3D Animation (12 weeks)

Course Details

Location

London campus or live online

Start Date

23rd September 2024

Duration

12 weeks

Mode of study

Full time

Fees

London campus (UK residents): £11,950
Live online: £9,350

Third place Rookies award icon for animation careers review school rankingsTop 10 Rookies award for creative schools in the UK
©

course overview

Master the key skills required to become an Animator.

This course is suitable for anyone looking to break into the industry and looking to leave studio ready in just 12 intensive weeks. Throughout your 12 weeks of studio-based tuition, you will learn the key techniques, software and skills required to become an Animator. 

This short course focuses on technical training. You’ll get hands on experience with 3D animation techniques such as creating simple geometry, basic texturing, animation and dynamics, keyframe animation, lighting and rendering.

In the final weeks of the course, you'll develop your portfolio with help from our experienced tutors and feedback from an industry professional, who boast credits including The Lion King, Godzilla and Doctor Strange, and our Aftercare programme.

See also MA 3D Animation or Advanced 3D Animation (18 weeks)

See more student work

Why choose this course

  • Ranked 3rd in the UK - and 8th in Europe in the Animation Career Review’s school ranking 

  • Ranked 3rd in the UK - and 27th in the world for 3D Animation by The Rookies 

  • Based in London - home to some of the best animation studios in the world

  • Industry feedback - receive industry-standard critique from an expert in their field. Previous studio partners for our animation course have included Blue Zoo, Passion Animation Studios and Framestore  

  • Professional input - our advisory board of experts, from the likes of DNEG (Avengers: Endgame and Oscar-winning Dune) and Cinesite (Iwájú and Thor: Love and Thunder), help keep this course relevant 

  • Successful alumni - you'll join our community of thousands of Escapees, many of whom have gone on to work at some of the world’s top studios. 31 Escapees worked on Thor: Love and Thunder, 28 on Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore and 16 on Stranger Things 

  • Aftercare package - we'll help you polish your showreel and find the right job, with access to our studios and showreel clinics for 12 months 

  • Industry-standard facilities - study in a studio environment that mirrors current industry practice, using professional software such as Maya

  • Fast-track learning - studying a short course allows you to learn new skills quickly, in a fast-paced environment, so you can start applying for jobs as soon as you’ve completed the programme 

  • Strong portfolio - along with an Escape Studios Certificate of Completion, you'll leave with strong creative and technical skills and great pieces for your portfolio 

  • Small class sizes - a convivial environment allows students to assist and inspire one another and benefit from personalised feedback from tutors. 

Course modules

These modules are common with the first 12 weeks of our 18-week Advanced 3D Animation course and our MA 3D Animation.

  • General introduction to Maya 

    • Basic modelling 

    • Texturing

    • Lighting 

    • Rigging 

  • General principles of animation 

  • Locomotion 

    • Introduction

    • Runs 

    • Hops 

    • Jumps 

    • Skips 

  • Character animation 

    • Introduction 

    • Building and blocking a shot 

    • Parenting 

    • Constraints 

  • Weight and flexibility, physics and adding characterisation 

  • Animal locomotion: trots, walks and runs 

  • Animal locomotion continued 

  • Acting, dialogue and lip sync 

  • Final exercise 

  • Project 

More information

  • Maya

To apply, complete the relevant online application form linked below:

Our Admissions Team will get in touch to take you through the next steps.

If you have any questions about your application or our entry requirements, get in touch!

As part of the application process, you will need to agree to our terms and conditions for your place on the course to be secured.

Minimum requirements

We welcome and encourage applications from students with a variety of backgrounds, experiences and perspectives.

To study this short course, you must:

  • Be over 18

  • Have a good understanding of written and spoken English

  • Feel comfortable using a computer.

If you’d like to discuss your circumstances before applying, contact us on courses@escapestudios.ac.uk or +44 (0) 203 441 1303.

Non-UK students

We accept international students for our short courses, with no difference in course fees or administration costs. 

The Standard Visitor visa allows students to come to the UK to study for a course of up to six months at an accredited institution. Depending on your nationality, you may need to apply for a standard visitor visa prior to departure from your home country. For more information visit:  

Contact us on courses@escapestudios.ac.uk or +44 (0)203 441 1303 for any questions.

We can provide remote access to our workstations during teaching time. Due to availability restrictions, we highly advise you to have your own set up at home to study in your own time.

More things you’ll need:

  • A strong internet connection

  • An external hard drive (minimum 2TB) to back up your work during the course

  • A three-button mouse (or optionally graphics tablet)

  • A computer microphone (and optionally a webcam)

  • Note-taking materials

If you have any questions about learning online or if you need help with what to buy, get in touch at courses@escapestudios.ac.uk.

Fees

London campus: £11,950

Live online: £9,350

Payment plans

We offer a range of payment plan options for all courses. Following an initial deposit at registration stage, your chosen payment plan will break down your remaining fees into up to six equal instalments, to be paid over the course length.

Contact our Admissions Team on courses@escapestudios.ac.uk or +44 (0)203 441 1303 or visit our admissions page for any questions about fees, funding and payment plans.

“The UK is home to distinct and highly successful centres of animation production excellence throughout the country, including Belfast, Bristol, Cardiff, Dundee, Edinburgh, London and Manchester.” (source Animation UK).

You’ll leave with an Escape Studios Certificate of Achievement, along with strong creative and technical skills and some great pieces of work for your portfolio, which you can add to with help from our Aftercare programme. Ready to apply for jobs in the industry!

Animators often start out in junior roles to then rise to mid-level and senior roles such as Lead Animators and Technical Directors, opening the path to becoming an Animation Supervisor. 

Our students have gone to work in many areas of the industry, including 3D animation for films, TV, video games and visual effects, at companies including Pixar, Blue Zoo and Framestore. Read some of our animation Escapee success stories.

Check out our Careers Guide for more information about career opportunities and progression routes.

Profile picture of Lee Caller

Meet our industry-experienced tutors

Lee Caller is the lead tutor on this short course. With an IT and comedy writing background, he’s been an Animator since the 1990’s. Our tutors work together to develop our courses. They all have industry experience, at studios such as Walt Disney, DreamWorks and Framestore, and are experts in their fields, including certified trainers for Autodesk Maya.

Meet your tutors

Student showcase

Escape Studios is a place that puts students in the perfect position to succeed. The most important thing was networking - exposure to the people who have the jobs to give! I met recruiters, artists, producers, just about every person I needed to meet to gain connections.

Harry Pearson, Animation Escapee
Previs Shot Creator at The Third Floor