Joe Wins Best VFX at the LIMFF

Many congratulations to the makers of Joe, which has won Best VFX at the London International Monthly Film Festival (LIMFF). 

 "Joe" is a short film directed by Callum Reeve and produced by Aidan Lonergan, completed as part of animation Module PR6001,  a Studio Project worth 60 Credits. 

Joe is a story about a cleanup robot that goes wrong.

Joe has won many festival awards, including a "Director's Choice" award at the Sci-On film festival and a "Four Stars Award" at the British International Amateur Film Festival.

Tim Jones Animator at Random42 Scientific

Tim Jones

Many congratulations to Escapee Tim Jones who is working as an animator at Random42 Scientific Communication, a US and UK-based animation studio specialising in medical animation and education, virtual reality, augmented and mixed reality animation.

Tim took our master's degree in 3D animation at Escape Studios, where he put together a strong animation demo reel, and built a LinkedIn profile with embedded links to his demo reel and website. 

Marc Stevenson Teaches Anim 1 in Jan 2022

Marc Stevenson

Veteran animator and Escape Studios tutor Marc Stevenson will return to teach animation basics - AN4001 - to our first year undergraduate students in the New Year.

Marc has credits on many Hollywood hit films including Fast & Furious 6, Avengers, Age of Ultron, Moon, and Victor Frankenstein.

Marc has also created a great number of online animation tutorials for our students, which you can find at our Animation Vimeo Channel.

Street Ratz Wins Hon Mention at Tokyo Fest

Street Ratz wins Hon. Mention in Tokyo Fest

Many congratulations to the makers of "Street Ratz", which has won an Honourable Mention in the category of Best Production Design at the Tokyo International Film Festival. 

This is the latest award for "Street Ratz", which tells the story of Tal, a young girl locked in a dystopian universe who must avoid the clutches of a gangland mafia boss to escape the city underworld. 

Street Ratz is a teaser/trailer written and directed by Austin Hill,  and produced by Jack Wright.  Street Ratz has won many festival awards. 

"Joe" Wins Best VFX at HEIFEST

Many congratulations to the makers of Joe, which has won Best VFX at the Heart of Europe International Film Festival (HEIFEST).  

 "Joe" is a short film directed by Callum Reeve and produced by Aidan Lonergan. 

Joe is a story about a cleanup robot that goes wrong; it has won many festival awards.

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. 

Home Sweet Home Best VFX at Tokyo Fest

Many congratulations to the makers of "Home Sweet Home", which has won "Best VFX" at the Tokyo International Film Festival.

  

Home Sweet Home is about a gang of discarded sweets trying to get back to their sweet shop home. 

Home Sweet Home was directed by Maria Robertson, co-directed by Harry Pearson and produced by Maddison Gould.  

Home Sweet Home was filmed on location in London and has won many festival awards. 

Paolo Amadini Animation TD at MPC

Paolo Amadini

Many congratulations to Paolo Amadini, who is currently working as an Animation TD at MPC, joining many other Escapees at the fast-growing animation and VFX studio.

Paolo took our MA in 3D Animation at Escape Studios, where he directed the short film "Palindromo", which has won many festival awards.

MPC is one of the UK's largest and most successful animation and VFX houses, responsible for blockbuster hits such as The Jungle Book and the 2019 re-make of The Lion King. 

Escape Exchange with La Salle, Barcelona

Ramon Llull University, Barcelona

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

La Salle offers degrees in Engineering, Architecture, Business, Digital Arts and Animation. Technology and innovation.

In 2022 four Escape students will be travelling to Barcelona to study, and three students from La Salle will be coming to Escape Studios, two studying the Art of Computer Animation and one studying the Art of Visual Effects.

This 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 English. 

"Joe" Wins Best VFX at Argenteuil Fest

"Joe" wins Best VFX at the Argenteuil Fest

Many congratulations to the makers of Joe, which has won Best VFX at the Argenteuil Film Festival.

 "Joe" is a short film directed by Callum Reeve and produced by Aidan Lonergan, completed as part of animation Module PR6001,  a Studio Project worth 60 Credits. 

Joe is a story about a cleanup robot that goes wrong. The lead animator was Jack Thompson.  Joe has won many festival awards. 

Minuet Best Sound Track at Halicarnassus Fest

"Minuet" Best Soundtrack at Halicarnassus Fest

Congratulations to the makers of Minuet, which has won an award for Best Sound Track at the Halicarnassus Film Festival.

Minuet is a short film about a young girl preparing for a concert recital, directed by Aaron Hopwood and Harry Pearson, and produced by Maddison Gould.  

The original score was composed by Alexandra Harwood.  

Minuet has won many festival awards. 

Billy Allen Animator at Factory 42

Billy Allen

Many congratulations to Escapee Billy Allen who is currently working as an animator at Factory 42, a London-based animation studio specialising in augmented reality installations and interactive animation experiences.

Billy studied the Art of Computer Animation at Escape Studios and worked on a number of award-winning projects including Over Under - on which he was lead animator - and also Reach. 

Factory 42 is located in Somerset House on The Strand in London, a short walk from Escape Studios, an innovative start-up with a growing roster of AI and AR projects. 

Graduation Day!

2021 Graduation Ceremony

Yesterday was Graduation Day at Escape Studios.  This year's long-delayed graduation ceremony was held at the Mermaid Theatre in Blackfriars, London, on the banks of the River Thames. 

We were able to welcome our graduating students from 2021 and 2020 for the graduation ceremony and for a drinks reception afterwards. 

A Long Way Home Best Trailer at Onyko Fest

A Long Way home wins Best Trailer at Onyko Awards

Many congratulations to the makers of A Long Way Home, which has won Best Trailer at the Onyko Film Festival. 

A Long Way Home is a teaser/trailer directed by Harrison Bell and produced by Josiah Martin-Lofters.  It has won many festival awards. 

Street Ratz Best Production Design in Athens

Many congratulations to the makers of "Street Ratz", which has won Best Production Design at the Athens International Film Festival. 

This is the latest award for "Street Ratz", which tells the story of Tal, a young girl locked in a dystopian universe who must avoid the clutches of a gangland mafia boss to escape the city underworld. 

Street Ratz is a teaser/trailer written and directed by Austin Hill,  and produced by Jack Wright.

Street Ratz has won many festival awards. 

"Joe" Wins Best VFX at Onyko Festival

"Joe" wins Best VFX at Onyko Film Awards

Many congratulations to the makers of Joe, which has won Best VFX at the Onyko Festival. 

 "Joe" is a short film directed by Callum Reeve and produced by Aidan Lonergan, completed as part of animation Module PR6001,  a Studio Project worth 60 Credits. 

Joe is a story about a cleanup robot that goes wrong.  Joe has won many festival awards. 

Animation Event with Alberto & Leo Wed 8 Dec

"An Evening With..." Alberto Mielgo and Leo Sanchez Barbosa

Escape Studios is collaborating with Siggraph London for "An Evening With" event next week with legendary designer Alberto Mielgo and Leo Sanchez Barbosa.

This event takes place on Wednesday 8th December at 6.30pm GMT via Zoom.

To sign up, follow the official Zoom link.

Mafia Mix-Up Wins Best 1st Time Director

Congratulations to the makers of "Mafia Mix-Up", which has won Best First-Time Director at the Halicarnassus Film Festival.

Mafia Mix-Up was written and directed by Jake Lee, and produced by Emmanouil "Manos" Zervoudakis. 

This is the second festival award for Mafia Mix-Up, which also won Best Micro Short at the Vesuvius Film Festival.

Steve Lall "Lighting for Animators" Tues 7 Dec

Steve Lall teaching at Escape Studios

Studio Assistant Steve Lall is back on Tuesday 7 December at 9.30 am to teach our 2nd year animation students the fundamentals of lighting in animation.

An understanding of lighting in Maya is a necessary part of the animation pipeline, and vital for the short films our students will make in PR5001, the 2nd year Studio Project Module which begins in 2022.

Steve will cover the fundamentals of lighting with Arnold, showing how our animators can achieve successful lighting setups with minimal complexity.

We also have a series of videos on lighting at our Vimeo Channel to support the classroom instruction.

"Leaching" Wins Best Trailer at Vesuvius Fest

The Leaching wins Best Trailer at Vesuvius Fest

Congratulations to Escape Studios' tutor Lee Caller whose short teaser/trailer "The Leaching" has won Best Trailer at the Vesuvius International Film Festival.

  

"The Leaching" is a teaser/trailer for an animated horror film, currently in development. 

Lee teaches our Short Course, Advanced Animation, and Animation Masters students.  Lee's short film "Jelly Cars" has also won a number of festival awards.