Which Country Has The Most Animation Studios?

UK Animation is thriving

Which Country has the most animation studios? The answer, of course, is the USA, with over 6,000 animation studios, of which around 1,100 have employees (ie not just a sole freelancer working alone).  

You might be surprised however, to learn that the number two spot is taken - not by India, Japan or China - but by...

Pantomime Animation Demo Reel

Above is a collection of some of the best pantomime animation shots completed by students at Animation Apprentice.  Pantomime animation is the art of performance without dialogue, in the tradition of the old silent movie stars such as Chaplin or Keaton - or a modern incarnation such as Mr Bean. Good pantomime animation communicates to the audience what the character is thinking and feeling - without dialogue. 

Weight and Balance Animation Reel

One of the hardest skills for animators to learn is the simulation of weight. Animation that feels floaty or lacks weight is a big red flag for anyone looking at a new demo reel.  Pixels have no intrinsic weight so, to make our animation feel heavy, we have to simulate weight. To see some of the best animation tackling the problem of weight and balance by our students at Animation Apprentice, watch the short demo reel above.  The reel was edited by Miguel Teixeira. Music by CreatorMix.com.

Autumn Class Starts 2nd September 2024

Our Autumn/Fall Animation Class begins on Monday 2nd September 2024.

It's not too late to book a place; all you need to do is visit the main Animation Apprentice site and go through a few simple steps.

If you want to learn 3D animation to a professional level, and start your new career as an animator - your journey starts here.

Who Framed Roger Rabbit "Eye Lines" Memo

Eye Direction Matters

In the 1988 film Who Framed Roger Rabbit one of the biggest problems was getting Roger (and the other cartoon characters) to look directly at Bob Hoskins and the other live action actors. Without clear believable eye direction, the characters didn't seem to be looking at each other, and the illusion failed.

You can see the memo on the left from animation director Richard Williams to the animation crew, reinforcing the importance of eye direction in sustaining the illusion that live action and animation were occupying the same visual space.

Since Who Framed Roger Rabbit I've worked on dozens of animated films.  On every film it was important that the characters look at each other, and that the audience believes that the characters are looking at each other. 

Cartoon Museum "Comics Maestro Competition"

"Young Comics Maestro" Competition

The Alison Brown "Young Comics Maestro" Competition closes in 11 days, on 30 June.  London's Cartoon Museum is looking for the next big "18 or Under" comic artist.

Send in your best comic strip to the Cartoon Museum, three pages max, to enter the competition and get your work in front of judges from The Beano, The Phoenix, and The Cartoon Museum. The deadline is Sunday 30 June at 6pm. 

Free Beginner Tutorials at Animation Apprentice

Animate a Cartoony Vehicle

We have lots of beginner animation tutorials at Animation Apprentice, many of them completely free. 

To get started with animation basics, why not Animate a Telephone Ringing in Maya, Animate a Flag Waving in Maya, or Animate a Submarine Underwater. 

It takes a while to master the art and craft of animation, but these beginner tutorials are a great way to get started.

Quadruped Horse Walk Tutorial

Horse walk by Matt Lawson-Hall

We've uploaded a new series of video tutorials on animating quadrupeds, a "Horse Walk Tutorial" using the "Rhett The Clydesdale" Maya Rig, which is free to download.

All animators need to learn how to animate a quadruped walk cycle.  The horse walk tutorial is password-protected but available to all our current students.

Spiders and Scorpions Animation Demo Reel

Above is a compilation of some of the best arachnid animation by our students completed in recent years. Spiders and scorpions might seem hard to animate - but we break down the technique into a series of simple steps, re-using animation curves to get a quick and effective result. Edited by Miguel Teixeira, Song: New Arcade. Music by: CreatorMix.com. 

Young Animator of the Year Competition Open

Young Animator of the Year 2024

The Young Animator of the Year UK ("Yay!") 2024 Competition is now open for entries. Entries are welcomed from UK-based animators between the ages of 11 and 18 years.  All they have to do is submit their film to http://younganimator.uk by September 16th 2024.

Takes & Reactions Demo Reel

Reaction shots are the bread-and-butter of junior animators. On a feature film, once an animator has graduated from walk cycles and crowd shots, they get given reaction shots.  In the compilation demo reel above we show some of the best takes and reaction shots animated by our students at Animation Apprentice. 

Animate Dialogue with Monty: "I'm Outta Here!"

Monty: "I'm Outta Here!" 

In the simple animation tutorial below we show how to animate a character with no mouth saying a line of dialogue.  

But how can you animate dialogue and lipsync - with no lips?  The answer is - it's all in the performance.  If the body language is working, then the audience will believe that the character is speaking - even if it has no mouth. 

Crab Scuttle Animation Tutorial

Animate a crab scuttle underwater

In this new animation tutorial we demonstrate how to create a locomotion cycle in Maya with a crab rig, showing how to take a complex motion, break it down - and make it simple.

A crab's sideways scuttle looks complex, but is in fact very easy to animate, by following this basic tutorial.

We start by animating a single animation curve, and then copy it across the crab rig. 

Anticipation, Action & Reaction Tutorial

In this very simple tutorial we show how to animate an anticipation, action and reaction in Autodesk Maya, using the Yellow Beetle "AnyCar" rig. Instead of animating the Beetle out of the frame, we add a "smear frame", to get it off screen as fast as possible, in the style of the old Tex Avery or Chuck Jones cartoons.

The reaction at the end is the camera shake, simulating the air pressure as the car whizzes past. 

Animate a Swimming Jelly with Caustics

 Animate a cartoony jelly traveling underwater.

In this super simple tutorial we show how to animate a cartoony jelly traveling underwater. This is a very basic tutorial aimed at beginners in Maya.

The idea is to do some very simple animation of an underwater scene, then add a caustic effect to reproduce the effect of light penetrating water.  The jelly rig can be downloaded for free here. 

SuperHero Pets! A Creativity Exercise

via GIPHY

Welcome to Super Hero Pets! This is a fun exercise designed to help imagine an original TV or web series.  Your goal is to learn the basic building blocks of story, story-telling and character, by imagining a short film based on your first pet, or cuddly toy.  Start by imagining the characters, who they are, and what they do. Then design your four main characters.  

Animate Willy "I'm Outta Here"

Willy: "I'm Outta Here!"

In this three part dialogue tutorial we show how to animate a cartoony character ("Willy") saying a line of dialogue.  The line is "I'm Outta Here!", taken from Iago in Disney's Aladdin. 

In the first part of the tutorial we block out the animation with Willy. In the second part, we add a "Smear Drawing" to simulate motion blur. 

In the third part we animate Willy's hat flying up in the air and landing. 

How Do Animators Get Hired For Games?

Into Games is hosting a free live-streamed talk today Wednesday 22nd May at 1pm UK time for animators seeking a career as an animator in the Games Industry. 

The title of the talk is "Animation: Communicating the fundamentals. How to Prove You've Got The Experience".

Today's talk is for animators who are either "pre-games or very early in their games industry career". 

The talk will be delivered by Hannah Kravets a Gameplay Animator currently working with Climax Studios. 

Animate a "Take" with the Luxo Lamp

Animate a "Take" reaction shot with the Pixo Jr lamp

In this simple free tutorial we show how to animate a "take" (a reaction shot), with the Pixo Jr lamp rig which you can download from highend3d.com. 

The tutorial is a simple one, aimed at animation beginners, but it helps if you are already familiar with the Maya Interface.  Follow the thumbnails below to replicate the tutorial.

Smear Frame Animation Tutorial in Maya

In this brief tutorial we show how to animate a "Smear Frame". Smear Frames simulate motion blur in super-snappy animation, in the style of the old Tex Avery or Chuck Jones cartoons.

But how do you do a Smear Frame in 3D animation, using Maya character rigs? Watch our free tutorial to find out.

Robots, Vehicles & Machinery Demo Reel

Above is a selection of the best Robots, Vehicles & Machinery animation created by our talented students at Animation Apprentice. The cartoony yellow car is one of our weekly exercises, as is the helicopter airship.  Congratulations to all our students on their excellent work.  The reel was cut by Miguel Teixeira. Song: Get Back Music by: CreatorMix.com