Producing Animation by Zahra Dowlatabadi

Producing Animation by Zahra Dowlatabadi

We're recommending "Producing Animation" by Katherine Winder and Zahra Dowlatabadi, an important resource for any of our students interested in the production side of creating animation.

Producing animation is an increasingly important part of what we teach at Escape Studios, as our students collaborate on short film projects, entering festivals and winning awards.

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.

Many Escapees have gone on to fill production roles at animation, games and VFX studios in recent years, as studios ramp up production in the UK. 

Animator's Survival Kit "Minis" Launch 5 Aug

Animator's Survival Kit "Minis"

Here at Escape Studios we recommend one key textbook for learning animation - The Animator's Survival Kit by Richard Williams.

It is a big book, heavy to carry around, and has now been published as a series of "mini" editions, breaking the book up into four sections, and available from August 5th. 

The ASK was first published in 2002 as a book, and a few years later was released as a DVD set, and later as an iPad app.

Previs & Story MA - September Reading List

Our MA in Previs and Story returns on 30 September 2020, and some students have been asking us what books they should read before class begins.

A good book is still a great place to start learning and exploring the world of storyboarding and previsualisation, and there are many excellent resources available.

Below are some of the best books we recommend on the subject.

Prepare to Board! by Nancy Beiman
Top of our list is Prepare to Board! by Nancy Beiman, an excellent book from a master animator and board artist who now teaches at Sheridan College in Canada.

Animation Summer Reading List

What books do we recommend that animators read before starting our BA/MArt in the Art of 3D Animation in September?

A good book is still a great place to start learning and exploring the world of character animation, and there are many excellent resources available.

Below is a brief list of some of the best books that we recommend.

Getting Ready for September

September will soon be upon us, and our new cohort of animation undergraduates will join us in a few short weeks.

What kind of preparation should students do before starting with us on our BA/Mart in Animation in September?  It's always good to do a little preparation and get a bit of a head start.

Below is a brief list of stuff to get you under way. You don't have to do all of it, but tick off a few of the things on this list and you will be a making a great start on your animation career.

First, here is a short reading list to get you started.

Animation Insiders - Free eBook for Animators

Animation Insider's Ebook - free from Squeeze!

Animation students can now get a free copy of the Animation Insider's eBook, downloadable at no charge from Squeeze animation studio in Quebec.

This free digital download describes the workflow of talented animators like Mike Nguyen, Victor Navone and Jason Ryan.

It is a hugely useful resource for animation students - an insight into how experienced animators approach their work.

Getting Ready for September

The best book on animation

What kind of preparation should students do before starting with us on our BA/Mart in Animation in September?  It's always good to do a little preparation and get a bit of a head start.

Below is a brief list of stuff to get you under way. You don't have to do all of it, but tick off a few of the things on this list and you will be a making a great start on your animation career.

First, here is a short reading list to get you started. We've narrowed it down to just two key books that we recommend for all our students.

Get Ready for Our Animation Short Course in February!

The clock is ticking for our animation short course, starting in February.  But what kind of preparation should students do before starting the course?  We teach all our students from scratch, but it's always good to do a little preparation and get a bit of a head start.

Below is a brief list of stuff to get you under way.  It's not comprehensive, and you don't have to do all of it, but tick off a few of the things on this list and you will be a making a great start on your animation career.

Book Recommendation: Prepare to Board!

Prepare to Board! by Nancy Beiman is the main book we are recommending to our students of storyboarding here at Escape Studios. This is an excellent book from a master animator who now teaches at Sheridan College in Canada.

Nancy was a supervising animator at Disney (most notably on Hercules) and (like many 2D animators) she does storyboards and character design as well as animation.

Our 8 week storyboarding course here at Escape Studios started off two weeks ago and is already off to a flying start, with immediate and visible improvements being made in all our students' work in a very short time.

Last-Minute Christmas Presents for Animators - The Illusion of Life

The original animation bible

Stuck for a Christmas present for the animator in your life? There's still time to pop to your local bookshop and get a copy of The Illusion of Life, by Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnstone, two of Walt Disney's legendary "Nine Old Men".

This hefty book is the original "animation bible", first published in the 1970s, and the first time anyone set out in print the accumulated wisdom of the Disney studio.

The 1970s were a lean time for animation; Walt Disney was dead and the revival that would come with Who Framed Roger Rabbit? and The Little Mermaid (and, later, with 3D animation) was still far in the future.

So what's so great about this old book, and why is it still relevant today?

The One Book Every Animator Should Own

The one book every animator needs to own is The Animator's Survival Kit. There has been nothing quite like it since Frank Thomas & Ollie Johnstone wrote  The Illusion of Life back in the 1970s - the first book which fully set out the secrets of Disney animation.
  
The Animator's Survival Kit is top of our reading list for all our animation students. So what's in it and why is it so important?

What's On Our Animation Reading List?

What books do we recommend that animators read before starting our new BA/MA in the Art of 3D Animation?

Books may be kind of old school these days, but a good book is still a great place to start learning about and exploring the world of character animation.

We're also very selective; we won't make you buy a ton of books you won't have time to open, let alone read.  So, what is on our animation reading list?

Book Recommendation - Animated Performance by Nancy Beiman

Animated Performance by Nancy Beiman is just published in its second edition. This is an excellent book from a master animator, one who now teaches at Sheridan College, widely regarded as one of the top places in the world to study animation.

Nancy was a supervising animator at Disney (most notably on Hercules) and she really knows her stuff. And, as a full-time professor, she knows how to communicate her knowledge.

Any serious animator should have this book on their shelf; copies will be available to our students in the library.

You can buy it here.