Bucks Animation students visit Blue GFX at London's South Bank

Blue GFX Expo is the annual London showcase for the visual effects industry and the software that drives it, sponsored by (among many others) the software-wizards Autodesk - who make Maya and 3DStudioMax, and much of the other software that we use in the VFX industry.

Housed slightly incongruously in the vast and rambling Edwardian County Hall building on London’s South Bank, the Expo was marvelously hard to find, but highly rewarding to attend.

How to Animate - It's Easy!

animation tutorial part. 1 AKA "the secret of animation" from giovanni braggio on Vimeo.

Above is a very short and very funny video by Giovanni Braggio, revealing the hidden secrets of computer animation. Giovanni explains how easy it is to animate. Forget the complicated business of learning timing and spacing the hard way - you just pick your language, and ask the character to perform for you.

Summer School at Bucks - new emerging talent

Summer students at Bucks show how it's done

Every year at Bucks we run a free summer school for school-age students who want to pursue a career in visual media and the digital arts. Over the course of a week in July, these aspiring film-makers from all over the country collaborate on a project, learn the nuts and bolts of film-making, and create a film which they can be proud of. In just four days these novice students achieved some amazingly accomplished results. This is their work.

Meet our Tutors - Rob Kelly

Rob Kelly teaches Camera, TV production, Design and Motion Graphics at Bucks

Rob Kelly is a vastly experienced commercials director with a long and varied career in advertising and branding, and has numerous awards to his name. He has also worked as a creative director and graphic designer for some of the top branding, advertising and design agencies in London. We asked him to tell us about his remarkable career - and what brought him to teach here at Bucks New University.

London International Animation Festival - Starts October 25th

Friday October 25th is the opening night of the London International Animation Festival. We highly recommend that all our students at Bucks attend. Attending festivals like this is a way of finding out what is happening in the industry, what kind of skills are in demand, who is hiring, and what sort of work you might look forward to doing over the course of a successful career in the animation business.

All You Need to Know about Animation at Bucks

UCAS - still the principal hub for University applications

Thinking of applying to Bucks to study Animation & VFX? Well, now is a good time to make a decision. All across the country, students are starting to fill out their UCAS forms - still the primary gateway to accessing higher education here in the UK. So, given that there are around 80 courses across the country which offer animation, why choose Bucks? Here are some good reasons why we think we offer the best animation course in the country.

What do studios look for in a great demo reel?

Getting hired is diffuclt in the current climate, and finding that first job can be the hardest leap of all. The most vital thing that every Bucks graduate will leave with is a demo reel or portfolio that showcases their talent and will - hopefully - get them a job. One question that tutors get asked a lot is - what should go into a demo reel? It's a good question.

Below are some excellent notes on demo reels from Jinny Hinkle, a "wannabe animator" who attended Disney's "Inspire Day" in Los Angeles. The rules for demo reels were handed down by Disney but they apply to finding work at any studio.

Meet our tutors - Dave Creighton

Dave Creighton  by Monika Dzikowicz

David Creighton is one of the two Course Leaders on the Animation & VFX Course, and has long been the mainstay of digital media at Bucks New University. A 20 year veteran of teaching in High Wycombe, Dave has done and seen it all.

He can help with pretty much anything to do with animation and visual effects at Bucks; with two decades of experience he knows how the University works (or sometimes doesn't). We asked him to tell us about his work, and what students on the new Animation & VFX course can look forward to.

Mentoring at Bucks - what is it and who needs it?

Mentor's old pal Odysseus

What is mentoring? and what is a mentor? According to Wikipedia: the original Mentor was a friend of Odysseus. He looked after Odysseus's son Telemachus, acting as his guide and teacher, when Odysseus sailed off to fight in the Trojan Wars. Hence the term mentoring.

At Bucks, mentoring is a way of offering students one-on-one support from (usually, but not necessarily, older) people who have been there, and done that. If you feel like you would like to find a mentor at the university, or have a bit of wisdom and experience you would like to pass on to others, then the man to talk to is Paul Wilcock, who is one of two dedicated staff at Bucks who look after the mentoring program. We asked Paul to tell us what, exactly, mentoring is, and why students might be interested in getting involved.

What is a Portfolio Career?

We hear a lot about portfolio careers these days, as the old model of a job for life becomes something that fewer and fewer graduates can rely on. Outside of the public sector, it has virtually disappeared, replaced by a much looser and more fluid relationship between employee and employer.  But what is it, really? Is "Portfolio Career" just a fancy new way of saying freelancer? After all, freelancers have been around for years, haven't they?

Free computers for our freshmen students!

Completely free! Well, sort of.

As promised, all of our freshmen students have now been given free laptop computers at the start of the new Animation & VFX course. Of course they are not really free, they were paid for with student tuition fees, but nonetheless we are delighted to be able to give something back to our new students which will help them to become self-sufficient digital artists over the next 3 years.

Bucks IT - Quick Start Guide and Cheat Sheet

Can't log in? Password messed up? IT giving you a headache? Check out our IT Quickstart Guide. Keep it by your bedside to solve all your IT problems....

What exactly is a Character TD? Karen Halliwell reveals all...

Karen Halliwell on the panel at Bucks New University

Karen Halliwell is a very experienced Character TD who appeared on a panel discussion at Bucks this past week to talk about some of the latest trends in the business. Karen has worked on countless film projects including World War Z, John Carter, Rango, and Golden Compass. She told us a little about what it is that a Character TD actually does for a living.

"Flipping the Classroom" - Our new Video Tutorials at Bucks

Sal Khan - the man who flipped the classroom. Photo: Wikipedia

Here at Bucks we believe in the power of online training - and in the idea of "flipping the classroom", a philosophy of teaching pioneered by Sal Khan's Khan Academy. The idea is that, instead of taking notes during class and doing the homework later, you watch the lectures in advance, online, and then use precious classroom time for workshops and feedback. Best of all, each student gets to learn at their own pace, so no-one gets bored or, worse, falls behind and can't keep up.

Over the coming semester we'll be rolling out this new technique, giving our students access to hundreds of online videos, teaching you everything from how to make a ball bounce to full character and creature performances.  The idea is that you watch the lecture before coming in to class, and the classroom time itself becomes a workshop, rather than an information download. Better for everyone, and more fun as well.

Find a job with MARQme - Alex Whitfield's awesome new iPhone app

MARQme app for the iPhone

Bucks animation student Alex Whitfield graduated this summer and has just completed an excellent new iPhone app, designed to help recent graduates find employment. In a job environment that remains a continual challenge, recent grads can use all the help they can get to kick-start their careers. We asked Alex to tell us all about his new creation, and how to take advantage of it.

Open Day at Bucks! - Saturday October 12th October

Gateway to your new career

Saturday October 12th October is our next Open Day at Bucks. Open Days are a great way to meet the Tutors and Course Leaders (for Animation & VFX - that's me and Dave Creighton) here at Bucks, find out about our courses, and also explore our campus.

We guarantee you'll be impressed by the state-of-the-art technical equipment we have in the brand new Gateway Building; the result of a £40m investment program completed just a couple of years ago.

All About Blackboard - How It Works

The Blackboard Interface

What is Blackboard? Blackboard is the main digital interface which students and staff use to access information about the courses at Bucks, including timetables, assessments, messages - in short everything you need to keep up to date. This means that, like it or not, you will need to access Blackboard regularly throughout your three years at Bucks.

Below are some common problems experienced by Blackboard users - along with some possible solutions.

Circus Passion Comes to Bucks - 12.30pm today!

As part of the Bucks Welcome for our new students, Circus Passion's Ignition Crew will be performing outside the Gateway building (that's the big blue one that looks like a TV set) at the High Wycombe Campus, at 12.30pm today.

This will apparently be followed by circus workshops, whatever that means. Perhaps your opportunity to learn to juggle flaming torches and exhale fire?

For more information about Ignition, check out their website here. 

How to Use the Library at Bucks - an Animator's Guide

Shedloads of books - we got 'em

The animation shelves of the library here at Bucks are now groaning with fresh titles. The University has bought us more books, and more copies of the key books, so there are more to go around. And we have journals too, such as Animation Magazine - materials that help students learn from the best sources and keep in touch with the latest news from the industry. Below is some general information about to library for our new animation students.

What Is Wrong With The Global Development Organisation?

Back in June we blogged about a new film project here at Bucks, a collaboration among some of our recent graduates on a short film with a worthy goal - to tell the story of how organisations that set out to do good work can lose sight of their guiding principles.

The film was directed by Monika Dzikowicz, and animated by Lydon Fleisig, Dave Berry, Peter Nicholson, Paula Gillin and Allan De Leal. Sound design was done by Kris Allen - showing how different departments at Bucks can combine forces to do great work. Everyone spent a good chunk of their summer toiling over their laptops, with the result that the film is now - at last! - finished.

Where am I supposed to be on Monday?

Welcome to High Wycombe

Term starts on Monday and Induction Week is the first of many pleasures awaiting our new students at Bucks. By now, Admissions should have sent everyone an email with all the necessary information including the miriad forms that need filling in. There is also plenty of information here about how term gets under way: