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Learning Dynamics in Maya

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Additional Class Offerings

Additional courses offered
in the UK.

Please refer to our UK website

  • Academy

Learn to earn

A career as a 3D artist can be one of the most creatively rewarding jobs there is. It can also be one of the most demanding and difficult to break into.

As a partner for some of the best-known 3D studios in the business, including the award-winning teams behind Harry Potter and Avatar, we understand what it really takes to succeed in 3D.

It’s not an art degree from a college or a homemade slideshow of one-off character art. It’s the real hands-on production skills that prove you’ll be able to complete the day-to-day tasks that you’re being hired to do.

It’s speed, accuracy and versatility. It’s having the confidence and understanding to hit the ground running on a live project as part of a working production pipeline in a real studio environment.

It’s knowing how to create an attention-grabbing demo reel full of great looking, exciting and technically stunning examples of your work that demonstrate you can do all this and more.

This is what you need to get a job as a 3D artist, and this is what we teach at Escape Studios. 

CG Academy

We’re not a university and we don’t think of ourselves as a training company either. We’re an academy. Our computer graphics courses all share a single-minded focus on preparing you to the standards expected of professional artists working in the CG industry. That means serious, practical and purpose-driven courses that show you the software, the techniques, the shortcuts and the workflows that the Hollywood studios use. This is the real deal. This is professional CG.

Our job is to help get you a job

From recommending the right type of training to meet your future goals to giving you advice on interview technique, everything we do is focused on helping you get started in the CG industry. 

Choose your Escape route

We offer a flexible range of computer graphics courses that start with introductory classes and move steadily up through to advanced classes that teach you specialized industry-specific creative techniques.

All of our CG courses share the same hands-on focus. Study online at your own speed, learn week by week with the personal support of a mentor or join us in person full-time or on an evening course at our brand new facilities in Los Angeles.

Intensive Classroom Courses

Fast-track your way to a career in computer graphics by learning first-hand from professional CG artists who have experience working on high profile releases for some of the world’s top studios.

Online Mentored Courses

Learn online with the guidance and support of a professional CG artist for an in-depth, effective and motivational training experience. 

Online Self-Directed Courses

Learn a range of skills step-by-step at a pace and in a place that suits you, with unlimited 24/7 access for 12 months.

Our Instructors

  • Rick Makoul

    Rick Makoul

    Compositing

    Rick Makoul has a passion for all things CG and a desire to teach what he’s learned from the industry. He says that one of the neatest things he does as an instructor is to help others discover the sometimes “invisible” art of visual effects. You can read more about Rick Makoul here.
  • Vicky McCann

    Vicky McCann

    VFX

    Vicky’s worked on many films. Among her favorites is Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl and she says she did some work simulating cloth on the dementors in Harry Potter 3: Harry Potter and the Prizoner of Azkaban (which she says was pretty cool). You can read more about Vicky McCann here.
  • Daniel Shutt

    Daniel Shutt

    VFX

    Daniel has over 15 years’ experience in a wide variety of 3D fields from feature film FX and games graphics to TV commercials and architectural rendering. You can read more about Daniel Shutt here.
  • Davi Stein

    Davi Stein

    Compositing

    Davi Stein joins us as compositing tutor at Escape Studios in London bringing with her an impressive list of films in which she was Senior Compositor, including ‘The Dark Night’, ‘Where the Wild Things Are’, 'The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader'... You can read more about Davi Stein here.

Our Facilities

  • Reception

    Reception

    The welcome area of the Escape Studios L.A. Campus - We look forward to your visit. 
  • Escapee

    Escapee

    This is what it means to be an escapee and study with us.
  • Classrooms

    Classrooms

    Our classrooms are paired with the latest technology to provide students with real life studio experiences.
  • Equipment

    Equipment

    Our classrooms are paired with the latest technology to provide students with real life studio experiences.
  • Breakout space

    Breakout space

    Enjoy your lunch. Study with classmates. Make a Latte. Our breakout space along with the outside terrace is perfect for taking a break. 
  • Terrace

    Terrace

    Enjoy your lunch. Study with classmates. Make a Latte. Our breakout space along with the outside terrace is perfect for taking a break.
  • Screening room

    Screening room

    Like all good studios, our facilities include a screening room where our students come and listen to our guest speakers and where the industry gathers up for regular networking events.

Our Graduates

Graduate Success Stories

  • Bastiaan Koch
    Bastiaan Koch

    Bastiaan Koch Is An Award-Winning Film Director & Writer And Founder Of Marauder Film. Of Dutch Parents, He Moved Around The Globe At An Early Age, Living In Atlanta, Berlin, Luxembourg, Bombay... More about Bastiaan Koch.

  • Aurora Jimenez
    Aurora Jimenez

    Aurora Jimenez is an emerging visual development artist and character designer who has worked on a variety of animated and live-action... More about Aurora Jimenez.

  • Carlos Zaragoza
    Carlos Zaragoza

    Carlos Zaragoza is an award winning set designer and art director, currently working on major feature films for a variety of production companies... More about Carlos Zaragoza.

  • Paul Daiko
    Paul Daiko

    Paul Daiko is an up-and-coming creative artist who is currently working as an intern at ReelFX in Dallas, Texas an award winning creative... More about Paul Daiko.

  • Afonso Salcedo
    Afonso Salcedo

    I never thought it would be possible to be an animator. When 'Toy Story' came out I was so excited and knew I would do whatever I could... More about Afonso Salcedo.

  • Martin Cutbill
    Martin Cutbill

    The course at Escape has been literally the best educational experience of my life and I loved every minute of it. More about Martin Cutbill .

  • Alvaro Martinez
    Alvaro Martinez

    It was very intensive. Even having some previous experience, it took lots of commitment on my part to make sure... More about Alvaro Martinez.

  • John Shelley
    John Shelley

    ZBrush Foundation

    I found out about the course because I am a member of CG Society and jumped on board soon after I read about the studio opening in NYC. More about John Shelley.

  • Alexis Haggar
    Alexis Haggar

    I chose Escape because I wanted move onto a higher end package and make sure my self taught knowledge was up to scratch. More about Alexis Haggar.

  • Sergio D'Innocenzo
    Sergio D'Innocenzo

    I was looking for a course that could put me on the right path to a career as an animator and I thought that Escape Studios was my best choice. More about Sergio D'Innocenzo.

  • Marc Austin
    Marc Austin

    I developed a love for all things CG while working as a product designer but I wanted to step up my game. More about Marc Austin.

  • Will Preston
    Will Preston

    As a kid I wanted to draw for the comic 2000AD. I've been through a lot of artistic disciplines from stone carving to product design to try... More about Will Preston.

  • Charlie Bayliss
    Charlie Bayliss

    Charlie studied the Maya Core course at Escape Studios and it gave him the best possible grounding to go on and setup a 3D department for Partizan. More about Charlie Bayliss.

  • James Sindle
    James Sindle

    After completing the Maya Core course, James went on to work at The Mill as a junior 3D Artist. Now he creates some of the coolest adverts... More about James Sindle.

  • Meena Ayittey
    Meena Ayittey

    After graduating from a fine art sculpture degree I soon realized that Visual Effects was what I really wanted to do. More about Meena Ayittey.

  • Adam Dewhirst
    Adam Dewhirst

    When I started looking for a computer graphics course, Escape Studios kept popping up everywhere. More about Adam Dewhirst.

  • Kristaan Cain
    Kristaan Cain

    I've always loved animation and VFX and hoped that one day I'd actually be able to do it for a living. More about Kristaan Cain.

  • Mark Pascoe
    Mark Pascoe

    I only realized half way through university when a friend introduced me to Maya. I was doing a Sport and Exercise Science degree... More about Mark Pascoe.

  • Mike Outlaw
    Mike Outlaw

    No, not really, I just got lucky. A friend of mine works at Escape so after talking to him I took a studio tour and decided to give it a try. More about Mike Outlaw.

  • Zissou
    Zissou

    Having a background in fine art, Zissou wanted to get into the more technical area of 3D. He began the Maya Core course... More about Zissou.

  • Sergio Xisto
    Sergio Xisto

    I was looking for a career change and a family member suggested that I delve deeper into 3D and take a course. More about Sergio Xisto.

  • Nicole Gabriel
    Nicole Gabriel

    I’ve always loved art so I did an art foundation course and completed my degree in 3D design. More about Nicole Gabriel.

  • Matt Perry
    Matt Perry

    I looked for a course that taught 3D Max or Maya. I found Escape on the internet and after seeing the 12 week Maya course... More about Matt Perry.

  • Ben Moseley
    Ben Moseley

    After 3 years of studying traditional animation at university I briefly touched upon the world of 3D, which I later realized was... More about Ben Moseley.

  • Glyn Evans
    Glyn Evans

    I'd always wanted to work in games, even from junior school when the 'Games Master' and 'Bad Influence' TV shows were... More about Glyn Evans.

  • Manuel Cosentino
    Manuel Cosentino

    After graduating from the European Institute of Design in Rome, I started freelancing in Italy. It was exciting but after a while I realized that... More about Manuel Cosentino.

  • Ross Colgan
    Ross Colgan

    I started searching for 3D training in Maya, and naturally Escape was high on the list. More about Ross Colgan.

  • Alenka Abraham
    Alenka Abraham

    I've always been interested in the Visual Effects industry and have always loved cartoon animation in any form. More about Alenka Abraham.

  • Samir Battistotti
    Samir Battistotti

    I found out about Escape Studios on the Internet, and after the studio visit I realized it was a really professional environment and right for me. More about Samir Battistotti.

  • Chris Bradwell
    Chris Bradwell

    Not until after three years of hobby-time game level design, when, at 21, I decided the games industry is where I wanted to be. More about Chris Bradwell.

  • Matt Foster
    Matt Foster

    Of course I wanted to do this stuff when I was little! My favorite things to watch on TV were those ‘making of’ featurettes on 'Star Wars'... More about Matt Foster.

Graduate Demo Reels

  • VFX Production
  • VFX Professional
  • Maya Core
  • Character Animation
  • Games
  • Compositing

Check out VFX and 3D animation demo reels that students have produced after participating in one of our courses. Click on a demo reel to watch the video.