Course development

Designed, developed and delivered with industry

Infographic depicting how Escape Studios works seamlessly with students and employers

Designed with industry

Our undergraduate and postgraduate degrees, as well as a selection of our short courses, are designed in collaboration with leading industry professionals from cutting-edge studios, including DNEG, Creative Assembly and Framestore, through our Degree Concept Team (DCT) approach. The DCT brings together experienced industry leaders, academics and students to design degrees that are relevant to employers and up to date.  

An advisory board of leading industry professionals also share their expertise and advice with us.

Developed with industry

To make sure that our courses stay relevant, you will be taught by tutors who are active in the industry, using briefs based on real-life projects. Some of our tutors are certified as authorised trainers on software like Unreal Engine and Houdini, others get to test the beta versions of new software, and others provide training to industry professionals who look to up-skill in a new software or technique. Our degrees are also regularly reviewed and updated, with input from studio professionals and employers.  

Delivered with industry

Our courses and talent development activities are delivered with and by industry-experienced tutors and studio professionals. Our tutors are well-connected and active experts in their fields. They have worked on the likes of Thor: Love and Thunder, Fantastic Beasts, Moon Knight and Star Wars, and for studios including DNEG, Industrial Light & Magic, Walt Disney Animation Studios, Warner Bros, Sony and EA.  

Find out more about our industry partners.

Whether it be us providing guest speakers or mentors or Escape Studios supporting us with career development for our teams, we have always found new and important ways to work together on the skills agenda for our industry.

Amy Smith
Global Director, Recruitment & Outreach at Framestore

Advisory Board

A group of industry pioneers meet and share their expertise and advice with us. They give us advance intelligence on new technology and developments, so our course content is always contemporary and our students can fit into the biggest and best companies in the screen industries.
 

Advisory Board members include:  

  • Charlie Bayliss - Freelance VFX/CG Supervisor 

  • Tom Box - Co-Founder at Blue Zoo 

  • Eamonn Butler - Head of Animation Division at Cinesite 

  • Adam Dewhirst - Lead Modeller at Industrial Light & Magic 

  • Phil Dobree - Founder of Jellyfish Pictures

  • Paul Franklin - Creative Director at DNEG 

  • Kate Gabriel - Lighting and Rendering Supervisor at The Mill 

  • Diarmid Harrison-Murray - Creative Director at Untold Studios 

  • Max Howard - CEO at Max Howard Consulting

  • Alistair Hope - Creative Director at Creative Assembly

  • Philip Hunt - Partner and Director at Studio AKA 

  • Louise Hussey - Executive Producer at Industrial Light & Magic 

  • Gina Jackson OBE – Founder of GameDev Bootcamps 

  • Shelley Page - Key Talent and Artist Liaison at Locksmith Animation 

  • Ian Palmer - Art Director at Improbable 

  • Simon Payne - Principal Technical Animator at Creative Assembly 

  • Tara Saunders - Studio Head at PlayStation London Studio 

  • Andrew Schlussel - Senior Director, Training and Development at DNEG Animation 

  • James Sindle - Operations Manager at ETC 

  • Amy Smith - Global Director, Recruitment & Outreach at Framestore 

  • Sheila Wickens - VFX Supervisor at MPC 

Escape Studios has a validation agreement with Coventry University. This means that our undergraduate and postgraduate degrees starting from September 2024 have been validated and are awarded through Coventry University. Their validation, combined with our industry-approved content ensures your qualification is rigorous and internationally recognised.

No teaching takes place at Coventry University. All on-campus classes and the graduation ceremony will be held in London.

Please note that our undergraduate and postgraduate degrees which started before September 2024 have been validated and will be awarded through the University of Kent.