"VOID" Wins Best Student Short at HEI Fest

Congratulations to the makers of "Void", which has won Best Student Short Film at the HEI Film Festival. 

Void is one of the latest short films from our third year undergraduate animation students at Escape Studios.  

"Void" was directed by Kaya Akinci, edited and produced by Luis Yarroll.   

This is its fourth festival award.

Royal Television Society Bursary Scheme Open

Royal Television Society (RTS) Bursary Scheme

The Royal Television Society (RTS) Bursary Scheme is now open, offering bursaries (scholarships) to students  pursuing careers in television, film or related media.

The application deadline is Monday 24th June 2024. As always, we encourage our students to apply. There are many scholarships and bursaries available for education. 

Escape Studios Welcomes International Students

Escape Studios is delighted to announce that - for the first time since Brexit - we can now sponsor international students to join our programmes on student visas. 

This comes in time for the launch of a number of brand-new courses starting in September 2024, including our new MA in Motion Graphics.

Animation by Samuel Baker

Escape Studios undergraduate animation student Samuel Baker animated this excellent short piece for our undergraduate core animation module - Animation Module AN4001 - a 15 Credit module that teaches all our first year students the fundamentals of character and creature animation.  AN4001 lasts four weeks, and covers the basic principles of animation.  To see some of the best work done by our first year undergraduate animators, follow this link.

Free Tutorial: Animate a Cartoony Car To a Stop

In this super simple beginner animation tutorial we show how to animate a vehicle coming to a sudden stop. The free tutorial uses the free "AnyCar 3.1.4 for Maya" rig, downloadable here from Creative Crash.  

This is a fun, simple tutorial that is aimed at animation beginners in Autodesk Maya, part of our series of animation basics for students who have never used Maya before.  

Animation by Milly Proudfoot

The animation above was created by Escape Studios' undergraduate animation student Milly Proudfoot, currently in her first year of study at Escape Studios.  Milly animated this piece for our undergraduate core animation module - Animation Module AN4001 - a 15 Credit module that teaches all our first year students the fundamentals of character and creature animation.  AN4001 lasts four weeks, and covers the basic principles of animation.  To see some of the best work done by our first year undergraduate animators, follow this link.

Finding Work in The Animation Industry in 2024

The creative industries have hit some headwinds of late, with a "perfect storm" of writers' strikes, actors' strikes, studio cutbacks, and anxiety over the threat from AI. 

But there are still jobs and opportunities out there for graduates with excellent portfolios and strong software skills. Below is a roundup of things to do to maximise your chances of breaking into the industry. Start by making sure that your demo reel  is as good as it can possibly be.

"Order Up" Wins "Best Animation" at Kodaikanal Fest

"Order Up" wins "Best Animation" at Kodaikanal Fest

Congratulations to the makers of "Order Up" which has won "Best Animation" at the Kodaikanal Film Festival.  

Order Up was completed as part of Studio Module PR5001, a collaborative module in which second-year animation students work together on short film projects.  Order Up was directed by Shavaz Uzice, edited by Tobi Ajibola, and produced by “Moses” Tsz Yau Ho. The art director was Holly Ackroyd.  This is its first festival award.

Animate a Traffic Cone Being Knocked Over

Animate a Traffic Cone Being Knocked Over

In this beginner's animation tutorial we show how to animate a traffic cone being knocked over by a speeding car.  It's a simple exercise - based on the Yellow Beetle animation tutorial - which you can find here.  

You can however use any vehicle, and animate it by simply setting a keyframe at the start and the end of the motion.  The timing of the traffic cone is very simple; with just a few rotation keyframes we can add texture to the scene. 

Motion Graphics MA Starts 24 Feb 2025

Our new Master's Degree in Motion Graphics

Our new Short Course and Master's Degree in Motion Graphics starts teaching on 24 February 2025.

Motion Graphics is a key part of the animation industry, an expanding area of jobs and creativity.

We have been teaching Motion Graphics  at Escape Studios for many years - now for the first time we can offer a fully accredited masters-level post-graduate course.

Escape Students Attend "Bring Your Own Animation"

Kevin Richards and Escape Students attend BYOA

BYOA (Bring Your Own Animation) is a monthly event that we recommend all our students and Escapees attend. 

BYOA takes place in London every month at a pub in Soho.  Recently Escape Studios' tutor animation Kevin Richards met with a number of Escape Studios students and Escapees, reviewing demo reels and getting feedback on their work. 

"Theseus" Wins Hon Mention at 1st Film Fest

Theseus & The Minotaur wins Mention at 1st Film Fest

Congratulations to the makers of Theseus and The Minotaur, which has won an Honourable Mention at the First Film Festival.

Theseus and The Minotaur tells the story of the Greek hero's entry into the Labyrinth, and was directed by Mitchell Wright and produced by Ayesha-Ria Jina. The 3D lead was Xavier Barker, and the 2D Lead was Ethan Mainwaring-Taylor.  Industry feedback was provided by Industrial Light & Magic. 

Introducing "Order Up"

ORDER_UP_ANIM from tszyau ho on Vimeo.

Introducing "Order Up", the latest short animated film from Escape Studios. It was completed as part of Studio Module PR5001, a collaborative module in which second-year animation students work together on short film projects.  Order Up was directed by Shavaz Uzice, edited by Tobi Ajibola, and produced by “Moses” Tsz Yau Ho. The art director was Holly Ackroyd.  Order Up is currently being entered into film festivals. 

The Visual Effects Producer - Now in The Library

The Visual Effects Producer

We have new books for the Animation & VFX Library on the 11th Floor at 6 Mitre Passage.

The Visual Effects Producer by Charles Finance and Susan Zwerman is the comprehensive handbook for any student learning the art of VFX Production - a creative blend of art, technology and finance. 

For all our students learning the Art of VFX, we recommend this book as the principal guide to understanding what VFX producers do.  

And don't forget to make use of our Tutorial Channel - with many hundreds of video tutorials on animation and VFX.

Introducing "Checkmate"

Checkmate from Cara Masters on Vimeo.

Introducing "Checkmate", the latest short animated film from Escape Studios.  Checkmate was completed as part of Studio Module PR5001, a collaborative module in which second-year animation students work together on short film projects.  Checkmate was directed by Cara Masters and produced by Erminas Surgautas. 

"Lamp -v- Monty" by Illia Stepina

Illia Stepina is a first year undergraduate animation student at Escape Studios; "Lamp-v-Monty" was animated for Elissa's core animation module - Animation 1 - a 15 Credit module that teaches all our first year students the fundamentals of character and creature animation.  AN4001 lasts four weeks, and covers all the basic principles of animation.  To see some of the best work done by our first year undergraduate animators, follow this link. 

"Outpatient" Wins Best VFX at Makihzmithran Fest

"Outpatient" wins "Best VFX" at Makizhmithran Fest

Congratulations to the makers of the VFX short film "Outpatient", which has won "Best VFX" at the Makizhmithran Film Awards. 

"Outpatient" was directed by Charlie Wilson, co-directed by Idris Driver, produced by Harry Symonds, and co-produced by Emmanuel Rahman.  "Outpatient" tells the story of a hospital patient on the edge of survival. Abdoulah M Jones stars as The Patient.  

This is the film's second festival award. 

Escapee-directed "Bluey" Achieves Global Success

Bluey

The Australian animated TV series "Bluey" has become a global success story, one of the most popular shows on Netflix.

Bluey was created by Joe Brumm - but the TV series is directed by Escapee Rich Jeffrey 

Rich took our 12 week course in 3D animation, and has since gone on to forge a successful career as an animation director. 

"Ghosting" Wins "Best Animation" at Tekka Fest

Congratulations to the makers of Ghosting, the animated short created by our third year animation students at Escape Studios, which has won the award for Best Animation at the Tekka Film Festival.

Directed by Caroline Geddis and produced by Marc Montebon, Ghosting tells the story of a boy who enters a mysterious mansion on a dark night.  

This is its second festival award. 

La Salle Exchange Programme Returns For 2025

Ramon Llull University, Barcelona

Escape Studios is delighted to announce the return of our Exchange Programme with La Salle, part of the Ramon Llull University in Barcelona, Catalonia.

La Salle offers degrees in Digital Arts and Animation, a perfect fit with our courses at Escape Studios.  The Exchange will take place in the Spring of 2025, and we'll be looking for expressions of interest from our first year undergraduate students in the next few weeks. 

Since 2021 a number of Escape students have travelled to La Salle to study, and a similar number have come to Escape Studios, studying the Art of Computer Animation, Games and Visual Effects.

The La Salle Exchange Programme is a welcome opportunity for our students to study overseas in one of Europe's most beautiful cities. 

The Animation & VFX Course at La Salle is taught in Catalan, Spanish - and (of course) English. 

"Infestation" Best Sci-Fi at Golden Peacock Awards

"Infestation" wins Best Sci-Fi at Golden Peacock Awards

Congratulations to the makers of "Infestation", one of the latest animated shorts created by our third year animation students at Escape Studios.

Infestation has won "Best Sci-Fi Short" at the Golden Peacock International Film Festival.  

Directed by Thomas Husband and produced by Hugo Whitworth,  Infestation tells the story of a distant space station - HMSS Archimedes - with some unwelcome visitors.  This is the third festival award for Infestation.

Super Mario Animation by Michael Koden

Michael Koden is a first year undergraduate animation student at Escape Studios; his short "Super Mario" animation above was completed for AN4001 a 15 Credit animation module that teaches all our first year students the fundamentals of character and creature animation.  AN4001 lasts four weeks, and covers all the basic principles of animation.  To see some of the best work done by our first year undergraduate animators, follow this link.

Free Rigs and Sets at Anim-Matt

https://anim-matt.gumroad.com/.

We're loving this new source of Free Rigs and Sets for Maya Animators at Animation-Matt https://anim-matt.gumroad.com/. It's a great resource, packed with free (and low priced) rigs for character animation. Anim-matt also has plenty of sets for animators to work in, including interior and exterior shots such as streets, bars and living rooms for characters to perform in.

Acting for Animators - With Michael Caine

 

Animated characters need to look at each other, so their eyes don't wander around screen.  Watch the short video above with acting legend Michael Caine for some tips from the master of screen acting.  The video itself is a little dated (1980s) but the lessons remain just as important today.  According to Caine, the number one lesson for stage actors is to "hold on to each others' eyes".  And, what is true for stage actors is true for animators too.  You can watch Caine's acting advice in the video above - the important part is all in the first 5 minutes.

"VOID" Wins Hon Mention at Art Film Awards

Void wins Hon Mention at Art Film Awards

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

Void is one of the latest short films from our third year undergraduate animation students at Escape Studios.  

"Void" was directed by Kaya Akinci, edited and produced by Luis Yarroll.   This is its third festival award.

Understanding the Rule of Thirds

What is the Rule of Thirds?  It is a "rule of thumb" for composing visual images.  The Rule of Thirds proposes that an image should be imagined as divided into nine equal parts by two equally spaced horizontal lines and two equally spaced vertical lines, and that important compositional elements should be placed along these lines or their intersections.  In the simplest terms, try to avoid staging your character dead centre in the middle of the screen.

Pitching The "Queen's Counsel" Cartoon Strip

All students at Escape Studios need to learn how to pitch. Our Escapees aren't just working in the creative industries, they are creating original content and fresh ideas.  But how does your fresh original idea gain traction in the marketplace?  The answer is - you have to pitch it.  The short video above is about pitching ideas - in this case pitching the idea of a cartoon strip about lawyers in the UK in the early '90s.  The cartoon strip started in The Times in 1993 as Queen's Counsel - it's still running 30 years on.  

"Light Escape" by Lewis Sims

Introducing "Light Escape" by Lewis Sims.  "Light Escape" was animated by Lewis for our undergraduate core animation module - Animation Module AN4001 - a 15 Credit module that teaches all our first year students the fundamentals of character and creature animation.  AN4001 lasts four weeks, and covers the basic principles of animation.  To see some of the best work done by our first year undergraduate animators, follow this link.