Reading lists for our undergraduate courses

If you want to prepare for your course this September, here's a useful list of books that will help your understanding of the subject.

Animation

These are the two books which we think are pretty much essential for learning character and creature animation in Maya. Buy them, read them, consult them often, and you won't go far wrong.

No. 1 - The Animator's Survival Kit (ASK)

We recommend that any serious student of animation should buy a copy of The Animator's Survival Kit (ASK), by Richard Williams. The ASK is now the standard textbook for animators and easily the most comprehensive book available for learning animation. You can also buy it as an eBook download, for use on your iPad. It's even better as an eBook since you can watch the videos as well, to illustrate the examples.

No. 2 - Animation Methods by David Rodriguez

Animation Methods is an excellent book on learning animation in Maya. It is a book that focuses primarily on 3D Character Animation, a step-by-step guide for learning Maya, and the Maya animation tools. It also has useful sections on how to get into the industry, how to make a great demo reel, and how to get a job in animation. We think this is a very useful companion book to our course. It is also an unusual book in that it makes extensive use of QR codes - meaning you can use your smartphone to scan the codes and then view a 3D animated clip of the lesson.

More Animation books

Animation Reading List - Other recommended books

These are the books we think you should browse and read. They are full of useful stuff. Buy them if you can afford them and have space on your shelf. If not, check them out from our library.

No. 3 - The Illusion of Life

The Illusion of Life was written by Disney animation legends Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnstone, and represents the accumulation of knowledge of the first "Golden Age" of Disney animation. It's a great read, though it's easy to get lost in the great stories about the early days of animation.

No. 4 - Cartoon Animation

Cartoon Animation by Preston Blair was the first available book on animation, and has been in print since the early 1950s, regularly updated since then. Still full of very useful material.

No. 5 - Timing for Animationby Harold Whittaker and John Halas

This is another very useful book on animation. It was first written some years ago but was recently updated and edited by former Animation Guild President Tom Sito.

No. 6 - Character Animation Crash Course

The Character Animation Crash Course by Eric Goldberg is an excellent resource by one of the most talented 2D animators in the world - the man behind the genie in Disney's Aladdin.

No. 7 - The Complete Digital Animation Course

The Complete Digital animation Course by Andy Wyatt is a very useful overall guide to all the processes involved in digital animation and film-making. Especially good for the technical bits that the older books don't cover.

No.8- 12 Principles of Animation Video

12 Principles of Animation is originally a book written by Ollie Johnston and Frank Thomas. It was first released in 1981 and examines the work of leading Disney animators from the 1930s and onwards. Below is a short video showacasing their work.