Why Animators Should Cast their Net Wide

Landing your first job in the animation industry isn't easy. But what many graduates forget is just how many opportunities are out there - if you cast your net wide enough. 

Alongside world-beating animation companies like Aardman Animation, Blue Zoo, Framestore and DNEG are hundreds of small companies that are much less well known - almost 500 in the UK alone. 

There are just under 500 animation companies in the UK with at least one employee (ie not just a sole practitioner) and this creates a huge opportunity for an animator with the patience to look beyond the famous names.

Animation Leads 2024 Box Office

There is a lot of doom and gloom in our industry these days, following strikes by both writers and actors, and anxiety over the looming threat of AI.  

Despite this, the animation industry continues to thrive, with 25% of box office success coming from animation productions in 2024 (see infographic left). 

Two of this year's biggest hits are Inside Out 2 ($1.6 billion worldwide) and just-released Wild Robot.

CMC Wants Animation Series Pitches

Children's Media Conference 9-10-11 July 2024 

The Children's Media Conference (CMC) in Sheffield wants your animation pitches.  

In the "Put Your Money Where Your Mouth Is" pitch sessions, animation creatives pitch to the animation industry, much like on the BBC's "Dragon's Den".   The CMC takes place from 9-10-11 July 2024. The deadline for submissions is 13 June 2024. 

Creative Business for MArt Students with Chris Jones

Entrepreneur Tutor Chris Jones

This week our students studying on our Integrated Masters' Degree Course have been getting their first taste of the business side of the Creative Industries. 

The Integrated MArt  covers not only the craft of animation and vfx, and also the practical side of successfully working as a team to complete a project that creates value in the business world.

In this guest blog post, Escape Studios' business lecturer Chris Jones explains what students need to know about the business side of the creative industries.

Yasin Tribak - Animation Entrepreneur

Yasin Tribak at BAFTA Piccadilly 

Congratulations to Escape Studios animation student Yasin Tribak who has already begun his career as a freelance animation artist and entrepreneur. 

Yasin Tribak is in his third year of studies at Escape Studios, studying the Art of Computer Animation.  He is also the founder of satorystudios.com, a start-up animation studio creating original content for international brands.  

Animation Tax Relief Increased to 39%

One less-reported aspect of the Chancellor's Spring budget was an increase in the tax relief granted by HMRC for UK animation to a generous 39%. 

This new expanded tax break appears to be in response to lobbying by the UK Creative industries, who have argued that the UK tax credit encourages animation production, and nurtures domestic talent and creativity.

Here at Escape Studios we are delighted that the Government is supporting the UK animation industry, and we welcome the news, which will surely boost UK animation production, and create a jobs pipeline for animation graduates in the UK. 

Producing Animation with Steve Burch

Animation Producer Steve Burch

Escape Studios is welcoming back veteran animation producer Steve Burch on Monday 4th January, to teach a class on Producing Animation.

Steve, who has worked on animation classics such as The Iron Giant, Space Jam, and Osmosis Jones, will deliver a workshop on Producing Animation to our second year animators.

Producing animation is an increasingly important part of what we teach at Escape Studios, as our students collaborate on short film projects, enter festivals, win awards, and also find work in the industry as production assistants and producers.

Michael Gandham on Animation Startups 7 Dec

Michael Gandham

This week on Monday 7 December at 10am Escape Studios welcomes animator and producer Michael Gandham, who founded his own Animation Studio, Arcus Animation, based in Gateshead, Newcastle Upon Tyne.

Arcus Animation are a 2D animation studio that creates broadcast animation, promotional videos, video installations, in-house original content and also develops new IP.  Their clients include CBBC and E4.

This event is for current students at Escape Studios, who are invited to find out how Michael built his company, how Arcus works, and what it takes to land a job as an animator with Arcus. 

At the end of the webinar there will be a Q&A, when Michael will take questions from our students.

How to Make Guerilla Business Cards

Business cards might sound old-fashioned, but they are still an important part of the animator's  toolkit.

Making business cards should be on your jobs checklist, along with cutting your demo reel, hosting it online at your blog or website, and updating and curating your LinkedIn profile (animation recruiters live on LinkedIn).

Business cards are still the simplest and most efficient way to give your contact details to someone you have just met.

But what if, like many of our students, you are short on cash? The answer is, print your own. Here's how to do it. 

Cartoon Forum: Deadline 8 May

Many of our students at Escape Studios have an idea for an animated TV series in development - though not at all of them know it yet. 

Our animation students are not just technicians, they are creators, brainstorming new ideas and concepts in animation, searching for the next Peppa Pig or Charlie and Lola.

Francesca Adams on Storyboarding

Francesca Adams at Escape Studios

Blue Zoo storyboard artist Francesca "Chess" Adams was at Escape Studios recently to talk about her work as an animation board artist.

Chess showed some of her work at Blue Zoo, including scenes from Digby Dragon, made using PanelForge, an in-house storyboarding software platform that can be downloaded for free for student use.

We also asked Chess what tips she has for aspiring board artists hoping to break into the industry.

Do Animators Still Need Business Cards?

At the recent VFX Festival in London's Shoreditch a number of our students were meeting with recruiters from some of the big VFX houses such as MPC and Framestore. I asked the students - have you brought business cards?

Almost none had. In this digital age, you might think that business cards might be a little old-fashioned, but actually, they're still an important part of the jobs toolkit.

Animation Producer Steve Burch to Visit Escape

Animation Producer Steve Burch

Escape Studios is welcoming Animation Producer Steve Burch to our High Holborn campus on wednesday 28 February to deliver a workshop on Producing Animation.

Our second year animators are working on their first group project, a short film - and one which simulates as closely as possible a live client brief.

Steve will be helping our students to navigate some of the challenges involved in successfully completely their first animation production. After all, being a successful animator isn't just about being good at animation; you also need to understand how group projects work, and learn how to collaborate with other artists in a studio environment.

7 Rules to Start Your Own Animation Business

How do you start a small animation business? At Escape Studios we don't just train animators to do excellent work, we help them to turn that knowledge into a successful career. And one way of dealing with the uncertainty of being an employee in the creative industries is to start up your own business.

Don't forget that today's big companies like Pixar and Blue Zoo all began life as small start-ups. But how, exactly, might you go about starting one up from scratch?  Below are the 7 Key Rules to start your own animation business.

16 Rules of Animation Freelancing

If you work in the animation industry, the chances are that at some point you will be self-employed, either running your own small business or working as a freelancer. 

Even if you do land a job as an employee of a company, our industry tends to be project-driven, and most companies tend to expand and contract according to the size of their order book. 

So what’s an animator to do to stay afloat? First, you must understand the 16 Rules of Animation Freelancing. 

How Do You Finance Animation at Kickstarter?

Kickstarter

How do you finance an animation project at Kickstarter? The world of finance is changing, and crowd-funding is now one of the key means of getting a project off the ground. Even students with modest resources can now make their dreams real.

As we get ready for our evening class in Producing Animation, starting in September, we're taking a close look at how Kickstarter works.  Writer and film-maker Allen Stroud, author of Elite: Lave Revolution, explained in a recent talk how to get a Kickstarter project off the ground.

Govt Industrial Strategy Highlights Creative Industries - Good News for Our Students

Support for "Creative Industries"

Theresa May's Government recently released an Industrial Strategy that highlights a number of sectors that they believe will lead to new jobs and growth in the future.

Among these are listed the creative industries, suggesting that our Government will continue to offer support to the business of - among other things - animation, games and visual effects.

Cartoon Movie: Deadline 25 November 2016

Do you have an idea for an animated feature film project you'd like to get off the ground?  If so, you should submit it to Cartoon Movie!

The Deadline to submit a feature film project to Cartoon Movie is 25 November 2016.  If your project gets selected, you will be able to pitch it to almost 1,000 animation and industry professionals from forty countries.

Present at Cartoon Movie will be around 200 buyers, including 120 distributors & sales agents.

But why should animation students want to pitch their feature film ideas? Because we think all our students should aim high - you could be the next Walt Disney or Jeffrey Katzenberg.  Most of all...you'll never find out if you don't try.

Escape Studios Visits Jellyfish Animation!

Jellyfish Pictures in Brixton

Escape Studios' animation studios were treated to a studio tour of Jellyfish Pictures this past week, getting a unique behind-the-scenes peek into the workings of a major London animation studio.

Jellyfish are a relatively new kid on the London block, but they have grown from modest beginnings to become a major player in visual effects animation and also TV series work - which is currently booming in our home town.

Open Doors at Three Mills Studios on Wednesday 21 September

Stop-motion animation specialists 3 Mills Studios in East London (the folks who brought you Fantastic Mr Fox) are collaborating with Creative Skillset to open their doors on Wednesday 21st September.

For one evening only, visitors will have the chance to pose questions to the animation talent who have worked on some of the biggest TV and film productions right here in London.

Recent productions on site include many and varied projects (not just animation) such as Masterchef, The Royals, The Sound of Music - Live, Jekyll & Hyde and Legend.

On the night you will be also be able to get the inside scoop on live vacancies - such as production jobs, apprenticeships and  runner positions.