The Academy and the New Era

Charles Z - Mar 30, 2020

Greetings friends! Hope this finds you well. Our program will be changing. We'll be migrating away from our onsite sessions and moving much more into online venues and social media. It's long overdue and this situation we're all dealing with is prompting the expanded direction. You don't have to be in Burbank to engage with the Academy and creatively gain from the experience. 

I'm personally looking forward to the new way of doing things! In the meantime please be cautious and stay healthy. This will pass and life will go on. Make the most of your time and Keep Creating!

Charles Zembillas

A Dynamic Industry

Charles Z - Feb 10, 2020

The Animation Industry and its related art forms are a very dynamic business that's developing in ways increasingly beneficial to creators. It's a growing field especially in the areas of original content and independent projects. Social media and content streaming are changing the way artists create. The Animation Academy stays on top of these trends and adapts its program to these new areas that will help students prepare for the new way of doing things. At the core of which are the fundamental skills that will help artists succeed in whatever direction they choose to follow.

Age Requirements

Charles Z - Dec 09, 2019

We receive many requests and inquiries concerning classes for children. The Animation Academy is a program intended for adults. We're a vocational training studio specializing in the development of fundamental artistic skills and character based projects. We help artists build their skills and adapt their art to the professional standards of animation and related fields through the creation of content.

A student is considered an adult at 18 years of age. On occasion we accept students younger than 18 years old. Students younger than 18 years wanting to attend on site sessions should be of high school age. They should be goal oriented and able to dedicate themselves to their art. They should be available for an interview at our Burbank facility in the company of a parent or guardian and ready to show samples of their work. They should also be able to attend classes and work on their assignments without a conflict with their regular school schedule.

We evaluate all potential students younger than 18 on an individual basis. For inquiries concerning students younger than high school age please contact us.  

Phone Issues - Update

Charles Z - Nov 18, 2019

Update - Nov 22 2019 - It appears our phone system is back to normal. If you're not able to get through for any reason please email. Thank you for kindly your patience !!

Nov 18 2019 - If you're trying to contact us by phone and you get an "Invalid Extension" notice or a busy signal it means that we're having problems with our phone service. This is a temporary situation as we're in the process of switching to another provider. Please get in touch by email instead by clicking on our Contact tab above while we resolve this issue. 

Update - Nov 18 2019 - We can call out but we aren't able to receive calls or have incoming calls get to voicemail. Our phone service is being upgraded and the problem should be resolved soon. You can contact the Academy in the meantime through email and we'll respond with a call back if you would like.

Greetings from The Animation Academy

Charles Z - Nov 04, 2019

Thank you to our talented community for another successful year !!

We're currently accepting new students for classes starting January 7 2020. If you'd like to join the first group of the New Year in time for this upcoming term please make sure you begin the enrollment process early. Our classes are very limited in size and we'll likely fill available seating in advance of the start date. It's a good idea be pro-active and secure your place in class soon. If you miss this date we'll work to bring you in for our following term.

We're also revising our curriculum to align more with contemporary developments in the industry and related fields. Namely in the areas of content creation and creator oriented original properties. We're excited about this new direction and are looking forward to implementing these changes.

Thank you again for a terrific 2019 and Keep Creating !!

David Gemmill Directs the New Looney Tunes

Charles Z - Jun 13, 2019
He was a local high school student when he enrolled at the Academy in our early years. Today he is a director at Warner Bros Animation in Burbank heading up the revival of the New Looney Tunes animated series.
 
I'm happy and proud to share the news of David Gemmill's great accomplishments as he emerges as one of the leading talents in the industry. Not only has he established himself as a creative force he is also a mover and shaker in efforts to fight for the concerns of studio artists through his activities with the animation union.
 
Take a look at this video released yesterday by Warner Bros Animation. It's a teaser trailer for the new series entitled "Dynamite Dance" featuring Bugs Bunny and Elmer Fudd. Written, storyboarded and directed by David Gemmill...

 

Hannah Smith completes "Seasons"

Charles Z - Apr 22, 2019

She started the project at the Academy developing her characters in class and going on to animate and cover other aspects of the film's design and development. She dedicated herself to completing it over the past few months and now it's finished and online for all to enjoy. Take a minute to watch the final version of "Seasons" by Hannah Smith. It's a charming and touching tale of friendship. You can follow Hannah by subscribing to her YouTube Channel. You can also follow and support her creative efforts on Patreon where she posts a brand new "Wold and Bear" cartoon weekly for her subscribers.

Our New Address ...

Charles Z - Feb 04, 2019

We'e currently operating from our new address. 

847 N Hollywood Way - Suite 204 - Burbank California 91505.

If you're coming in to class please head to this location. 

Happy Birthday To Us! 21 Years and a New Place!

Charles Z - Jan 19, 2019

I'm happy to share the joy of celebrating the 21st anniversary of The Animation Academy in Burbank California!

It was on this day January 19 1998 that we held our very first class in the back room of a local restaurant. And for 21 years since we have kept it going!

Here's some additional good news for this special occasion. We're moving from our location on Magnolia Boulevard to a splendid facility on Hollywood Way. Still in the Magnolia Park region. Still in the same postal code. And just a few blocks away from the Warner Bros Studio main lot plus just 2 blocks away from Warner Bros TV Animation and just 1 block from the Animation Guild which is the union for our industry.

Some great additional news is that we'll be located in the same building as Center Stage Gallery which is a dedicated showplace for animation art and is owned by CTN (the Creative Talent Network) - a major artist oriented organization which sponsors a huge expo every year just down the road in November.

We'll be conducting our first class session at our new location (847 N Hollywood Way Suite 204) this coming Monday evening January 21. For a look at where we're moving to you can follow this link to The Animation Academy's blog which we've been maintaining since April 2006.

Thank you to the wonderful people who've been associated with us all these years.

Very best wishes to you and Keep Creating !!

Pages