Blue Zoo Summer Internships Now Open

Blue Zoo's 2026 summer internships are now open

Calling all Animation Apprentice graduates - Applications for Blue Zoo's 2026 summer internships are now open, and close on Friday 29th May at midnight.  

As always, we encourage our students to apply for internships like this one.  Even if you don't succeed, you will learn valuable skills along the way. 

The internship roles available this year at Blue Zoo are: 3D Animator, Social Media Intern and Production Assistant Intern.

All information needed to apply is at Blue Zoo's careers website along with the application pages.  Applications for Blue Zoo's 2026 summer internships can be made here at the official Blue Zoo site.

Angelo Garrizone Animation Intern at King Bee

Angelo Garizzone

Many Congratulations to Animation Apprentice graduate Angelo Garrizone who has recently landed an animation internship with King Bee animation, based at the historic Elstree Studios in Borehamwood, just outside of London.

King Bee have worked on many animation projects, including music videos and TV series. They use Maya, Flash and Photoshop to do much of their work.

Angelo worked hard at building an animation demo reel, and also had to complete a test in Adobe Animate in order to secure the position.

How to Find an Internship in Animation

How do you find an internship in the animation industry? It's a question we often get asked here at Animation Apprentice. Internships can be an important stepping stone to a career in animation. If an internship goes well, it might lead to a job, and even if it doesn't, it still looks good on a graduate CV. Finding an internship is a lot like finding a job, though perhaps a little harder in some ways. Watch the short video above to see how to go about it.

Blue Zoo Summer Internships Now Open

Applications for Blue Zoo's summer internships are now open. These 6-8 week paid placements in animation, storyboarding and visual development are described by Blue Zoo as "like a real job but without the demands & expectations, allowing participants to develop and learn how a big animation studio works and real projects are run".

Cinesite Internships Now Open!

Cinesite, one of London's biggest animation and VFX houses, is now accepting entries for paid Summer internships at their London studios.

The programme is open to individuals over the age of 18, with little or no experience of working in the VFX industry, who are eligible to work in the UK.

Blue Zoo Summer Internships

Applications for Blue Zoo's summer internship roles are now open. The 6-8 week paid placements are "like a real job but without the demands & expectations, allowing participants to develop and learn how a big animation studio works and real projects are run".

Emma Thorpe Animator at King Bee Animation

An internship at an animation studio is often a necessary first step to entering the industry. An internship gives you real-world experience of the business, will helps you to build contacts and - hopefully - might even lead to a full-time job.

In December last year Animation Apprentice student Emma Thorpe landed an internship with King Bee animation, based at the historic Elstree Studios in Borehamwood, just outside of London. And, fortunately, that internship has since turned into a job.

Pete Nicholson Animation Intern at King Bee

How do aspiring animators secure an internship in the animation industry? This is a question asked by lots of students.

An internship at an animation studio can be a necessary first step to entering the industry. It will give you real-world experience of the business, helps you to build contacts and may lead to a job.

Animation Apprentice student Pete Nicholson has just landed an internship with King Bee animation, based at the historic Elstree Studios in Borehamwood, just outside of London.  We asked him to talk a little about how it came about.

Why Not Become a Volunteer at SIGGRAPH 2016?

Time for our students in the USA - and especially those in California - to sign up for the SIGGRAPH 2016 Student Volunteer Program! The deadline for team leaders is 12 January 2016, and the deadline for student volunteers is 9 February 2016.

But wait, why would students want to volunteer for SIGGRAPH? Simple - it's all about who you might meet.

Summer Internships at Blue Zoo!

Blue Zoo are offering two six week internships in their London studio; one working in our commercials team, ideal for someone with bold ambitions to be an animated commercials director, and another in their TV series department for someone starting out on a mission to become an expert CG character animator. We strongly encourage our students to apply.

Twelve Steps to Finding the Perfect Summer Internship

Interview, a short animated film by Mikkel Okholm and Mikkel Brons-Frandsen

How do animation students find summer internships and placements in the industry? Jobs in the entertainment industry have always been highly competitive, and even unpaid internships can be hard to find, So how do you track them down? There are many ways - official jobs postings, word of mouth, rumours in the pub, personal contacts, even cold-calling - all of these can be effective ways to find a summer placement in the business. Below are the twelve key rules we think are vital for success.

London VFX Internship Opportunity for Animation Apprentice Students!

Soho VFX

Animation Apprentice has been contacted recently by a leading London animation and VFX house looking to arrange for some Motion Graphics/Animation students to do internships, at 2-4 week intervals, starting in May and rolling out through the Summer. They specialise in "high-end moving image design", and their recent work includes Eurovision Greatest Hits, Sunday Night at the Palladium, The Voice, Strictly Come Dancing and The BBC Music Awards.

Is It Worth Taking a Job as a Runner? - Henry Fenwick Reports

Prime Focus

Working as a runner doesn't sound glamorous - but it can be a great way to break into the industry. Last year Animation Apprentice student Henry Fenwick finished a three week work experience at Prime Focus Film in London's Soho. We asked him to share his experience and advice, with a view to helping other animation students know what to expect when becoming a runner at a Soho studio. In short - is it worth being a runner?

Should animation artists work for free?

working for free?

Should artists work for free? This is a knotty problem and a subject on which people tend to have strong feelings.

Students and graduates do of course often work for free, taking work experience, unpaid jobs or internships which do not pay actual money, but which offer training in the industry and real-world experience of what the world of work is like.

Join the force in Singapore!

Lucasfilm are looking for Jedi masters to serve an apprenticeship in Singapore. Their "Jedi Masters Program" offers talented digital artists "the chance to learn from the masters in a variety of creative disciplines -- from visual effects on live-action films to animated feature films."

I worked myself in Singapore a few years back and can personally recommend it. The Singapore Government is highly motivated to bring in international talent, so acquiring a work visa is rarely a problem. And once you are there, you have the chance to explore South East Asia on your weekends, or just hang out at the Raffles Hotel in downtown Singapore and pretend you're Ernest Hemingway. Plus, it's nice and warm all year round and the local cuisine is seriously delicious.

BBC Academy offers paid placements in some of the UK's top visual effects houses

Calling all Animation Apprentice animators! A new career shadowing scheme has been launched by the BBC Academy, offering paid placements in some of the UK's top visual effects houses, including Milk and Double Negative. Here is a chance to get real-life experience at a leading VFX house, and  get paid to do it as well.

Eight Rules for finding an animation internship

Cinesite is one of many Soho VFX houses which offer internships

Finding internships is not easy. And yet, in an increasingly competitive world for graduates trying to break into the creative industries, it is an important step on the ladder to a successful career. A successful internship brings experience, contacts, and direct understanding of what is needed to get a job with an animation company. So how do you go about finding an internship?

Should graduates do unpaid internships?

This is a tough question. Lots of seasoned professionals in the entertainment industry feel strongly that graduates should never work for free - why provide cheap labour for companies who just want to exploit young talent? On the other hand, working as an intern can provide vital contacts, experience and opportunities that might otherwise prove elusive. The problem that all graduates face - and especially arts graduates - is simple. You need experience to get a job, and to get a job, you need experience. It is a chicken-and-egg problem that is not easily solved. "But why", ask many graduates, "don't entertainment firms want to take on young talent and train them up?"

How do you find a Summer Placement?

Mediargh.com

Mediargh.com has published a list of Summer placements and graduate opportunities in the creative industries. You can find it here: http://www.mediargh.com/jobs. Not all of these opportunities will be of interest to animators, but the list is long and there are many and varied positions available in creative media.

Take a look and see if any of them seem worth applying for. As ever, the process of applying for a position is invaluable in itself - even if you don't get the job. One of the most important skills that all creative artists need to learn is how to find work, and how to present yourself to a potential employer in a way that makes you attractive and employable.

Cinesite explains what make a great student reel

One of the most common questions asked by students is: how do I get a job? The answer, of course, is to be really good at what you do, and have a great demo reel to showcase your talent. But what makes a great animation reel? After, all, different companies have different priorities, and everyone is looking for something a little bit different.  Luckily, many companies, including Cinesite (which offers the excellent Inspire internship for budding visual effects artists) have posted a lot of information at their website about what, exactly, they look for in a graduate's demo reel.