VFX COURSES

Prepare for Modern VFX
Production Workflows

VFX Fundamentals teaches you the foundations of visual effects, with an emphasis on look development, lighting, and compositing. Top industry VFX professionals lead the VFX program within the context of a studio production and emphasize collaboration with multi-discipline artists. Here, you learn to balance your technical skills and aesthetic sensibilities — and sharpen your production know-how through our state-of-the-art, patent-pending AMP™ Studio Production Pipeline.

Watch the New VFX Trailer »
GET STARTED

VFX FUNDAMENTALS

THREE 12-WEEK CLASSES

Learn visual effects principles with our three fundamental classes: CG Basics, Lighting Basics, and Compositing Basics.

  • Top industry professionals from Pixar Animation Studios, DreamWorks Animation, Weta Digital, and Industrial Light & Magic serve as your VFX mentors and guide you through this extensive VFX program.
  • Instruction includes video lectures and resources combined with live in-person review.
  • Access to recorded critiques, Live Reviews, Sequence Review Tool, and patent-pending AMP™ studio production pipeline.
  • learnmore
LEARN YOUR CRAFT
PRODUCTION TRACK CLASSES

CG and VFX Production Tracks

Coming in 2014

Our CG Production Track focuses on skills used in CG feature animation — such as Toy Story. Our VFX Production Track teaches skills used when visual effects are integrated with live action in a VFX feature — such as Transformers. Both tracks offer a detailed curriculum with production experience to prepare you to excel in the VFX industry workforce on day one.

VFX Advisory Board

The Animation Mentor VFX Advisory Board, comprised of industry leaders, meets continually to advise on the VFX curriculum. Their contributions ensure that the VFX Program continues to prepare students for the visual effects world by directly addressing industry trends.

  • learnmore

VFX Lecturers and Mentors

Top VFX talent share their wealth of knowledge.

Industry professional lighters and compositors from major studios and production houses — including Pixar Animation Studios, DreamWorks Animation, Weta Digital, and Industrial Light & Magic to name a few — have worked closely with Animation Mentor on the VFX curriculum. Additionally, your visual effects mentors serve as the supervisors in your production work. This direct, hands-on learning replicates a real-world production environment and introduces you to film studio workflows and how best to work collaboratively within a studio pipeline.

Cutting-edge Software

Now you know what the professionals know.

Animation Mentor uses the most cutting-edge VFX software from The Foundry and Solid Angle. Learn to use MARI, KATANA, NUKE, and Arnold directly from VFX professionals.

Industry Partners

Success is never achieved alone.

As an Animation Mentor student, you benefit from our world-class partnerships with leading software developers (Autodesk, Inc., The Foundry, and Solid Angle) and VFX media partners (fxphd). These partnerships help prepare you for a career in the VFX industry by providing hands-on experience with the same software and resources used in studios today.