The Animation Academy

One of the great students we've had in our many years is the brilliant Andre Medina. The path he's walked since his days at the Academy has lead him to become a Character Designer and Visual Development artist at Sony Pictures Animation. Andre is known for his work on the "Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs" and "Hotel Transylvania" movies. He's also worked with Nickelodeon, Paramount and Warner Bros. See the attached images for an idea as to what he was doing during the time ...he was a student with us. I knew he was destined for exceptional success once I saw the art he was creating. It was amazing and original. Unique and and very innovative. A highly skilled artist and designer with an imagination that always takes us to new places! :) Here's Andre's Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/andre_medina_art/

Another one of our talented students has achieved something we're all celebrating. Anna Duck is developing a personal project and decided to enter it into the "Pitch THIS!" contest at the Ottawa International Animation Festival. Pitch THIS! is a competition that aims to kickstart a new animated series concept. The event has been part of the OIAF lineup for over 15 years and has helped launch many projects. I'm happy to report that Anna's "Sammy Summers Space Marine" has made ...it to the semi-final stage and will now be vying for the attention of industry professionals. :) https://www.instagram.com/sammysummersspacemarine/ Winning Pitch THIS! sparks key creative dialogues with the nation’s leading production companies and broadcasters and is instrumental in initiating negotiations for a development deal. The annual OIAF is the largest of its kind in the western hemisphere and among the most significant animation festivals in the world. We're very excited for Anna and are wishing her all the best as she enters into the final phase of the contest next week! :)

Jacob Lipman is one of our talented students. He's recently created a video which helps describe the color theory behind animated content in ways that we normally wouldn't think of. Jacob produces videos that are zany, educational and enlightening. Check out his latest... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hVq4hC4WmCc

Hello friends and followers of the Academy! :) Our online program is taking off! Enrollment for one on one sessions on Skype is solid as we schedule additional incoming students. We've had 3 successful Zoom sessions as well. An alpha, beta and gamma test involving our current students and instructors and Patreon supporters. The Zoom sessions are conducted weekly and are proving to be an excellent supplement to our program. ... With the demand for young artist classes we'll be developing a weekly session dedicated to students who are too young for our current curriculum. We're currently accepting enrollment for our upcoming online kids classes. We offer Character Design 1 and 2, and Visual Development 1 & 2 online. We've brought on Background Design and Advanced Background Rendering. We can train in Photoshop and Illustrator techniques for Concept Development online. We'll bring on Character Animation Basics very soon. If you're interested in enrolling you're welcome to get in touch or go to our website for more info. Here's the link... https://www.TheAnimationAcademy.com Our classes are excellent and geared for developing fundamental artistic skills as they apply to the art and industry of animation and related fields on a vocational level. We have a long 22 year legacy of developing outstanding artists many of whom have had great creative success. We can help you reach new heights of excellence with art created from your imagination especially if you're serious about what you do. Thank you for liking and following the Academy on Facebook and for reading this update! Here's a quick tip Mini Lesson from a class demonstration in Character Design that's been recently archived. Keep Creating... No Matter What !! :)

Greetings friends and followers of the Academy! :) We've been busy adapting our program to the new way of doing things in creative education. Our schedule for one on one online sessions is filling up and we're training new instructors to help meet the expanded demand for virtual classes. Currently we can offer Character Design 1 and 2, and Visual Development 1 & 2 online. We'll be bringing on Background Design soon and we're also working on Character Animation Basics.... If you're interested in enrolling you're welcome to get in touch or go to our website for more info. Here's the link... https://www.TheAnimationAcademy.com Our classes are excellent and geared for developing fundamental artistic skills as they apply to the art and industry of animation and related fields on a vocational level. We have a long legacy of developing outstanding artists many of whom have had great creative success. We can help you reach new heights of excellence with art created from your imagination especially if you're serious about what you do. Meanwhile here's a quick tip from a class demonstrated that's been recently archived from a session in Character Design 1 from a few months ago. Keep Creating... No Matter What !! :)

No Matter What !! :)

It was on this evening at this very hour in 1998 in the back room of the Coral Cafe in Burbank California that The Animation Academy held its first session. We had a sold out class of 20 students. :) The Academy has been a major influence in the animation industry in that time. We continue to have a positive impact in many ways. Especially in people's lives. Thank you for for 2 decades and 2 years of great experiences!... Keep Creating!! :)

Happy New Year to our Facebook Community and to everyone at the Academy past and present! Wishing you a Creative 2020 and beyond! :)

To our current and former students and to everyone associated with The Animation Academy in Burbank over these many years! And to all our friends and followers here on Facebook! Wishing you a Happy Christmas and a joyous and creative Holiday Season! :)

Sixteen years ago today on November 6 2003 we had a surprise visitor. On that day he drew something on a marker board in one of our classrooms without anyone realizing it at the time. When I discovered what he drew I wrote a notice next to the image to preserve it. After these many years and moving the marker board around to various locations I'm happy to say that the drawing still survives. Kevin Eastman sketched this. He's the creator of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. The words read "I Was Here." Thank you Joe Pearson for bringing him by that day. :)

ArtShark is all smiles as we catch up on the latest news from the Academy. Our certification continues with the CSATTF which is an educational trust fund in the entertainment industry that helps union members in animation with their vocational training. We're also working with the California Department of Rehabilitation as we've been cleared by the state to train artists who come to us through their system.... If you're a member of an entertainment union in particular The Animation Guild or are involved with the State of California Dept of Rehabilitation you're welcome contact us or your local rep. We can help you develop and expand upon your professional creative skills. :)

There's a great story behind the creation of our mascot character ArtShark. His origins go back to the early days of the Academy in 1998. Occasionally our students and artists involved with our school have some fun and come up with creations of him on their own. Here's a few images that have come my way recently through Mike Cervantes, Maia Gross and Renee Vance. Mike Cervantes on Instagram. Mike was in our very first class and played a part in certain instances back in the ...day that eventually lead to the creation of the character. https://www.instagram.com/mikecervantes_metateez/ Maia Gross is a long time student who became an instructor with us. She's employed as an animation artist at Cuddle Pit Games in Simi Valley California. http://www.maiagross.com Renee Vance was a student with us and is currently an online instructor in Advanced Digital Illustration with the Academy... https://www.patreon.com/Kittren/overview

Tyler Mahn has been creating some very impressive works in class. Here's an excellent speed painting / time lapse video of his most recent assignment in Advanced Visual Development (VisDev 2 - Digital Painting). Tyler maintains a popular YouTube channel Click on the link below to see more of what he's up to creatively. Tyler Mahn's "Mahnster Art" Channel... https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC7TBm9Rjb5xQVXcSnAG91sA ... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dhz3xzTqL3Y