Whether pursuing a new career or updating skills, our 3D animation courses are a complete study pathway to help launch your career as an animator. Learn to animate from scratch using Maya, and graduate with a professional portfolio.
Why choose CG Spectrum's 3D animation course:
Average expected salary for trained film and game animators
Global value of the animation, VFX & games industry
Average time it takes to become job ready with CG Spectrum
Learn from an industry mentor, and graduate with the skills and confidence to pursue your dream career. See how our 3D animation courses work in the video below.
Plan studies around your work and family commitments
Learn from experts who have worked on major films and games
Build practical and relevant job skills studios are hiring for
Pursue your passion and start working sooner
Get more out of your education! Live weekly sessions with your industry mentor, personalized feedback on assignments, plus a supportive online community cheering you on. Private 1-on-1 or small group classes available.
CG Spectrum's online 3D animation courses are a complete study pathway to help you become a 3D animator for films and video games! From charismatic characters to captivating creatures, you'll learn how to animate with Autodesk Maya, build original portfolio pieces, and graduate with a strong portfolio to show employers!
3 MONTHS
Course summary:
Learn how to animate from scratch with this fun short course - perfect for beginners! Using the 12 Principles of Animation, you'll lock down the fundamentals, then jump into Autodesk Maya to learn about character rigs and posing. Finish with your first walk cycle!
Note: This short course is also the first term of the Foundations of 3D Animation Course, so you’ll be one-third of the way through if you choose to continue!
6-9 MONTHS
Course summary:
Once you've mastered your 3D foundations, you'll learn body mechanics and how to use force and weight to create a believable combat scene in Maya. Next you'll learn storytelling for animation, develop a backstory for a character and have a go at conveying emotions using body language by creating a pantomime piece. Finish with a character dialogue scene complete with lip sync, facial and body expressions - and have a polished piece for your demo reel.
Note: The Introduction to 3D Animation Certificate is embedded in this course. If you complete the 3-month introductory course, you'll be one-third of the way through this course.
9 MONTHS
Course summary:
Time for advanced character acting and creature animation to level-up your portfolio with high-quality work to show employers!
Learn how to get two characters interacting in a fun and realistic way. Discover how to analyze dialogue, shoot reference video and set up scenes using professional workflows. Watch your animation come alive as you apply your new knowledge of shot composition, cinematography, layering, acting beats and body mechanics to your scene.
In the creature animation class, you'll expand your versatility as an artist with everything from quadruped walks, runs and jumps, to animating winged creatures. With your industry mentor offering time-saving tips and tricks throughout the course, you’ll gain a solid understanding of creature animation, and have a great time breathing life into your creatures.
This advanced 3D animation course includes a whole term dedicated to career and portfolio development to ensure you graduate ready to hit the ground running at your next job.
2 YEARS
Course summary:
Specialise in 3D animation and learn how to breathe life into digital characters using Autodesk Maya. With instruction and support from professional film and game industry animators, you'll master complex creature and character animation techniques to create compelling 3D scenes. Your characters and creatures will walk, talk, run, jump, and fly as you gain a comprehensive understanding of body mechanics.
Balance your more technical skills and knowledge with storytelling and character acting, applying elements like shot composition, cinematography, layering, and acting beats to enhance your animated performances. Graduate with an impressive 3D animation showreel coupled with essential career and industry knowledge.
Learn from passionate industry veterans with years of real-world experience working at major studios on blockbuster films and best-selling video games.
Mark has held lead positions at Rainmaker, Sony and Weta Digital working on films like Avatar, The Adventures of Tintin, and Night at the Museum.
Dept. Head of 3D Animation
Known for Avatar
Spectra has been animating for almost a decade at Playstation, Digital Domain and Ubisoft on projects such as Far Cry 6, Uncharted 4: A Thief's End, and Advantageous.
Mentor of 3D Animation
Known for Uncharted 4: A Thief's End
Nick's held lead positions at major game studios Relic Entertainment and Phoenix Labs. Credits include Dauntless, Dawn of War 3 and Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City.
Mentor of 3D Animation
Known for Dauntless
Ambre has worked as an animator in the UK, Australia, New Zealand, USA, and Canada on projects like LEGO Avengers, Happy Feet Two, Avatar and Where the Wild Things Are.
Mentor of 3D Animation
Known for Avatar
Roland has worked his way across the globe at major studios like Weta Digital, where he worked on two Planet of The Apes movies, The Hobbit Trilogy, and Avengers: Infinity War.
Mentor of 3D Animation
Known for Avengers: Infinity War
Delano's credits include Ready Player One, The Walking Dead, Deadpool and Independence Day: Resurgence from his time at top studios Zoic, Digital Domain and Mill Film.
Mentor of 3D Animation
Known for Deadpool
Mentor of 3D Animation
Known for Spider-man 3: Homecoming
Mentor of 3D Animation
Known for Planet Blue: Journey to Eco
Jacob is an award-winning director, writer, and animator who now works at Walt Disney Imagineering. Credits include Red Dead Redemption, God of War III, Batman: Arkham Origins, The Jungle Book, and The Flash.
Mentor of 3D Animation
Known for Batman: Arkham Origins
With 20+ years in the industry, Michael has worked on countless feature films for just about every major studio around the world including DNEG, Cinesite, MPC, Weta Digital, Pixomondo and Lucasfilm.
Mentor of 3D Animation
Known for Pacific Rim Uprising
With a focus on portfolio preparation, we help students build their competitive edge with high quality work that gets noticed. See what recent graduates have created.
I was hired by Ubisoft!
It’s your career success that matters. I applied to some companies with my updated reel and got hired by a studio named Dwarf-Labs where I did some animations for a CG commercial. Then I was hired by Ubisoft where I worked on one of their biggest franchises, Assassin’s Creed Syndicate!
I landed a job immediately after finishing the course.
When I started CG Spectrum's animation program, I wasn't sure what to expect. Now, I can surely tell that choosing CG Spectrum was the best decision I've ever made. My mentors were incredibly knowledgeable, dedicated and supportive.
I learned more in 9 months than other students do in 2 years.
The level of education I have received is unlike any other school I've come across. What separates CG Spectrum from other schools is that the mentors are not only talented professionals in their own right, but they also care about your success as an artist both in school and after you graduate. CG Spectrum is incredible, I cannot recommend it enough.
It's been extremely helpful for my portfolio and my confidence as an artist!
I've learned so much about not only animation, but the thought process an artist goes through when creating a piece.
If you’re looking to enhance your specialist skills to industry level, CG Spectrum is the place to be.
Having never done an online course, I didn’t expect to receive this level of personalised learning and quality teaching. The amount of 1-on-1 is second to none. The techniques not only improved my animation skills by leaps and bounds, they taught me to be a better storyteller.
I can’t praise CG Spectrum enough for the quality of teaching and dedication to their students.
Mark [Pullyblank] was the best mentor I’ve ever had. He really took the time to help design the course around what it is that I wanted to get out of it. I’ve studied other animation courses in the past, but none even come close to the depth and speed of development as CG Spectrum.
CG Spectrum got me my dream job!
After a lot of research, I found CG Spectrum. The curriculum is wonderful, and the school is very accommodating. The mentors actually go through the files of your assignments. This contributes tremendously towards understanding your mistakes and HOW you can correct them. The mentors are extremely helpful, encouraging, kind and most importantly, always available for help.
So much more than I expected.
CG Spectrum is a very fun and relaxed online community where other students and mentors communicate in a refreshingly open way. The Mentors really make these courses a unique experience; they share anecdotes and advice that will stay with me for many years.
I'm learning so much and loving every minute of it!
I didn't realise how much I didn't know before joining CG Spectrum. I'm learning stuff you just can't get out of books and videos alone. You can't ask a book a question. Here, your mentors open your file and give a video critique showing different approaches and ways to improve your workflow, making sure you fully understand the lesson.
Email: hello@cgspectrum.com