AnimBot Licenses for Escape Studios Animators

AnimBot for 3rd Yr UG Animators at Escape

Escape Studios has acquired a number of "animbot" licenses.  animbot is a plugin for Maya, formerly known as "aTools", described as a "utility belt" for animators; it helps to speed up the animation workflow with a number of clever tools. 

The animbot licenses are intended for our third year undergraduate animators, helping them to complete their graduation films swiftly and efficiently.

How to Get Maya for Free

Autodesk, who make the software Maya, offer an education copy of Maya for free, which can be downloaded from the official Autodesk site.

Autodesk Maya has been the dominant software package in 3D animation for over 20 years. I first used Maya 1.0 on "The Iron Giant", back in 1998. And today it remains the most powerful package for the creation of 3D animation, still by far the most widely used in industry.

Maya -v- Blender - Which is Best?

Should Animators Learn Blender, Maya, or Both? If you’re just starting out in animation, one of the first big questions is: Which software should I learn? For most students, that means choosing between Autodesk Maya and Blender. Both are powerful, both are widely used, and both have strengths — but the right choice depends on your goals. 

How Long Does It Take To Learn Autodesk Maya?

Many of our first year students at Escape Studios will never have opened Maya before.  Or, at least, they won't be very familiar with it.  Maya is a big, complex piece of software - the interface can look daunting at first.  But don't be discouraged, with time and practice - you will get there in the end. 

Meet the 3D Animation Team at Escape Studios

Who teaches 3D Animation at Escape Studios? We are fortunate to have many talented tutors in our large and growing animation department.  

We have a depth of talent and skills among our staff that ensures we can teach all aspects of the animation pipeline, from concept art through storyboarding, animation and final render. 

Below (in no particular order) are some of our talented tutors you will find teaching 3D Animation in our classrooms at Escape Studios.

Animation Evening Class Returns on 23 Sept 2024

Evening Class in 3D Animation Starts 23 Sept

Our 20 week part-time evening class in 3D Animation  returns on 23rd September 2024.

This online animation class runs for 20 weeks on Tuesday and Thursday evenings, from 7-10pm, and is taught by veteran animator Matteo Sanna.

Students start with basic exercises and build towards an industry-ready demo reel.

Animate a Submarine Underwater in Maya

Animate a Submarine Underwater

In this super simple tutorial we show how to animate a submarine traveling underwater.  This is a very basic tutorial aimed at beginners in Maya. 

The idea is to do some simple animation of an underwater scene, then add a caustic effect to reproduce the effect of light penetrating water. 

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.  

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. 

Lock To World Tool Stops Feet From Sliding

We're recommending this new animation script "Lock to World", available for download at Gumroad. 

The Lock to World tool does the same job as the Anchor Transform Tool - which no longer works in newer versions of Maya (since the upgrade to Python 3). 

Sliding feet can be a problem when animating a walk cycle.  Fortunately for us, the Lock to World tool created by Framestore Animator Jesse Ong Pho offers a solution. 

The Lock to World script lets you anchor a transform for any given time range in your animation. You can find it in UG Shares in UG Animation under assets.

Animate a UFO on a Motion Path

In this brief tutorial we show how to animate a UFO on a motion path - an important technique for animating anything moving through space - UFOs, aircraft, birds, and even fish.  

Motion Path animation is a simple animation technique, and can be learned in a few minutes.  The tutorial starts by searching for a free set and a UFO at Turbosquid - free assets anyone can download.  For Maya beginners. 

Using Infinity Curves with Offset in Maya

In this very short tutorial (just two minutes long) we show how to use "Infinity Curves with Offset" in Maya.  Let's say you animate a character taking two steps across the screen, and you want to replicate the action. By using Infinity Curves with Offset, you can replicate the motion automatically, and have the character take as many steps as you like.  Once you're done, you can bake your curves, and then edit the shot.  We also have many animation tutorials at our Vimeo Channel, available for all our students and recent Escapees.

How to Install & Use The Parent Master Plugin

In this short video we show how to install and use the free Parent Master Plugin for Autodesk Maya. The Parent Master Parent Master plugin is a very useful tool that allows animators to attach and un-attach objects easily and quickly.  Here at Escape Studios we've been using it and recommending this tool to our students since 2016.  The plugin is a Python script created by Paolo Dominici and has recently been updated for py3.  Watch the video above to see how to install it. You can also read our original blog post about the Parent Master from 2016. You can find the PM official site here, and also find the latest version at Paolo Dominici's site here.

How to Import an Image Plane in Maya

How to Import an Image Plane in Maya. In the three minute video above, we show how to import an image plane into Maya. Image planes can be especially useful for, as in the example above, importing your thumbnail sketches into Maya, so that you have your reference inside the shot. This way you can follow the reference step by step, and match your animation poses to your thumbnail sketches.

Animate a Candle Using Blend Shapes

Animate a Candle Flickering with Blend Shapes

Below is a very short tutorial on how to create, animate and light a candle using Blend Shapes in Autodesk Maya.  

The goal is to understand how to use Blend Shapes to morph simple objects in Maya from one shape to another, and then use the Blend Shapes to create animation. 

Blend Shapes are used mainly for facial animation, but they can also be used to animate inanimate objects - in this case a flickering candle. 

Anchor Tool at Escape Studios' Animation Shelf

Escape Studios has just released a new Escape Studios Animation Shelf for all our animation students working in Maya. 

Open up Autodesk Maya, load it as a shelf - Maya will automatically copy it into the right folder. You can find the shelf in UG shares. Just search in UG Animation under assets and look for scripts. 

The Animation Shelf has many useful tools in it, including a Tween Tool and an Anchor Tool, which allows animators to anchor a foot in world space for a set number of frames, solving the problem of sliding feet in walk cycles. 

Many thanks to Escape Studios' tutor Michael Davies for creating the Escape Studios Animation Shelf - a huge benefit for all our students. 

How to Create a Render Sequence in Arnold

In this super simple tutorial we show how to export a Render Sequence in Arnold, in Autodesk Maya. First watch the tutorials on basic lighting setups, such as Lighting in Arnold with Physical Sky, or Lighting in Arnold with Sky Shader, and then watch this video to see how to render out a series of images that can be imported into Adobe Premiere or Blender - or any editing software - ready to export as a movie file.

How To Create a Shot Camera in Maya

In this short video we show how to create and animate a shot camera in Autodesk Maya.  If you were on a live action set, one of the first things you would do is set up your camera and decide what the shot was going to look like. But in Maya, because we get a Perspective View for free, animators often forget to create a shot camera. This is a mistake - we want to make an early decision on what the audience is going to see. Watch this beginner's video tutorial above to find out how to create a camera in Maya and lock it off. 

How to Use Infinity Curves in Maya

In this short video we show how to turn on and use Infinity Curves in Autodesk Maya. Infinity Curves are a powerful tool that enable animators to smooth out looping cycles, such as a walk cycle, run or similar, smoothing the motion so that there aren't any frustrating clicks, bumps or mistakes.

Why Animators Need Sine Waves

Sine waves are the friend of the animator, especially when you are working on a walk cycle.  Not because we are good at maths (it was my worst subject at school) but because in 3D animation, a sine wave typically shows that your animation is smooth and flowing, without bumps or mistakes.  Watch the very short video above to see how to look for a sine wave in your walk cycle.