Author: Alexis Raya

Core Classes

With many students balancing co-op placements and coursework, junior-year classes focus on advanced industry techniques and real-world application. Some key classes include:

• Advanced Portfolio (ANIM246): This course focuses on building skills for the career-long practice of producing and maintaining a professional creative portfolio while allowing the students the opportunity to create or refine additional student-driven portfolio work that synthesizes their skills and experience from direct class assignments in their other coursework.
• Animation Workshop (ANIM377): This course examines leadership and developmental roles involved in each stage of a collaborative production, from concept to finished project. Students will work in groups to research and plan an animation production that results in a pre-production prototype.
• Animation Workshop (ANIM378): This course provides an environment in which the pre-production of ANIM 377 Animation Workshop I can be taken through a full production effort. Students will work in groups to bring a selected prototype to completion.
• Concentration Focus: Students continue to build their skills in their respective chosen concentration (organic modeling, character animation, or generalist)

Skills You’ll Develop

By junior year, students are expected to operate at an industry level, refining both artistic and technical skills:

Studio-Level Animation & VFX Workflows

Working in teams, meeting deadlines, and following industry pipelines.

Procedural FX & Advanced Rigging

Using tools like Houdini, Blender, and Maya to create dynamic effects.

Rendering & Compositing for Film & Games

Optimizing high-quality visuals using Arnold, Unreal Engine, and Nuke.

Professional Communication & Collaboration

Learning how to present work to clients, directors, and employers.

Co-op Experience: Learning from the Industry

Many ANFX students spend part of their junior year in a six-month co-op, gaining hands-on experience in animation studios, game development companies, and VFX houses. These roles expose students to real production environments, giving them insights into studio expectations, teamwork, and industry demands.

Common co-op roles include:

3D Animator

Creating motion sequences for games, films, or commercials.

VFX Artist

Working on compositing, CGI effects, and simulations.

Technical Artist

Bridging the gap between animation and programming in game engines.

3D Modeler

Designing and texturing assets for animation or interactive media.

Projects & Challenges

With industry exposure comes more complex, high-stakes projects:

Full Character Animations

Polished acting sequences with expressive motion and dialogue.

Technical FX & Simulations

Advanced fire, smoke, water, and destruction simulations in Houdini.

Game Cinematics & Interactive Storytelling

Blending animation and real-time rendering for gaming experiences.

Portfolio & Demo Reel Finalization

Showcasing industry-ready work to prepare for senior year and job applications.

A major challenge during junior year is time management—balancing co-op, advanced coursework, and portfolio-building can be overwhelming. Staying organized and efficient is key!

Core Classes

As students prepare for the professional world, coursework becomes more advanced and industry-focused. Some of the key classes include Digital Compositing (ANIM221) which examines 2D and 3D digital compositing possibilities through the manipulation and recombination of acquired and produced digital imagery, including 2D/3D Integration, 3D Matchmoving, and High Dynamic Range Imagery. Scripting for Animation and Visual Effects (ANIM231) explores modern scripting languages utilized in Animation and Visual Effects operating systems and software tools that are integral to artist productivity and production pipeline scalability. Professional Practices for Animation & VFX (ANIM250) introduces the animation and visual effects industry through projects, discussions, and hands-on activities. Students engage in role-plays and presentations to develop teamwork, management skills, and personal branding, covering all production phases from proposals to final delivery. This is also the year students take courses on their chosen animation concentration. The concentrations include organic modeling, character animation, and generalist.

Skills You’ll Learn

At this stage, students begin mastering industry-level skills and refining their artistic identity, including Advanced Animation & Motion Studies – Creating dynamic, expressive, and polished animations, Lighting & Rendering Optimization – Using software like Arnold, Redshift, or Unreal Engine for high-quality visuals, FX Simulations & Compositing – Working with particles, physics, and real-world VFX techniques, and Portfolio & Demo Reel Development – Curating the best projects to showcase to future employers.

Projects & Challenges

Pre-junior year projects push students to create portfolio-ready work and prepare for co-op applications. These include High-Quality Character Animations – Producing industry-standard motion studies and acting scenes, Rendered 3D Environments – Developing realistic, visually stunning assets, FX Simulations & VFX Shots – Implementing particle effects, explosions, and CGI compositing, and Demo Reel Creation – Compiling the strongest projects into a polished, professional portfolio. A key challenge this year is finding a focus—whether it’s character animation, modeling, VFX, motion graphics, or technical direction. Many students start tailoring their work toward their area of interest.

Tips for Success: Start applying for co-ops early. Have a portfolio and resume ready by fall term. Refine your demo reel. Show only your best work—quality over quantity. Optimize rendering workflows. Learning GPU rendering techniques can save valuable time. Network & get feedback. Engage with professors, professionals, and peers to improve your work.

Core Classes

This year’s courses take animation and VFX to the next level, introducing more complex workflows and industry tools. Key classes include Basic Portfolio (ANIM146) which focuses on the basics of portfolio creation, editing, and presentation while examining portfolio examples of current professionals in various industry roles that can serve as models for student portfolio development. Previsualization for Animated Production (ANIM155) covers the all-important design and planning process that takes place before embarking on the production of an animation or visual effects piece. In this course, student will learn and practice the creation, motivation and use of pre-production plans, concept art, mood boards, shot storyboarding, animatics, performance reference and other topics integral to the previsualization process. Animation (ANIM212) builds on topics introduced in ANIM 211 (Animation I), incorporating advanced animation techniques such as inverse kinematics and dynamics. Requires students to propose, design, and produce a short animation. Digital Compositing (ANIM220) examines digital compositing possibilities through the manipulation and recombination of acquired and produced digital imagery, including study of digital image and video formats, color space, live action digital matte painting, Greenscreen/Bluescreen compositing, rotoscope masking and 2D tracking.

Skills You’ll Learn

Sophomore year deepens understanding of both the artistic and technical aspects of animation and VFX, including Character Performance Animation – Making characters act, express emotions, and react realistically, 3D Asset Creation – Modeling, sculpting, and texturing objects and characters, Rigging & Skinning – Setting up bones and controls to prepare characters for movement, and Visual Effects & Compositing – Integrating 3D elements with live-action footage, green screens, and effects.

Projects & Challenges

This year involves more complex projects that mimic real industry workflows. Students work on Animated Character Scenes – Creating short clips that emphasize acting and body mechanics, 3D Environment & Asset Development – Designing detailed game or animation-ready assets, Rigging a Full Character – Preparing a 3D character with proper joints and movement controls, and VFX Shot Composition – Integrating CGI with live-action footage using After Effects and Nuke. A major challenge in sophomore year is time management—animation and VFX require detailed work, and rendering times can be long! Learning how to optimize workflow and meet deadlines is essential.

Tips for Success: Focus on fundamentals. Animation is about movement and storytelling, not just flashy visuals. Get comfortable with software. Learn Maya, ZBrush, After Effects, Nuke, and Substance Painter. Plan ahead. Rendering can take hours—avoid last-minute submissions! Start building your portfolio. Collect your best work and document your creative process.

Core Classes

Freshman-year coursework introduces students to essential animation principles and software while also incorporating general art and design fundamentals. Key classes include Digital Imaging for Animation & VFX (ANIM110) where students learn foundational image acquisition, lighting and processing techniques and principles utilized in Animation & VFX disciplines. Topics covered include digital still and video imaging and lighting fundamentals for reference and background gathering, texture creation, normal map sampling, spherical and high dynamic range acquisition, location survey and more. Computer Graphics Imagery (ANIM140) teaches students to represent 3D objects and spaces in 2D media using a variety of drawing and computer graphic techniques. This course lays important foundations for subsequent courses in 3D computer modeling and animation. History of Animation(ANIM215) covers the pre-cursors to modern animation and the evolution of the art since the beginning of the 20th century. Concepts in both 2D and 3D animation will be covered. Animation (ANIM211) explores computer animation with an introduction to concepts of 3D animation. Includes narrative structure, storyboarding, and development. Emphasizes aesthetic, technical and conceptual issues. Requires students to create shorty animations in timeline based software.

Skills You’ll Learn

Throughout the first year, ANFX students gain hands-on experience with tools and techniques used in professional animation and VFX studios, including Animation Principles – Understanding movement, timing, and weight to create lifelike motion, 2D & 3D Design – Exploring digital painting, character creation, and environmental design, Basic Rigging & Modeling – Learning how to create and prepare characters for animation, and Storyboarding & Visual Storytelling – Developing short narratives and planning animations through sketches.

Projects & Challenges

Freshman-year projects focus on applying learned techniques through short animation exercises. Some typical assignments include Bouncing Ball Animation – A classic exercise to master timing and squash & stretch principles, Walk Cycle Animation – Bringing a character to life with realistic movement, 3D Object Modeling – Creating a simple 3D object, such as a chair or vehicle, to practice form and texture, and Storyboard Sequence – Designing a short sequence to develop visual storytelling skills. One of the biggest challenges for ANFX students is adapting to the technical side of animation. Learning new software and troubleshooting issues can be daunting, but practice and patience make a huge difference!

Tips for Success: Draw as much as possible. Even if you prefer digital tools, strong drawing skills help improve animation work. Master the software. Get comfortable with industry-standard programs like Photoshop, Maya, and After Effects. Study real-life movement. Observe how people, animals, and objects move to make animations feel natural. Experiment with storytelling. Animation is more than just movement—it’s about crafting engaging narratives.