Master of Animation & Visualisation

UTS Animal Logic Academy is a world class digital-production education centre that offers an 1-year accelerated, industry-led Master of Animation and Visualisation, as well as postgraduate research opportunities. Graduates have gone on to work at studios such as Luma Pictures, Flying Bark, Method Studios, Mill Film, MPC, Double Negative, Animal Logic and many others.
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Master of Animation & Visualisation

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About the Animal Logic Academy

Established in 2017, the Academy is a custom built VFX studio and teaching facility at the UTS campus in Sydney Australia. Mentored by industry experts, masters students are immersed in a full time studio environment, using a combination of established film VFX processes as well as pioneering use of new tools from the real-time industry.

The Academy also offers practice-based PhD research opportunities, current research projects have already won awards at industry festivals, covering areas as diverse as hybrid CG/motion-control film-making, digital archiving techniques, and real-time music visualisation.

Graduates have gone on to work for Method Studios, Flying Bark, Animal Logic, Mill Film and many others. The student work has been recognised with awards from The Rookies, Autodesk Shotgun and the AEAF.

Graduate Success Stories

 

Jessica Dali

Assistant Technical Director at Method Studios, Sydney
Technical Director at Animal Logic, Sydney

“With the help of close mentors and industry professionals, I was able to leave the Academy and walk into my first job feeling confident that I was ready and knew what I was doing.”

Andrew Battye

2d animator at Animal Logic, Sydney
Compositor at Flying Bark, Sydney

“My time at the Academy helped in many ways. Experience working in a production pipeline was very important in being able to hit the ground running when you get a job.  Also the network of people you come into contact with and the relationships you form at the MAV are just as, if not more, important as the technical experience you gain.”

Alejandro Garrido

FX artist at Animal Logic, Sydney
3D generalist at Rotor Studios, Sydney
FX artist on short film Jasper (UTSALA)

“The ability to put on a different hat without losing momentum and staying in full production mode helped in my current role.  Through the Academy I met and went on to work with fellow students or industry guests that wouldn’t have been able to meet otherwise.”

Hannah Chu

Pipeline TD at Flying Bark, Sydney

“I’ve have the chance to do development on new technologies, like hololens, AR / VR development in Unity.  And most important of all, the academy provided me with the experience to understand how it feels to work in the VFX industry, and that’s what I came for in the first place.”

Aaron De Leon

3D Generalist at StartVR, Sydney

“My time at the Academy helped with building professional networks, being introduced to new software, emerging hardware, and industry workflows.”

Alessandra Grasso

Production Co-ordinator at Flying Bark, Sydney

“My time at the Academy allowed me to gain new skills, work with emerging technology, see what it’s like working in an animation studio and most importantly create industry connections.”

Emma Cooney

Lighting Artist at Animal Logic, Sydney

“Exposure to a film industry-style production pipeline was one of the most valuable experiences I got from the academy. Mirroring industry practices such as desk rounds and dailies really helped me settle quickly at Animal Logic.”

Meet the Team

Alex Weight

Alex is the Creative Lead at the Academy. His international career spans two decades as a writer, director, animator and script consultant in senior roles across the animation and VFX industries, working at companies including Rising Sun Pictures, Animal Logic, Flying Bark and Script Central. Most recently Alex worked on ‘Peter Rabbit’ and wrote and directed the Chinese animated feature films ‘Frog Kingdom 3’ and ‘Frog Kingdom 4’. He was co-director of the animated feature ‘Blinky Bill: The Movie’, animation supervisor on Zack Snyder’s ‘Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga’Hoole’ and lead animator on the Oscar-winning animation feature ‘Happy Feet’.

Daniel Flood

Technical Lead at the Academy, Dan has over 10 years’ experience in pipeline, lighting and look development at Method, Dr.D and Animal Logic. He has worked on films such as The Great Gatsby, Deepwater Horizon, Gods of Egypt, Ghostbusters, and Happy Feet Two. Dan was also key in designing the award winning ‘Turret’ Shotgun+USD pipeline used at the Academy, and in steering our real-time technologies.

Matt Estela

VFX lead at the Academy, Matt Estela has over 20 years of experience in 3D animation and VFX, most recently as VR supervisor and FX lead at Animal Logic Sydney. Some of Matt’s recent projects include Peter Rabbit, The Lego Batman Movie and its VR experience, and a number of 3D commercials both here and overseas. Matt is considered to be one of the world’s leading specialists in the VFX software ‘Houdini’ and is creator of CGWiki, a free online guide for Houdini and computer graphics tips that’s popular with many industry professionals. Matt is also a frequent speaker at international conferences and is a regular speaker at SIGGRAPH.

 

 

Andrew Johnston

Andrew Johnston is Associate Professor at the University of Technology Sydney, where he works as the Research Director of the UTS Animal Logic Academy, an education and research studio focusing on creative practice and digital technologies. He also co-directs the Creativity and Cognition Studios, an interdisciplinary research group working at the intersection of performance, art and technology.

Sarah Giddy

Sarah is our Studio Coordinator, providing administrative and operational assistance for the department and students. In managing the day-to-day operation of the studio, Sarah oversees academy enquiries and admissions, provides primary student contact and support, and coordinates studio events and social media. Sarah’s focus is to support the academy in the delivery of its award-winning program and to help produce the next generation of animation and visualisation professionals.

Ian Thomson

Ian is the Head of Academy, and has over 30 years of international experience as an award-winning media designer, filmmaker, author and educator – with postings in London (Frame Store), Barcelona (OFramestore), Vienna (DMC), Hamburg (Premiere) and Sydney (VPB). Ian has developed media projects, theatre, documentaries and courses for a range of large organisations and brands. Most recently Ian has developed Bachelor courses in Advertising and Digital Media, and Diploma courses in Social Media Marketing, Content Creation and User Experience.

How to Apply

For further information about the Master of Animation and Visualisation, including information about how to apply, eligibility criteria, and fees for domestic and international students, please visit UTS Future Students course page.