Traveller's Tales

What made you decide to do the course at Escape Studios?

After 3 years studying traditional animation at university, I briefly touched upon the world of 3D. I later realized that was where my real desire for the medium lay. So after many weeks and months deciding which course to pick and where to go, I always found myself coming back to Escape's website and soon realized its courses were pretty unique - especially the amount you could learn in such a short time.

What was the best thing about your course?

The thing that I always tell people about is how much I was taught in the 3 months at Escape in comparison to 3 years at university. There is simply no comparison. Escape's method of intense learning really worked to my advantage and I believe it is the best way to be taught. In terms of the content, the tutors covered pretty much every area I was hoping they would. And, the freedom we were allowed to have on our final projects was excellent, which reflected the level of tuition and support throughout.

What was the learning environment like?

The learning environment was great. The people there were all like minded which made for a sound working atmosphere. The tutors didn't rush through the teaching and always made sure everyone was keeping up with the pace. The small class numbers helped me get to know everyone pretty well.

What was your tutor like?

The tutors I had were really approachable and very friendly. They always had a logical answer for any query that was thrown out during the class. As they are all current industry professionals, the level of knowledge was excellent too.

How much help was there during the course?

The help during the course was brilliant. Whenever there was a problem that needed solving or even just an opinion on art direction, help was always available not just from my tutors but from anyone working at Escape. This help continued after the course had finished and I was lucky enough to become a studio assistant for a short period. It really set me up for my first industry job as I continued to learn all the time.

What advice would you give to any prospective students at Escape?

Although these courses may seem a gamble in terms of how short and expensive they are, there's a reason for that. The quality of tutoring at Escape is brilliant and the fact that the tutors are industry professionals and not just some university lecturer reading some notes really shows. I have advised several of my friends to take the Escape courses, they also now have jobs.

What are you up to now?

I'm currently working for a next Gen games company in Manchester called TT Fusion. We are now owned by Warner Bros and are getting some really cool titles through to work on. I am really enjoying all the work we are producing. I've been here over a year now and have been lucky enough to have worked on a shipped title on multiple platforms that’s doing really well.