SAMPLES OF STUDENT CHARACTER DESIGNS FOR THEIR TOONBOOM FILMS.
At Max The Mutt Animation School 3rd Year students take a series of courses
related to their final film projects which are done in Toonboom Digital Pro
2D software.
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It’s my birthday today, so I’m in a reflective mood. We had an open house Feb,23 and 24, and once again I met so many hopeful young people and some very supportive parents. One can’t help wanting everything to live up to their expectations. I guess that’s what drives us on, that and our own need to remain energized and excited about what we’re doing.

Tina Seemann (Animation Director) and I met with Stephen Barnes on Friday evening. He will be the Director of the fourth year film in 2008-2009, and, is a former Pixar animator and lead animator on one of my favorite films, Monsters Inc. We are all excited about the growth of the fourth year 3D Computer Animation and Production Advanced Diploma Program. This year 10 to12 students will work with three professionals in a studio environment.

On Sunday we met with Brent George, Animation Director for Pseudo Interactive. He will be working on the group project and will also supervise short individual films by each student.

We are also lucky enough to have Steven Sayers on the team. The professionals who know him consider Steve to be a 3D technical genius, and he is also an artist. He will teach the basics of 3D computer animation, using Maya,with the exception of rigging, which is an area of expertise for Brent, and animation, which Stephen Barnes will teach. Stephen will also be in charge of pre-production, which this year will include storyboards done in ToonBoom Storyboard Pro, and an animatic also executed using this wonderful professional software.

When production begins, Brent will be the production manager and Steve Sayers will be with the students daily.

All in all, the college couldn’t have hoped for a better 3D team.

Other members of the team include Tina Seemann, who designed the characters, will teach Drawing for Animation, and will be the Executive Producer, and Sarah Joy Bennett who will teach the advanced improv classes.

We at Max the Mutt, a Career College with the desire to continue to be the best we can be, are totally energized by this dream team. The team features students who have a professional attitude, are willing to take direction and stretch themselves, and are looking forward to the opportunity to learn from and work along side industry professionals. What an opportunity!

We have run this program before, but never with the input of so many wonderful experts in 3D animation.

 Concept Art… Art and Design…Media Art and Design…Video Game Art and Design…   It really can get confusing – there are so many words and titles used for the same things.

Max the Mutt is a Career College offering a four year Diploma Program in  Concept Art as well as other diploma programs. That is, our college focuses on “art and design.”  In fact, all of our programs concentrate on giving students a solid skill base.

Some schools offer “game design” programs (diploma or degree) that include some courses in concept art ( also known as video game art design).  However, concept art is a career that demands deep drawing and painting skills in addition to concept specific courses and it’s doubtful that in 3 or 4 years any program can adequately teach both!  That’s why we don’t teach “game design.”

“Concept Art” can be used to refer to “Design For Animation” as well as “Design for Video Games,”  although  recently  it seems  often to be used  to refer to the background, character and prop design for video games.

We want our students to have a broad-based concept art education that will give them flexibility in the workplace now and in the future.  That’s why our college’s concept art program includes Concept Art for Animation as well as 2D and 3D game design!  Our Concept Art graduates will be employable in both industries. We’ve  already had numerous visits from major video game companies, and our animation grads are working for EA and UbiSoft as concept artists, animators, and lighting specialists

Introduction to 3D Maya Software start July 20,  2009)

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Cartooning Part 2 with Tina Seemann: Starts July 14, 2008

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Flash Professional CS3 : Starts June 22, 2009

Students will continue their  learning of the Flash CS3 program, including designing and draw vector-based characters, how to place those characters in environments, and how to animate for both the internet and broadcast.

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Photoshop for Beginners: Starts June 30, 2008

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Introduction to Classical Animation with Tina Seemann:

Starts July 7, 2008

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Painting with Acrylics: Starts June 30, 2008

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