
Brendan Kirschbaum
Brendan has been a professional animator since 2018 and is currently a character animator at DreamWorks. He previously worked in Editorial, making animatics for Rocky & Bullwinkle. He then began animating on films such as Trolls World Tour, Croods: A New Age, and The Bad Guys. Brendan currently teaches Intro to Acting, the fourth Core Character Animation Course at Animation Mentor.
Brendan’s Credits

Ruby Gillman, Teenage Kraken

Puss In Boots: The Last Wish

The Bad Guys

Croods: A New Age
Films
- Ruby Gillman, Teenage Kraken
- Puss in Boots: The Last Wish
- The Bad Guys
- Boss Baby: Family Business
- The Croods: A New Age
- Trolls: World Tour
- How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World
What Brendan’s Students are Saying
Very Passionate About Animation
[Brendan] is very passionate about animation and in teaching his students. He has also done a great job in breaking down other acting shots and giving us ideas in how to incorporate them into our own shots. I also like that he has a very good mix of showing slides, doing draw overs, and doing demos to show and explain how to actually animate what he is teaching.
Feedback is Super Clear and Helpful
Brendan’s feedback is super clear and helpful. Not only does he provide plenty of technical feedback, but he has great acting direction advice and experience, which is critical for a successful animation. He fosters a supportive and pushed learning environment, and creativity thrives. He doesn’t baby bad ideas and is honest in a healthy and supportive way that allows students to grow and learn.
Pushes Our Strengths
I think Brendan does a great job giving critiques, he points out the weak points of our shots and pushes our strengths.
Really Feel That He Cares About Us
[Brendan’s] Q&A demo is very helpful and general tips of how to improve on my works is great as well. Yeah Brendan deserves a thumbs up for me. His type of workflow wasn’t really my type of workflow at the beginning but when I gave it a fair try, it was really worth it. He gives helpful notes and his demos are interesting/helpful that when I look at the clock, the class has already 10min left. Also I really feel that he cares about us and wants to support us as much as he can.
Above and Beyond My Expectations
Brendan has gone above and beyond my expectations when it comes to making sure everything is done on time and done right. Example is setting a soft due date for handing in references to get early opinions so that you don’t waste another week redecorating and can get to animating asap… And the ecritiques are on point, plus I get answers for all random questions I leave as comment. Superstar!
Very Passionate About Animation
[Brendan] is very passionate about animation and in teaching his students. He has also done a great job in breaking down other acting shots and giving us ideas in how to incorporate them into our own shots. I also like that he has a very good mix of showing slides, doing draw overs, and doing demos to show and explain how to actually animate what he is teaching.
Feedback is Super Clear and Helpful
Brendan’s feedback is super clear and helpful. Not only does he provide plenty of technical feedback, but he has great acting direction advice and experience, which is critical for a successful animation. He fosters a supportive and pushed learning environment, and creativity thrives. He doesn’t baby bad ideas and is honest in a healthy and supportive way that allows students to grow and learn.
Pushes Our Strengths
I think Brendan does a great job giving critiques, he points out the weak points of our shots and pushes our strengths.
Really Feel That He Cares About Us
[Brendan’s] Q&A demo is very helpful and general tips of how to improve on my works is great as well. Yeah Brendan deserves a thumbs up for me. His type of workflow wasn’t really my type of workflow at the beginning but when I gave it a fair try, it was really worth it. He gives helpful notes and his demos are interesting/helpful that when I look at the clock, the class has already 10min left. Also I really feel that he cares about us and wants to support us as much as he can.
Above and Beyond My Expectations
Brendan has gone above and beyond my expectations when it comes to making sure everything is done on time and done right. Example is setting a soft due date for handing in references to get early opinions so that you don’t waste another week redecorating and can get to animating asap… And the ecritiques are on point, plus I get answers for all random questions I leave as comment. Superstar!
Courses Taught By Brendan
Courses may vary from term to term.