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Um, there's also my school that I'm going to: Edinboro University of PA. It's in the middle of no where, but we have a good animation department. :)

Tell us more!

Rebel Sikes, tell us more about your program!

a couple questions

first off in regard to said schools that skip the traditional art training and just teach the programs: for someone like me who already has a Studio Art BFA, Design Minor and very strong drawing skills, Would you count these 1 to 1 and 1/2 year schools as a legitimate option? Thoughts?

Secondly, I haven't seen any mention of Digital Media Arts College, or DMAC, located in Boca Raton, FL. Wondering if anyone knows there credibility and/or reputation.

Thanks.

Animation is an art.

It's not just traditional fine art skills, like life drawing with an emphasis on movement and anatomy, and perspective and structural drawing, that are required. You also need a broad based general animation education, including film language, story boarding, layout and posing, and classical animation with an emphasis on timing and acting.

Anyone who is computer literate can learn the programs, but that doesn't make them good animators.

first off in regard to said schools that skip the traditional art training and just teach the programs: for someone like me who already has a Studio Art BFA, Design Minor and very strong drawing skills, Would you count these 1 to 1 and 1/2 year schools as a legitimate option? Thoughts?

It depends upon what you call " very strong drawing skills".
If your work is near-professional or at professional levels, than a one year course would be a sound option if the program covers industry-level subjects and allows you to fine-tune your work for employment.
If the programs are "introductory" (as many are).....then it'd serve you no better than a 2-4 year program would because you'd have to resort to self-exploration and development on your own anyway.
Keep in mind that any school that is going to forgo the traditional art training is probably also going to crap out on any useful instruction in teaching the programs.

Really, if you could get work anyway, at whatever level you are presently.......in a entry level position, then taking some training to up your skills will just cinch such opportunities. The thing is that if you could get work with your current skillset, then the training you'd likely need would be technical or procedural in nature, and a fair amount of that you can learn on your own anyway.

"We all grow older, we do not have to grow up"--Archie Goodwin ( 1937-1998)

Thanks

It's not just traditional fine art skills, like life drawing with an emphasis on movement and anatomy, and perspective and structural drawing, that are required. You also need a broad based general animation education, including film language, story boarding, layout and posing, and classical animation with an emphasis on timing and acting.

Anyone who is computer literate can learn the programs, but that doesn't make them good animators.

Thanks for the response. It seems the main thing I would get out of those schools would be the dedication of time... it's so hard to come home after 8 to 5 and make yourself work some more. but the 3 years and $50K+ that the Bigger Animation schools require is more than i'm willing to dedicate at the moment.

I have a lot of resources available to me, i'll just have to find the time.

Thanks again.

...but the 3 years and $50K+ that the Bigger Animation schools require is more than i'm willing to dedicate at the moment.

I have a lot of resources available to me, i'll just have to find the time.

Thanks again.

If you are wanting to learn 3D animation, I'd suggest looking into AnimationMentor.com It's about a 1 1/2 year program and you do it all from your home. This way you don't have to commute and you can spend as much, or as little time on the assignments as you want.

You can go through the program using any medium, traditional, stop-mo or 3D but most of the students are 3D people. It's an amazing program.

Aloha,
the Ape

...we must all face a choice, between what is right... and what is easy."

Vancouver Animation Schools
Recommendations for post BFA 3D training?

Greetings all. I am a bit new to these forums, so any help from knowledable folks would be appreciated.

My daughter will be graduating from University of Cincinnati in about a year in the digital arts in the top 10-15% of her class.She is a VERY motivated, hard working gal. Her program is a broad swath of digital training including all the adobe programs, some Video work with Cinema 4, a lot of flash and a lot of web design with some animation.

My daughter likes animation and wants to get training in 3D animation specfically. As I see it she has three options:

1. Grad school: however, not sure that this would be the best option for skills training. However, she does eventually want to go to grad school down the road after some field experience and better training.

2. A second undergradatute degree: Normally, I don't like this option since it seems to be going backwards for her professionally plus she would ordinarily have to retake some gen eds especially for schools like Cal Arts. In addition, although we probably have the money to fund this, it is the most expensive option. However, Ringling waives Gen eds for those with previous bachelors degrees,which might be a good optioin. Same can be said for Digital Art College in Florida and Full Sail Universit. We even are considering Sheriden College that has several one year programs and Max the Mutt.

3.Take the couses in a tecnical, vocational school such as Gnomon ( high end graphics program, which is 21 months and recommended highly by an animator friend) or animation Mentor's online program ( which is 17 months)or Boston University one year intensive digital imaging program which is 12 months every day and is located where we live, Sheridan College in Canada ( 1-2 years), Max the Mutt in Canada ( 2-3 year program) etc.

Each has their pros and cons. For example, Animation Mentor looks great but is strictly character animation. I would think that she should be exposed to various areas of animation such as modeling, rigging, etc.Gnomon looks great,but I haven't met anyone who has been there. Thus, I am very confused.

MY first question is:What option do you recommend as best for skills training?
What do you know about Gnomon full time, high end Computer Graphics program,which supposedly is very 3D oriented? What do you know about Sheridan? What do you know about Digital Arts College and Academy of Art University in San Francisco and about Max the Mutt?

Let me note that a goal of my daughter is to eventually get an MFA from somewhere in the future,but she wants strong animation skills now. As you can see, we have really thought this out,but it does present a lot of issues.

If you want to PM me, send me an email at sandytaxman@comcast.net

Thanks for your help.

What is Gnomon like?

I was wondering if anyone had experience with Gnomon? Can you get classical animation training there too?

max the mutt evaluations

I was looking into Max the Mutt for character animation. It is very reasonably priced, seems to have a good program, has quality firms recruiting there and seems to have a strong faculty. HOWEVER, if you go to their web site, maxthemutt.com) and review their student work, it doens't seem anywhere as strong as that of Ringling. Am I missing something? Please review for yourselves and give me your opinion.

check out maxthemutt.com

and compare the student work at Ringling by going to:http://www.ringling.edu/portfolio/index.php

We meet again!

Hi Sandy Taxman.

Max the Mutt didn't run the fourth year 3D program in the '07-'08 academic year. The work that is posted shows beginning exercises done by '08-'09 students in first semester.

If you check out the archives, you'll find more 3D from previous years. (I should add that 90% of '07 graduates of the 3 year diploma, found jobs in the industry and all '08 grads who returned for year 4 this academic year worked as paid interns animating in Toon Boom over the summer...all but one who didn't return for year 4 found employment animating within a month of graduation. I certainly hope we do as well this year!).

This year the fourth year program is very exciting. We eagerly await the group film, written and directed by ex Pixar animator Steve Barnes, as well as the small independent projects done by the 8 students in the class.

Just to sort some things out for you: if your daughter wants to animate in 3D, she certainly should learn the whole Maya program. However, modelers and riggers are not animators. If she wants to animate, she'll be hired on the basis of her animation and she'll be animating characters designed, modeled and rigged by other people. Our program is geared towards character animation. We are not the school to attend to become a rigger or a modeler (although at least one graduate is modeling).

Entry into the fourth year Advanced Diploma requires completion of our 3 year Diploma in Classical and Computer Animation, or equivalent training. We are not the right school for people who don't want to draw, and we don't introduce the computer until year 2, when Flash is taught, and year 3 when Photoshop and ToonBoom 2D animation and storyboard software are taught and used to make a film.

There are many very good schools in North America and they differ from each other. The trick is to find the right fit. Your daughter is fortunate to have parents who care about her as much as you do, and I'm sure she'll find the right place.

I do suggest visiting the schools you are short listing. Our graduate show will be up beginning of June. If we sound like a possibility, let us know if you would like to visit. I'm assuming that your daughter would be applying for 2010 or 2011.

All the best,
Maxine Schacker

You didn't mention anything about her background or interest in drawing.

Response to Maxine Schacker

Maxine Schacker notes,"You didn't mention anything about her background or interest in drawing."

Response: Fair enough. My daughter will be graduating from University of Cincinnati in Digitial Design in about 2 years. So we are just starting our investigation. She definitely has the right attitude in that she will work till she drops and will attain at least a 3.6+ overall GPA in a tough school and maybe even graduate with as much as a 3.7+,which she also had in high school too. I don't know what you know about Cincinnati,but it is considered one of the top design schools in the US and is very hard to get into.

She also, as part of her program, will have six coops, all of whom loved her and offered her a job. Her coops so far were very web oriented where she helped design a number of web sites for movies and the American Idol site and several other high end sites.

The problem is that Digital Design is primarily web design with some animation, 3d work, some special effects, and some programming such flash, C++ and some digital photography. In addition she has to have strong familiarity with anything Adobe and some Cinema 40 (?). There was no live drawing or figure drawing in her program, although she did have a few pieces in her portfolio from a pre-college program that she took.

Thus, she is a jack of many areas but a master of few. As a result of all this, she seems to like "3D work animating 3d characters." What she doesn't have is a lot of training in figure drawing and life drawing. Thus we are looking for training in figure drawing and life drawing with strong programs in 3D animation and developing an understanding of the animation pipeline skills, and NOT just 2D animation. That doesn't seem to be where she is coming from. Perhaps further into the Cincinnati program ( which is a five-year program ), she will have more of an understand of both what is proivided in the program and where she wants to be so she can fully utilize her talents and interest and further help her decide where in the pipeline she wants to go.

She will probably need a good general program that will give all of the animation skills including modeling, rigging, lighting, skinning etc. ( although you would need to talk to my daughter about this), so she can determine which is best for her. I do know that simply drawing characters may not be of interest to her,but I could be wrong about this.

Two other interesting things about my daughter. First, she gets bored with what she finds too easy. She wants alot of challenge. It is just the way it is with her. She needs to be challenged,which is why she just doesn't go to work with a web design house. Secondly, she is an exceptional problem solver. If she doesn't know something,she will research it and learn it well. As an example, she had a design project at a job where she had to know a particular program. Sadly that wasn't given in school. So she went online, learned the program so well that she was doing it as well or better than the existing company staff, which earned her a job offer.Moreover, when the firm had some tight deadlines, she didn't mind working overtime and on weekends. She is a very hard work worker and a bit of a perfectionist.

I don't know if I have addressed her situation clearly enough since I am an accountant and really don't understand either fine art or the animation process well. However, does this answer your question?

Sandy

Your daughter sound like a remarkable young woman. I asked about drawing because our program is very traditional and a lot of drawing is involved. If she has an interest in drawing but doesn't have developed skills, I'd suggest a summer program like the July Learn To Draw at Max the Mutt. That would probably be a good thing to do this summer. Ringling also has a summer non0diploma program.

summer program might do that trick

Hmm, well she does have coops that interfere with summer classes, but who knows? Maybe she will be able to fit it in. Thanks Maxine. it surely seems that Max the Mutt and the staff have their heart in the right spot and have good goals.

Some photos from the opening of the exhibition of work by year o

A student sent me this link. With all the talk, I thought you might want to see some first year work. This is our visual arts literacy year.

http://www.xs4all.nl/~eezacque/mtm2009

Year One Exhibition

We've posted a video of the opening of the year one show on You Tube and on the home page of our website (www.maxthemutt.com).

You can see the school, artwork, student comments. We'll be doing the same thing for the graduate show (which also includes year 2 work).

Wonderful!

Maxine,

You and your staff are to be congratulated! You are so right to teach the basics of art and drawing (no matter what the major)...and you do it in a way the obtains results.

Kudos to you, your staff and the "kids". I know that teaching this kind of curriculum is tough- it's nuts and bolts, down in the trenches - a no fame kind of endeavor... but as you proved, it works!

Every potential animation (2D and/or 3D), concept art, illustration student, etc., should watch this video - so that they realize what they need to do to gain the skills for a career!

Great to know someone is out there slugging away!

Keep up the good work!

Thanks

Thank you!

Thanks, Larry, for taking the time to congratulate us. I'll copy and paste your comments and send them on to everyone. It means a lot coming from you.

first off in regard to said schools that skip the traditional art training and just teach the programs: for someone like me who already has a Studio Art BFA, Design Minor and very strong drawing skills, Would you count these 1 to 1 and 1/2 year schools as a legitimate option? Thoughts?

Secondly, I haven't seen any mention of Digital Media Arts College, or DMAC, located in Boca Raton, FL. Wondering if anyone knows there credibility and/or reputation.

Thanks.

You can check the DAE and DAE3D curriculum at http://www.arenaanimationacademy.com

It covers all of what you need at a much lower cost.

http://www.3danimationtrainingstudio.com I still have not told my story! - Vineet Raj Kapoor

i want to be a good artist

i am an animation student, i want to be a good artist for it i am going joining the best collage for it.

i am an animation student, i want to be a good artist for it i am going joining the best collage for it.

Sure that's the best way to begin. You can use this forum for any advice you need (do describe your situation so that the advice is practical).

Wish you the best!

http://www.3danimationtrainingstudio.com I still have not told my story! - Vineet Raj Kapoor

Any Advice?

Hi,

I haven't posted in a long time. My applications to colleges are done I have been acepted early to SVA ( New York), and SCAD ( Savannah ) in the animation programs. I am waitting to hear from Ringling ( FL ) and Sheridan
in Canada.
Here are my thoughts...please correct me if I'm wrong...

1. SVA- has the advantage of being a smaller program with access to alot
of internships. Cared very much about my transcripts and portfolio.
They are funding half my tuition upfront. I think I can't go wrong.

2. SCAD- alot has been said about SCAD on this thread. Love the campus
atmosphere! They too awarded money upfront...but the tuition
is really high! What bothers me most is that they haven'y even seen
my portfolio yet? How can they accept people without it? Makes
me think that they are not too picky...is it really a good choice?

3. Ringling- not too crazy about the location. Also, had the impression that
it's easy to get in. Last year, when I was 16, I went to portfolio
day to get some advice. The evaluator was flirtatious and told
me right there that I would get in. Really? I applied only as a
" safety " school. Very hard for me to take them seriously after
that.

4. Sheridan- The most affordable by far! The portfolio requirements are very
specific. Liked the campus alot! The application process is
different from the states. I won't know anything until the
Spring. Located a little too far from Toronto for my taste
but there is transportation into the city. Comes across
as a serious program.

I will send a deposit to reserve my spot in SVA, and try to get in to Sheridan. Then I'll have to make a decision. Any idea what would be the best of the two?
Sorry...this was a little long.

Natosh

Hi,

I will send a deposit to reserve my spot in SVA, and try to get in to Sheridan. Then I'll have to make a decision. Any idea what would be the best of the two?
Sorry...this was a little long.

Natosh

Natosh-- if you are asking us, you are pretty much asking the wrong people.

Contact those schools on your list and ask if you can speak with their alumni--that is those graduates that have actually taken the courses themselves.
With them, you can get the direct answers as to how the programs were and whether it will be worth it for you.

You clearly have some good, hard questions that plainly deserve honest answers.

Over the past few years, via internet sites here and the occasional question to students I once taught, I've drawn the conclusion that MOST prospective students do NOT consult the alumni. The common reason why is that its too much hassle.
I guess if you are going to spend tens of thousands of dollars to go to a school you know little about, its like buying a house you've never seen in a city you've never been to.

Doesn't that put it in some perspective? If you are going to spend all that money, take advantage of ALL the resources available to you before you commit.

"We all grow older, we do not have to grow up"--Archie Goodwin ( 1937-1998)

Did you visit Max the Mutt?

Max the Mutt is not on your list. I just wondered if you ever visited, and if so why you decided against applying. The '08 gallery should be up by the end of this week. This year it's been a nightmare getting everything together.

By the way, I agree that you should speak with current students and recent grads at all the schools you're applying to. Be sure to check out the curriculum, who is instructing and class size. It's also interesting to know what percentage of recent graduates found work in the industry (the "in the industry" part is very important).

I sincerely wish you luck at whatever school you decide to attend!

2. SCAD- alot has been said about SCAD on this thread. Love the campus
atmosphere! They too awarded money upfront...but the tuition
is really high! What bothers me most is that they haven'y even seen
my portfolio yet? How can they accept people without it? Makes
me think that they are not too picky...is it really a good choice?

While I have not gone to SCAD myself, I know several people who have gone and I have spoken with the faculty. My understanding is that they recieve most of their funds from wealthy students without particularly much talent but plenty of money. This affords them excellent facilities and heaps of scholarship money for the legitimately talented students; I've known two people personally who were offered full rides for their portfolios alone. You can certainly do better but it is really a good choice, although you may only get out of it what you put into it.

Thoughts on school, Edinburgh College of Art (eca) and Bournemou

Hi everyone,

I am sourcing for a school to study in 2010 and I am currently looking at ECA and Bournemouth Uni. Anyone or any Alumni have any thoughts on them? How are their MA and MFA programs?

are there any 2d animation schools in florida??

everything is 3d 3d 3d 3d :(

AAU v/s SCAD

Hello All,

I have been through the entire thread and what has been written(about SCAD esp) really got me thinking about the applications!!! Yes, I have been admitted to both SCAD and AAU but I guess anybody who can pay for the $50k+ does :p !!!

Ok, I'll start from the beginning....I am from Mumbai-India and already done with my undergrad in engg. After this I enrolled for a course with MAAC to study 3D animation. But the courses over here only teach you how to use the software and other technicalia but dont stress on drawing or on the basis of animation. So, I have been practising drawing alot since the past year and also created some stop-motion animatics and working on a 3D short at the moment.

The thing is that I do have some basic knowledge in art and drawing but I want to sharpen my animation skills and learn the entire process. Hence I applied for MFA in animation programs at the univs (I have been thru Ringling, Calarts and although the student work is amazing, the tuition is crazy and I definitely cant afford another 4 years of school)

I am in the process of getting in touch with the alumni from the above schools but if anybody here who has been a recent(or even not so recent) grad from either AAU or SCAD/anybody not from these schools would like to throw some light on the curriculum, instructors or anything you can think of that would help me in my decision-making process then I would really appreciate some responses.........
Thankyou in advance!!! :D

Aau?

Hello.

What is AAU?

Thanks.

It's the Academy of Art University in San Francisco CA. Go Fighting Porcupines!

Aloha,
the Ape

...we must all face a choice, between what is right... and what is easy."

Well Heck

Well heck, Art Center College of Design never had a mascot - unless you want to count it's classic orange ball.

Of course, my son's school, North Carolina School of the Arts - an off shoot of UNC tarheels had it's own mascot- the "fighting pickles"

AAU could have been the American Athletic Union...

More to the point, I would pick AAU before the other school.

Thanks. :D

Hmm...

Well I had no idea the replies would be so quick :D

@ Larry : Thanx for the post. Do you have any information about AAU in regards to the faculty or the teaching programs in general. I guess living expenses in SF will be higher compared to Savannah.

Also, how easy/difficult is it to find jobs on-campus inorder to provide for food, living, etc ???

Thanks guys :) !!!

Keep asking

Your welcome...

Keep asking here or try the EDUCATION FORUM - the head of the program stops by from time to time...either forum or both.

Thanks.:D

AAU v/s Animation Mentor

Hi Guys,

I've been doing a lot of thinking and researching lately and I really am re-considering enrolling into Academy of Art University. First of all, the fees are pretty HIGH :eek: and there's no guarantee for on-campus jobs that help you pay for living expenses. Also, I've been reading that AAU used to conduct Pixar Classes which was why really everybody rushed to AAU. But of late, they've been called off due to internal reasons or some such things.

Having said that, the student work is pretty good of what I've seen at the Spring Shows but then again AM also has pretty exciting work on display. Plus, AAU's program charges amount upto $ 94,050 (including living expenses, art supplies and tuition) yes these are variable estimates but its still insanely expensive!!!! Whereas AM charges $ 17,500 for an 18 month program but I'm a still a little skeptical considering they have online classes.

I wanted to ask anyone who's doing classes from AM/anybody who knows thoroughly about the progam at AM in general about how they find the experience there. Does studying animation through online classes make it any different. Also, do they lay emphasis on drawing and traditional art. Do they also teach modelling, rigging, lighting, etc. or do you just end up learning only 3D animation.

I know I'm going a little crazy with the questions here but I'm just so confused about what to take up. Any comments/suggestions would be really very very very helpful.

Thanks a ton although it was real loooong :) !!!

Am

Hello.

From talking to folks in the industry, the only thing about AM is that everyone does the same lessons and by the time the instructors coach folks up- their work all seem to look the same...or the studios have seen the exercises a million times before...

Ironically, I know a bunch of students who attend animation schools and yet do AM on the side to obtain their animation education. I know this sounds skewed- but that's what they do...

Just make sure that coming out of AM your reel has some different work on it.

Thanks.

From talking to folks in the industry, the only thing about AM is that everyone does the same lessons and by the time the instructors coach folks up- their work all seem to look the same.

I don't know about that. I've seen my share of work from AM students, and I wouldn't say it all looks the same. The characters do, because they all use the same rigs, but the performances have the stamp of the individual on them. Of course they all do the same lessons - how is that different from any other school?

Lub, currently AM only teaches animation - modeling and rigging aren't part of the curriculum. As I understand it, you are free to complete your exercises in any technique you choose, but most AM students work in 3D.

I have a current student who has completed the AM curriculum, and came back to a traditional program to continue her studies, so I guess it goes both ways :)

Max the Mutt's Open House

Just a heads up to all of you in the Toronto area to try to get to our open house this year (or, if you're in the industry get in touch with us to get an invite to our industry evening) at the end of May. The Advanced diploma in 3d animation and production students are animating a short film written and directed by Stephen Barnes (formerly a lead animator with Pixar). I got to attend the rushes the other day and can't wait to see it completed!

Uh-oh !!!

Hello,

I thought you guys were supposed to help me here....not further my dilemma :rolleyes: !!! Even the sheer mention of having to do both schools got me adding up the figures...guess I've just turned into a Human-Calculator of late !!!

Ok on a more serious note, doing both schools is certainly out of question (although some do it) as I can barely afford AAU here :(

@Larry and DSB : Yes, I realised that you kind of get a feeling of some repetitiveness, probably because their using characters who look the same(since that's what they provide for to all students) and your demo-reel may look repetitive. But they focus on animation alone but then again you don't have much traditional classes.

My question here is without the Pixar classes how good a school is AAU. Also, what if someone cannot do both, then which do you choose ??!!??

Thats what I was told

Hey DSB,

All I can say is that at least two different animation supervisors at large studios in L.A. told me the same thing - I was just passing their advice along to potential employees.

It does not mean that AM is not a good school- it just means folks have to be aware that - as you mentioned - they need to keep their work individual.

Thanks.

My question here is without the Pixar classes how good a school is AAU.

AAU is like any school - you get out of it what you put into it. That said, it is a well-respected school that has turned out its share of professionals over the years. There are many industry professionals who teach there, even with the Pixar classes no longer offered.

A word about the Pixar classes: admission to those classes was very selective and competitive, and only a dozen or so students got in every year. Don't want you to think that everyone in the animation program was in those classes.

AAU does offer the rigging and modeling courses you asked about earlier - you can even major in modeling, if you so desire. AM is great if you're positive you want to be an animator, but if you're not sure where you want to be in the production pipeline, then a school that offers more options (whether that's AAU or another) may be a better choice.

Also, there is always self-study and training as an option - and it's generally much cheaper than any school. There are scads of books, videos, and websites that can provide the information and feedback a school would give you. Just to muddy the waters a bit more... ;)

Hmmm....yes thats true. But schools help you to build contacts and you also learn from other students who share the same passion as you. Self-study has a lot of drawbacks although it tends to prove advantageous in terms of money matters. :D

But in terms of comparison of SCAD v/s AAU, do you guys feel that AAU stands a better chance. On this thread many people are against scad and I read on Spline Doctors that former and current AAU students are sort of frustrated with the school's ways of going about things. This is really very confusing :confused:
What do you guys think. Any suggestions.....anybody ?????

Thanks for the replies so far......

Picking a school is a very individual thing - no one can really help you make the decision. You have to weigh the pros and cons, take a deep breath, and make the choice.

Once again, you only get out of a school what you put into it. Those who really focus, practice, study, and work hard do very well, generally speaking. Then there are students who don't work as hard, and don't do as well. It's true at AAU, SCAD, CalArts, Sheridan - any school, really.

I teach at two colleges (neither of which is AAU or SCAD), and in both there are students who are doing incredible work and are destined for major careers, and other students who will probably do something else professionally. Happens everywhere. The information I give them is the same; they all sit and listen to the same lectures and watch the same demonstrations. The ones who excel take what I give them and work with it, think about it, ask questions, try again, ask more questions...

Best of luck with whatever decision you make.

That's true.....

@ DSB : Yah you're right !! Nobody can decide for anybody....I guess I'll just have to consider all the facts before going ahead :o

Thanks for the bit of advice though :D

I graduated from both Academy of Art University and AnimationMentor.com. Like any school both have their strength's and their drawbacks. I think I posted a comparison contrast point on both of these schools recently. You should be able to do a search on my posts and find it. I think it was sometime in the past 3 or 4 months.

If two or three programs are really close, you're just going to have to bite the bullet and pick one. All three are good schools to learn animation. If you have the drive, I don't think you can really go wrong picking from the three you're looking at.

Aloha,
the Ape

...we must all face a choice, between what is right... and what is easy."

Any animation schools in Canada

Hello everyone,

I know I've been really confused about where to go - AAU, SCAD, AM. But after I finally made my decision to go to AAU, well my parents kind of found out that it was beyond their budget(hmm...funny isn't it ??!!) Well so right now we're looking at different loan plans to see if we can make it work.....But in the meantime if it doesn't I need some sort of backup plan.

So can anybody here suggest some very good animation schools in Canada. Why Canada? Well...the teaching and facilities are at par if not better than the US and the tuition is almost half the price. I was so focussing my research on the US that I dont know much about Canadian univs....

I have heard about a few though Sheridan, Vanarts but I really dont know how good/bad they are...So anyone please feel free to give me their comments/thoughts about these univs or any other that they know of in Canada....although most of them only have diplomas/certificate programs but I guess that doesn't make much of a difference unless you want to teach right ????

Thanks and hoping to hear from you guys !!! ;)

p.s : I know this sounds at a tangent to my previous posts....but I guess just can't help it !!!

Hello everyone,

I know I've been really confused about where to go - AAU, SCAD, AM. But after I finally made my decision to go to AAU, well my parents kind of found out that it was beyond their budget(hmm...funny isn't it ??!!) Well so right now we're looking at different loan plans to see if we can make it work.....But in the meantime if it doesn't I need some sort of backup plan.

So can anybody here suggest some very good animation schools in Canada. Why Canada? Well...the teaching and facilities are at par if not better than the US and the tuition is almost half the price. I was so focussing my research on the US that I dont know much about Canadian univs....

I have heard about a few though Sheridan, Vanarts but I really dont know how good/bad they are...So anyone please feel free to give me their comments/thoughts about these univs or any other that they know of in Canada....although most of them only have diplomas/certificate programs but I guess that doesn't make much of a difference unless you want to teach right ????

Thanks and hoping to hear from you guys !!! ;)

p.s : I know this sounds at a tangent to my previous posts....but I guess just can't help it !!!

I think it bears repeating, because people don't seem to understand:

Asking people on-line about animation schools is akin to going out on to the street and asking a complete stranger if you should have a medical procedure.
Frankly, you'll get opinions from people that HAVE NEVER BEEN TO THE SCHOOL and who know nothing about those schools.

You want the real answers that you can use?

Contact those schools and ask to speak with their alumni--the students that have graduated the programmes and are now working (or not). They are the ones that can tell you absolutely if the programme was any good for them.
That way you can confirm the person actually attended the school and their opinion is much more valid than of someone whom you have no idea if they ever set foot on the campus. ( Bear in mind that you can get "opinions" on-line from people that fraudulently portray themselves as having attended the schools, to negative feedback on genuinely fine schools from those that have failed the programmes. Consulting alumni helps you bypass that kind of minefield all together)
I mean, if you want to risk potentially tens of thousands of dollars on the chance that the opinions you get here are accurate, well then...........knock yourself out...

Good luck.

"We all grow older, we do not have to grow up"--Archie Goodwin ( 1937-1998)

I think it bears repeating, because people don't seem to understand:

Asking people on-line about animation schools is akin to going out on to the street and asking a complete stranger if you should have a medical procedure.
Frankly, you'll get opinions from people that HAVE NEVER BEEN TO THE SCHOOL and who know nothing about those schools.

You want the real answers that you can use?

Contact those schools and ask to speak with their alumni--the students that have graduated the programmes and are now working (or not). They are the ones that can tell you absolutely if the programme was any good for them.
That way you can confirm the person actually attended the school and their opinion is much more valid than of someone whom you have no idea if they ever set foot on the campus. ( Bear in mind that you can get "opinions" on-line from people that fraudulently portray themselves as having attended the schools, to negative feedback on genuinely fine schools from those that have failed the programmes. Consulting alumni helps you bypass that kind of minefield all together)
I mean, if you want to risk potentially tens of thousands of dollars on the chance that the opinions you get here are accurate, well then...........knock yourself out...

Good luck.

Amen, Ken...

As always, I agree with Ken, but even THEN there are variables.

I did go to SCAD (ask Larry!). I know someone who left SCAD because he didn't feel the program was good enough, and he's at a major studio in L.A.

I know someone else who IS a SCAD grad who is ALSO in L.A. and he's at a major video game label.

They both would say something totally different about SCAD, but they're both successful.

-shrug- Just sayin...

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I want to learn

I have been looking at the CDIA (Center for Digital Imaging Arts at Boston University.) Has anyone been to this school? Or just know anyone who has. Is it any good? It seems to have some good points. Its an immersion program (40 hours of school a week.)

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