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storyboarding part time 

Storyboarding (Evening - 10 weeks)

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Course details

Location

Live online

Start date

26th March 2024

Application deadline

24th March 2024

Duration

10 weeks

Mode of study

Part time (Tuesday evening: 7pm-10pm)

Fees

£905

Top 10 Rookies award for creative schools in the UK
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Course overview

Every good artist tells a story... learn about the initial conceptual process required to create a feature. 

This online evening course provides an introduction to the art and craft of storyboarding, the initial conceptual process required before any feature can be created, in a virtual classroom setting. It’s relevant for anyone who wants to learn storyboarding, whether for live action, animation, commercials, or your own private projects.

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Why choose this course 

  • Based in London – home to some of the best animation and visual effects studios in the world  

  • Industry briefs – work on industry-standard briefs and experience real-life scenarios, just like in a professional studio  

  • Professional input – our advisory board of experts, from the likes of DNEG (Avengers: Endgame and Oscar-winning Dune) and Cinesite (Iwájú and Thor: Love and Thunder), help keep this degree relevant

  • Successful alumni – you'll join our community of thousands of Escapees, many of whom have gone on to work at some of the world’s top studios. 31 Escapees worked on Thor: Love and Thunder, 28 on Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore and 16 on Stranger Things

  • Industry-standard facilities – study in a studio environment that mirrors current industry practice, using professional software and techniques 

  • Online mentoring and individual feedback will be provided by your tutor for a further 4 weeks after the course. You'll be set a series of projects

  • Fast-track learning – studying a short course allows you to learn new skills quickly, in a fast-paced environment, so you can start applying for jobs as soon as you’ve completed the programme 

  • Intensive training - we pack a lot into a few evening classes, and we recommend that you work outside of classes for an extra few hours per week to complete your assignments

  • Flexibility - study live online and in the evening to fit the course around your professional and personal life and other commitments  

  • Strong portfolio - along with an Escape Studios Certificate of Achievement, you'll leave with strong creative and technical skills and great pieces for your portfolio  

  • Small class sizes - a convivial environment allows students to assist and inspire one another and benefit from personalised feedback from tutors.

Course Modules

  • Introductory exercises 

  • Creativity, ideas and inspiration for stories 

  • Gesture drawing, fast sketches and research

  • Single images that tell a story 

  • Gag drawings 

  • Situations and character-driven ideas

  • Script, beat boards, story reel and animatic

  • Movie structure analysis 

  • Camera and Layout 

  • Reverse-storyboarding a pantomime sequence 

  • Introduction to principles of design and visual development

  • How to break down script pages 

  • Progression and punctuation in a sequence

  • Staging

  • Story beats 

  • Narrative structure 

  • Pacing 

  • Cinematography

  • How to edit, cut and time storyboards in Premiere, to create a storyboard animatic 

  • Music, sound effects, voice over and dialogue

  • How to pitch your storyboards 

  • Acting, performance and delivery

More information

  • Toon Boom Storyboard Pro  

  • Toon Boom Harmony

  • Panel Forge

To apply for this course, or if you have any questions about your application or our entry requirements, get in touch!

As part of the application process, you will need to agree to our terms and conditions for your place on the course to be secured.

Minimum requirements

We welcome and encourage applications from students with a variety of backgrounds, experiences and perspectives.

To study this short course, you must:

  • Be over 18

  • Have a good understanding of written and spoken English

  • Feel comfortable using a computer.

If you’d like to discuss your circumstances before applying, contact us on courses@escapestudios.ac.uk or +44 (0) 203 441 1303.

Non-UK students

We accept international students for our short courses, with no difference in course fees or administration costs. 

The Standard Visitor visa allows students to come to the UK to study for a course of up to six months at an accredited institution. Depending on your nationality, you may need to apply for a standard visitor visa prior to departure from your home country. For more information visit:  

Contact us on courses@escapestudios.ac.uk or +44 (0)203 441 1303 for any questions.

We can provide remote access to our workstations during teaching time. Due to availability restrictions, we highly advise you to have your own set up at home to study in your own time.

More things you’ll need:

  • A strong internet connection

  • An external hard drive (minimum 2TB) to back up your work during the course

  • A three-button mouse (or optionally graphics tablet)

  • A computer microphone (and optionally a webcam)

  • Note-taking materials

If you have any questions about learning online or if you need help with what to buy, get in touch at courses@escapestudios.ac.uk.

Fees 

Live online: £905

Payment plans

We offer a range of payment plan options for all courses. Following an initial deposit at registration stage, your chosen payment plan will break down your remaining fees into up to six equal instalments, to be paid over the course length.

Contact our Admissions Team on courses@escapestudios.ac.uk or +44 (0)203 441 1303 or visit our admissions page for any questions about fees, funding and payment plans.

“The UK is home to distinct and highly successful centres of animation production excellence throughout the country, including Belfast, Bristol, Cardiff, Dundee, Edinburgh, London and Manchester.” (source Animation UK)

You’ll leave with an Escape Studios Certificate of Achievement, along with strong creative and technical skills and some great pieces of work for your portfolio, which you can add to with help from our Aftercare programme. Ready to apply for jobs in the industry!

Storyboard Artists often start on junior roles before rising to mid-level and senior roles. They can also go into a Producer and Director path further on down the line. 

You can aspire to work on a great variety of projects, whether it is a film, video game, virtual production or architectural visualisation, working directly with Writers, Producers, Directors and creative teams. 

Our students have gone to work at companies including Disney and The Third Floor. 

Read some of our Escapee success stories.

Check out our Careers Guide for more information about career opportunities and progression routes.

We pack a lot into each class of our evening courses, to be able to offer a learning option that is more flexible and fits in with your personal and work life. This means that contact time with your tutors will be intense learning and hands on. To make the most of this course, we recommend that you spend at least 10 hours working on your projects or practising your new skills in your own time each week. 

Profile picture of Iliana Franklin

Meet our industry-experienced tutors

Iliana Franklin is the lead tutor on this master’s programme. With over 30 years of experience in the animation industry, she has worked on various TV shows and films including Carland Cross and The Princess and the Pea. Our tutors work together to develop our courses. They all have industry experience, at studios such as Walt Disney, DreamWorks and Framestore, and are experts in their fields, including certified trainers for Autodesk Maya. 

Meet your tutors

Student Showcase

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