2D Animation (evening - online)
2D Animation (evening - online)
Course details
Location
Start date
14th October 2025
Duration
20 weeks
Contact time
Tuesday and Thursday evenings: 7:00pm - 10:00pm BST
Difficulty
Intermediate - requires a firm grasp of computer functionality
Fees
£3,250
Course overview
Bring pen strokes and colours to life to tell a story and create emotions!
In recent years, 2D animation has experienced a significant revival, as studios including Blue Zoo, Aardman Animation and Brown Bag Films are creating wonderful films and experiences using the latest tools. The industry demand for more 2D Animators has recently gone through the roof.
This course will enable students to learn the basics of 2D animation software including Toon Boom Harmony, TV Paint and Adobe Animate with no prior knowledge required. You will also have the opportunity to develop your portfolio or demo reel ensuring you are studio ready on completion of the course.
Why choose this course
- Ranked 5th in the UK – and 12th in Europe in the Animation Career Review’s school ranking
- Be taught by Shane Woodson, a London-based 2D animator with experience working at Blue Zoo Animation Studios, Lupus Films, Blink Industries and Passion Pictures, both as a freelancer and in full-time roles.
- 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
- Industry-standard software – you'll learn using professional software including ToonBoom Harmony, Adobe After Effects, TV Paint and Adobe Animate
- 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 Completion, 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
Introduction and Software
Week 1
- Introduce the course
- Getting started - kick off with Animate
- Get animating - ball bounce
- Rough animation technique
- Jumping Frog Exercise
Perspective 101
Week 2
- 1 point perspective
- 2 point perspective
- 3 point perspective
- 4 Point perspective using perspective grids
- Perspective, lighting, projection, shadows
- Freehand perspective
Volumetric Drawing & Human Anatomy
Week 3
- Freehand perspective recap
- Building simple figures / objects with volumes
- Understanding transformations
- Animating volumetric transformations
- Basic anatomy presentation
- Understanding foreshortening - people in perspective
- Placing figures in environments
Introducing Alternative Software & Follow Through / Overlapping Action
Week 4
- Animating in Photoshop
- TV Paint
- Rough Animator
- Magic Carpet task
- Flag Wave task
- Adding Character
Half Figure & Full Figure Animation
Week 5
- Waving hand
- Head turn revisited
- Lift and object
- Using props
Walk, Run and Jump Cycles
Week 6
- Humanoid walk cycle
- Front facing / back facing walk cycle
- Walk cycle variation
- Humanoid run cycle
- Adding character
- Jumping
Recap, Feedback
Week 7
- Recap time
- Feedback time
Expression, Exaggeration, Lip Sync and Acting
Week 8
- Facial anatomy talk
- Exploring exaggeration
- Animation expressions
- Getting started with lip sync
- Do some lip sync
- Troubleshoot time
Advanced Animation
Week 9
- Callback to perspective and walk / run cycles
- Callback to front/ back / side views on walk / run cycles
- Animating a moving camera
- Animal Anatomy
- Quadrupedal walk cycle (dog)
- Quadrupedal run cycle (dog)
- Quadrupedal cycles (horse)
Clean up, Storyboarding and Planning
Week 10
- Clean up presentation
- Charts exercise
- Troubleshooting
- Cinematography presentation
- Thumbnailing
- Full boards
Beginning and Developing Character Designs
Week 11
- Getting started with theory - shape language and semiotics
- Research and references
- Developing designs through silhouettes
- Silhouette to developed idea
- Developing details - keeping it simple
- Costume design
Formalising Designs, Character Colour and Style
Week 12
- Orthographic turnarounds
- Pose and expression sheets
- Refer back to clean up session
- Colour palettes and theory
- Finalised turnaround
Environment Design and Creating Layouts
Week 13
- Recap the character design process
- Photobashing
- Sketchwork
- Callback to storyboarding session
- Set up
- Important elements
- Animated BG props / assets
- Preparation for exporting
Layout to Background, Mood and Lighting
Week 14
- Painting technique - non-destructive editing
- Painting technique - line and colour
- Paiting technique - lineless
- Colour and light mood for impact
- Creating lighting
- Adjusting existing lighting
Animating the Environment and Character Lighting in AE
Week 15
- History of animation - the multiplane camera
- Introduction to After Effects
- Bringing PS files to AE
- Animating the environment
- Animating the camera
- Recap comps and nesting
- Track mattes
- Adding texture and FX
- Editing line
- Comping into background
- Rendering and encoding
Recap, Feedback
Week 16
- Recap time
- Feedback time
Harmony 101 and Introducing Rigged Animation
Week 17
- Software introduction
- Getting started
- Importing assets
- Drawing
- Rig walkthrough (susuwatari)
- Back to basics - bouncing ball
- Cutout tweening techniques
- Animation tasks
Advanced Cutout Animation and Lip Sync
Week 18
- Recap cutout technique
- Animating between views
- Introduce a more complex rig
- Recap lip sync technique
- Set up lip sync in Harmony
- Introduce the Finn rig
- Animation time
Rigging Basics and Advanced Rigging (Characters)
Week 19
- Anatomy for rigging, adapted for rig focus
- Basic rigging
- Adding a second view
- Adding deformers
- Recap basic rigging
- Draw up front view
- Second view time
- Advanced techniques
Feedback and Considering a Career?
Week 20
- Recap time
- Feedback time
- Guide to portfolios and reels
- Networking and jobs
- Job listings and studio cultures
More information
Entry requirements
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 (we recommend a B2 level)
- Feel comfortable using a computer.
If you’d like to discuss your circumstances before applying, contact us!
Online study requirements
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
- Cloud storage or external hard drive to back up your work, 1TB+ recommended
- A three-button mouse or graphics tablet. Please note, the Wacom Intuos Pro range of tablets have the best support for our remote desktop software and provide the best experience.
- 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 hello@escapestudios.ac.uk.
How to apply
To apply, complete the relevant online application form below:
Our Admissions Team will get in touch to take you through the next steps.
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.
Fees and funding
Fees
Live online: £3,250
Payment plans
We offer 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 three instalments, to be paid before the end of the course.
Visit our admissions page for any questions about fees, funding and payment plans.
Teaching and learning
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.
Software
- Toon Boom Harmony includes many tools such as rigging, keyframe and morphing animation, vector based designing and particle effects. In addition you can also combine 3D elements with 2D animation.
- Adobe After Effects is a highly versatile layer-based software used in animation, motion graphics and visual effects to animate and composite designs together.
- TV Paint is a 2D paint and digital animation software package including many useful tools that will help you from storyboarding to compositing.
- Adobe Animate is an animation program used to design vector graphics and animation for games, TV shows and the web.
Career opportunities
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. Ready to apply for jobs in the industry!
Some of the opportunities you can consider once you’ve finished your studies include:
- Junior 2D Animator
- Storyboard Artist
- Editorial Assistant for Animation
- Production Assistant
Our students have gone to work as both specialist and generalist artists in the animation industry, including 2D animation for films, TV shows, games and commercials.
Read some of our animation Escapee success stories.
Check out our Careers Guide for more information about career opportunities and progression routes.
Why Escape Studios?
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Meet our industry-experienced tutors
They all have industry experience and are experts in their fields. They are certified trainers for Autodesk Maya. They’ve worked at studios including Walt Disney, DreamWorks and Framestore, on credits including The Lion King, Godzilla and Doctor Strange.
Student showcase
Escape Studios gave me the tools, and the environment that I needed to learn a new skill. I could then take those tools and push on, knowing that I was always going to start from a solid foundation.
