Our Legacy Lives In Our Students
SEMESTER 29.5a
*Online - October 2026 - Celebrating 28 Years
I was recently interviewed by Matt Wallace of the UK on the occasion of the 30th anniversary of the popular video game franchise "Crash Bandicoot" where I share my insights.
I've known Michel Gagne for many years. Going all the way back to the days of the Academy's "AnimationNation" movement of the late 1990's and early 2000's. This was a move towards reforming the industry on behalf of artists. We knew back then that the only way forward was independent production. It was the future and we are in that future.
A very talented and popular studio animator Michel had been developing his own project on the side. He launched a Kickstarter campaign back in 2012 and has since been working on "The Saga of Rex".
It's taken him 14 years of purely hand drawn work to complete. Now he's ready to find distribution and share his magnificent masterpiece.
There's one other thing concerning the epic level of Herculean accomplishment that Michel has achieved. He has been struggling with serious challenges to his eyesight for a very long time. Since before he started animating Rex. Thus the added level of incredibleness of his legendary achievement.
There's no other way forward but to Keep Creating.
Congratulations to you Michel Gagne. Our very best wishes for your continued success. We also wish you many rewards for what you have done. You are an inspiration for the ages.
There are significant and astonishing changes happening in animation and it's progressing very fast. We're exploring a new way of doing things that will be very beneficial to creative individuals. Especially if you are a character designer.
Stay tuned and Keep Creating !!
In the news today ... "The Super Mario Galaxy Movie" co-directed by the Academy's very own Aaron Horvath is #1 in the world with a $372.5 million global box office 5 day opening weekend. Here he is on April 3 2007 when we were honoring him at an Academy sponsored event.
This is ArtShark. He's the Academy's mascot. I've been drawing him for over 26 years. Here he is dressed like He-Man with a message for everyone. This is his mission. To spread a word of positivity and encouragement to artists everywhere.
So to those aspiring to new heights and everyone who loves creativity and imagination and all the good things that come from it ... You have the power ... Put that power to use. All you have to do is get busy and start creating. And once you've got that going ... then Keep Creating !!
Wishing our students and former students and all of our associates and people of goodwill everywhere a Happy and Creative New Year!
Our students continue to progress. We're celebrating Molly Heady-Caroll of the Netherlands who has recently landed a position with Wacom Tablets as their Community Expert at their European HQ In Germany. Molly is the creator behind Zenibeasts. Her project has opened many doors. A big congratulations to you Molly!
One of the great features of the Procreate app is the video recording aspect of your creative process. This is my first drawing of Crash Bandicoot using Procreate on an iPad. It's a short 55 second view. I'm the original Co-Creator / Character Designer of Crash and I always enjoy drawing him. You can see how and pick up a lesson through this quick demonstration ...
This is the entire series for the first season of Montghomery Thump and Timbuk Too. The project that started The Animation Academy. Running time is 54:32. There are 20 indfividual videos that have been edited into a single timeline. Enjoy the series and thank you for followng the Academy on YouTube by suscribing to our channel.
