Admin Rodney Posted March 4, 2014 Admin Posted March 4, 2014 I almost hesitate to share this because I'm a firm believer that you shouldn't go into any major expenditure unprepared... so this only applies to you if you are already prepared. Animation Mentor is currently offering a 'one time only' discount on their Animation Basics course. Some caveats (in my opinion): *If* you already versed in Maya at least to the point where you can find your way around easily, or... *If* you've already taken a course in Maya (preferrably the intro to Maya course at Animation Mentor), and... *If* you have a lot of free time in your schedule, and... *If* you've currenty got the spare cash on hand, or... *If* you were planning to attend a local college/course that would cost nearly the same, or... *If* you were already planning to enroll in Animation Mentor at sometime in the future anyway... ... then enrollment by 9 March could save you almost $1,300. Several considerations: - One time only deals are never to be trusted. They will likely offer the same or even better deal sometime in the future. One time deals are often a sign of short term desperation and/or wheels turning to resolve a short term internal crisis (i.e. not enough new folks enrolling to fulfill the available schedule*). - Once bitten by the Maya bug you may be infected for life... not necessarily a negative... but it will likely affect your enjoyment of 3D software in general. - Once in Animation Mentor you'll be more likely to spend additional thousands of dollars for the other courses available... the cheaper intro courses are there to indoctrinate... again, not necessarily a bad thing. --------------------------------------------- The primary purpose of attending Animation Mentor and most of the other online schools (in my opinion) is one of access and connectivity(networking). Gaining access to: experienced instructors... limited characters/rigs... exclusive pipelines... these are some of the major selling points of . Now, lest it seem as if I'm not a fan of Animation Mentor let me confess I am a fan and that I would love to attend any and all classes available... not that I could ever afford them. (For the record I currently rank the top three online schools as; Animation Mentor, iAnimate and Animschool... although there are many other high quality (and lower quality) alternatives giving them some tough competition... another excellent reason to discount) At any rate, the results you get out of any endeavor will be proportional to the investment you put in. So, if you commit to Animation Mentor be ready to fully devote your time to it. And that's enough of me trying to sit here on this fence. Their website: http://www.animationmentor.com/ *Smaller class size can be a very good thing as students will get more one-on-one attention. Quote
Hash Fellow robcat2075 Posted March 4, 2014 Hash Fellow Posted March 4, 2014 Whew! Just the news that they are running a cut-rate deal like that seems like an ominous sign for them. How do they square that with people who have signed up for full price? Ya know... it was just about ten years ago that Victor Navone posted here to say that something called AnimationMentor was going to happen and it seemed like the coolest idea ever. I did the first four quarters way back when they let you use any software you wanted. It was all new and shiny then and very exciting to be part of it. If one could figure out a way to not have to use Maya I'd recommend it at that price. Quote
pixelplucker Posted March 4, 2014 Posted March 4, 2014 Do they give a $20 Dunkin Donuts gift card with sign up too? I'm always about the bargain and perks. Quote
Admin Rodney Posted March 4, 2014 Author Admin Posted March 4, 2014 If one could figure out a way to not have to use Maya I'd recommend it at that price. And there may be the crux of the matter. At the outset Animation Mentor didn't even require 3D software. You could take the course and apply what you learned to hand drawn animation. That... didn't last very long in the face of real world constraints and hand drawn animation became mostly a reference point. They had to make that move to remain relevant as 2D animation jobs went away. It is perhaps this more than anything that opened the gate for competition in a variety of ways as talented classically trained animators saw new opportunities appear. We continuously see Animation Mentor taking steps to reinvent themselves and that is a very good thing. The pay per view lessons they have offered in the past year, for instance, and branching out into VFX... an interesting move in the midst of the ongoing VFX upheaval... but a shrewd business move never-the-less. The animation industry is a better place for having them and I wish them long and continuing success. Do they give a $20 Dunkin Donuts gift card with sign up too? I'm always about the bargain and perks. You know, if you ask nicely, I bet they will. Quote
Hash Fellow robcat2075 Posted March 5, 2014 Hash Fellow Posted March 5, 2014 If anyone does do this I'll reiterate Rodney's advice... be prepared to put substantial time into it. It's not something you can do adequately in a few hours on the weekend or an hour or two each night. The mentor comments are what you are paying for and if they are commenting on stuff you knew was still not finished about it you're paying for something you already knew. Quote
detbear Posted March 5, 2014 Posted March 5, 2014 I graduated from Animation Mentor in 2006. Don't be impressed with this....I still have a long way to go. And animation mentor is certainly no magic bullet. I'm no expert animator by any means. The Animation Mentor program is first rate and you do rub shoulders with people who are working on projects that most of us dream of. I highly recommend the program even if you have to do it in Maya. If your goal is to be an animator in a professional studio, it is an awesome choice that has the potential to help open some doors to that road. I still use Animation Master and in fact I just reniewed my license yesterday. So you guys will have to put up with me for at least another year. But I certainly wouldn't let the fact that you have to use Maya for Animation Mentor deter you from attending. Unless the cost for a student license is not possible. It does take a lot of time to work through the course projects. After all, it's designed to produce professional level animators who can step over from their program into the large studios right out of the gate. Cheers, William Quote
Admin Rodney Posted March 5, 2014 Author Admin Posted March 5, 2014 You could even be mentored by one of the guys who cut their teeth on computer animation with A:M back in the day. Here are three current mentors that were quite active in the A:M community (they demonstrated a propensity for quality and instruction then as well): Victor Navone Shaun Freeman Dimos Vrysellas I still use Animation Master and in fact I just reniewed my license yesterday. So you guys will have to put up with me for at least another year. wink.gif Oh dear. There are quite a few A:M Users that have pressed through Animation Mentor aren't there? (if I start listing them I'm sure to miss many... but here's a shout out to Dhar, Teresa, Gary (Abrehart)... in my estimation Animation Mentor took them from having an avid interest in computer animation to being skilled technicians of the art. The majority of us live vicariously through your experiences. Quote
TeresaNord Posted March 19, 2014 Posted March 19, 2014 (edited) Wow! That is a big discount. AM was a great program when I went through. I know they switched up their courses a bit, so I can't speak to that. There definitely is a lot of competition now with AnimSchool, iAnimate, and more recently AnimSquad. Competition to get a staff job at the big studios seems to be as steep as ever. I owe AM everything for getting my foot in the door when I did. I'm so thankful to have one of those staff jobs and definitely count myself lucky. Oh, I also had Dimos as a mentor and he was fantastic! Edited March 19, 2014 by TeresaNord Quote
Admin Rodney Posted March 19, 2014 Author Admin Posted March 19, 2014 You are a success story if I ever saw one Teresa. The school certainly helped but your relentless and continual drive to be an animator was surely the critical element that brought about your success. It was easy to see that you had what it took to reach the goal even before I met you at the Hash Bash way back when. I must say though that your Dad played a pivotal role as well. As I recall he was your greatest ally in the effort. *Sniff* (pardon me while I get emotional here) We are very proud of you. Quote
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