Europe Film Festival.

Threaded Together was directed by Shauna Ludgate and produced by Manos Zervoudakis,  

Threaded Together tells the story of a needle who longs to be reunited with his friends.  

The original score was composed by Maria Cortes-Monroy.

Undergraduate Open Day Saturday 24 Sept 2022

Saturday 24th September 2022

Escape Studios is hosting a new undergraduate open day from 10.30am until 2.30pm on Saturday 24th September 2022.

Escape Studios' Open Days are a chance to find out about our undergraduate degrees in Animation, The Art of Games and Visual Effects.  

An Open Day is an opportunity for potential students to find out how they can follow in the footsteps of our award-winning alumni.

"Giles & Rupert" Wins Best Trailer at Vesuvius Fest

Best Trailer at the Vesuvius Film Festival

Congratulations to the makers of Giles and Rupert's Prehistoric Predicament, which has won its second festival award - Best Trailer at the Vesuvius Film Festival.

Giles and Rupert's Prehistoric Predicament is a teaser/trailer for an original animated TV series created at Escape Studios by director Toby Haslam and producers Samia Chowdhury and Georgia Baird.  Giles and Rupert are Victorian inventors whose time machine invention goes horribly wrong - creating a world of Jurassic trouble. 

Meet Your Animation Tutors - Steven Lall

Steve Lall 

Meet your animation tutors - Steve Lall is one of our newest animation tutor at Escape Studios.  Steve has a decade of experience of working in advertising and animation, both 2D and 3D.

Steve Lall teaches AN4001 "Locomotion & Mechanics" to our first year animation students, and also 2D Animation in Toonboom Harmony to our second year animation students.

 Steve's broad animation skillset also includes graphic design, film editing, lighting & rendering, and also managing the motion capture pipeline. 

"Post-Mortem" Wins Best VFX at London Film Fest

Post Mortem wins Best VFX at the LIMFF

Congratulations to the makers of  the VFX short "Post Mortem" which has won "Best VFX" at the London International Film Festival.

Post Mortem was directed by Toby Haslam and Ridma Suriyagoda, and produced by Aidan Callaghan, who was also the 3D Lead.  Scott Middleton was the 2D Lead. 

Post Mortem takes place in a futuristic secure facility, where a surgeon performs an autopsy on a mysterious patient.  

This is Post Mortem's sixth festival award.

"Gnaughty Gnomes" Wins "Best VFX" at HEI Awards

Gnaughty Gnomes Best VFX at the HEI Film Festival

Congratulations to the makers of Gnaughty Gnomes, which has won Best VFX at the Heart of Europe Film Awards.

Gnaughty Gnomes is a short animated film made made by animation and vfx students at Escape Studios. Gnaughty Gnomes was directed by Antonia Palmer, produced by Hannah Sheppard and co-produced by Charlotte Gimbird.   Gnaughty Gnomes has won many festival awards. 

2022 Graduate Showcase

To see a selection of the best work done by our 2022 animation, games and VFX graduates, take a look at the Escape Studios' Official Graduate Showcase. 

Projects include the award-winning short films "Post-Mortem", "Threaded Together" and "Ambush".

"Our Ocean" Best 1st-Time Director at Halicarnassus

Best First-Time Director at the Halicarnassus Film Festival

Congratulations to the makers of "Our Ocean", which has won an award for "Best First-Time Director" at the Halicarnassus Film Festival.

Our Ocean was created by our fourth year animation and vfx students, studying the Art of Computer Animation and VFX.  

Written and Directed by Priya Shah, and produced by Ethen Dent, Our Ocean was a collaboration with the charity "Ocean Generation".  This is the film's fourth festival award.

"How to Interview" by Escapee Kevin Richards

Kevin Richards teaching at Escape Studios

Escapee Kevin Richards took our short course in 3D animation at Escape Studios and is currently working as a Lead Animator at the new Aardman Animation TV Series "Pop Paper City".  

As a production lead, Kevin spends a good deal of time interviewing junior animators and making hiring decisions.

In the guest blog below, Kevin offers his tips on how to succeed at a job interview - the second stage in the process of getting hired.  If the company likes your demo reel, they will invite you to interview - below is Kevin's advice on how to get it right.