My experience in taking the classical animation program at Vancouver Film School was more than satisfactory. I do not regret taking this program. Having said that, there were also some things about the school and program that I wished I would have been prepared for before entering the school. But before I even go in to those details, I would like to discuss my background and how I came to choose VFS.
Getting into animation for me was a no-brainer, as I had spent my youth drawing in class, excelling in creative writing classes, and visually absorbing a variety of animation and film genres. My focus in school was always in art, and I got my bachelor’s studying film, scriptwriting, and independent studies that all focused on animation. But because such academic education does not get one a job in the animation world, I had to chose additional schooling that would give me practical experience. I chose Vancouver because it wasn’t terribly far from home, and I chose VFS because all of the impressions that I got from those who were familiar with it had only good things to say about it. I didn’t want to risk going through a school that would teach me half as much and to have a harder time finding work because of it. So, I dove in head-first.
But Flash is just a tool that replaces your pencil and paper, and if you can understand how to animate classically, your Flash abilities will be incredibly stronger for it.
The Classical Animation Program
The year is spent thusly: five months learning how to animate, 6 months making a short classically animated film from start to finish, two weeks learning how to use Flash and two weeks making a short Flash animation. This seems odd to most 2D animators considering that nearly 100% of the jobs in North America involve using Flash. But Flash is just a tool that replaces your pencil and paper, and if you can understand how to animate classically, your Flash abilities will be incredibly stronger for it. A part of me wishes we could have spent more time understanding how to use this tool, but I wouldn’t want to sacrifice anything else that we did.
One of the greatest things about the program is the atmosphere that you are put into. The whole year is spent with the same handful of students. And although you are always working on projects by yourself, the effect of sharing creative energy with the other students can be infectious. This is also very practical training, as the work environment that you will endure in the future (if you are fortunate enough to get into a studio job) will be similar. However, you are at the whim of fate when it comes to the other students that you must basically live with for an entire year. You are quite likely to become close neighbors with an enormous variety of characters, which can lead to an enormous amount of drama. But hopefully, also, a whole lot of fun.
Another strength that this program offers over other options is the amount of knowledge you absorb in a short amount of time. They fit as many assignments and as many learning opportunities as they can in every minute of your year. I don’t know a lot about other programs, but I’ve seen results from varying other classical animation programs and VFS students seem to have a distinct advantage.
VFS: The School
It is also important to be aware that this is not a public school. Because of this, they are running the program to make a profit. The teachers they hire love their work and there is a lot of energy put towards learning and enjoying animation. But they are still there to make a profit. I noticed that a majority of the students that they bring in are not Canadian (including myself), which means that they will receive a much larger sum of payment for entry. I can’t help but feel a little bit robbed because they charged me such a ridiculous amount of money more than the Canadian students, but if money isn’t an issue for you, than it won’t be a problem. Also, it is very difficult for non-Canadians to get work in Vancouver after graduating. Most of the other foreign students in my class wanted to stay in Vancouver, but the studios there are strongly discouraged by the need to jump through hoops to get a non-Canadian hired on. The only non-Canadians that I saw finding work after school were the amazingly talented ones. The rest had to go home or go through more schooling.
It was horribly unfair for us to pay no less money than the students before and to often go untaught some days.
Another significant issue regarding this program is class size. Before my class, which graduated in 2007, class sizes varied around 7-10 students. Our class and at least the following 3 or 4 programs doubled that and sometimes more. That may not sound like much, but it caused major issues in the classroom when it came down to needing teacher feedback. We were forced to make lists of people who wanted help that day and frequently, many would go un-helped if the teacher had to leave when class was over. That and there were often waiting lines to use line-test computers when you finish an assignment or you just need to test your animation. I don’t know if this is still the case, but I strongly advise checking in to it. It was horribly unfair for us to pay no less money than the students before and to often go untaught some days. This, in my opinion, is the program’s biggest problem. But I suppose when it comes to problems with an animation program, things could be much, much worse.
Even through the drama and unexpected hurdles that I discovered in this school, I cherish my time spent in that classroom.
The Verdict
Even through the drama and unexpected hurdles that I discovered in this school, I cherish my time spent in that classroom. It was intense, challenging, intimidating, inspiring, fun, and a whole lotta crazy. But do look into the program’s contents and spend some time deciding whether it’s the right program for you. The admissions person you talk to is going to be like a salesman, and you don’t want to get hooked into a deal that you don’t know enough about. I decided to go through this program because I knew what I wanted to do and I didn’t feel that I would learn as much from another program like Vanarts (which I may be wrong about, I still know very little of the program).
I worked very hard during my year, and it has payed off, as I have been fairly successful as a Flash animator both freelance and in-studio. The loan I’m still paying off is a pretty big thorn in my side, but that’s why I cringe when I see other students going into this program without knowing what they’re in for. If you know what you want and you know that VFS has it, then it may be worth the money, gray hairs, and digestive damage caused by mass quantities of coffee.
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Chris
tom thompson
I agree! If I may add:
What you will get after graduation is a piece of paper that says “Animation Diploma” which is useless. Studios will hire you for what’s on your reel and what kind of attitude you have.
In my class there was a person who did not do any work all year, & didn’t do any films. This person had the nerve to show up at graduation. VFS awarded them the same degree as everyone else. It left those of us who worked really hard feeling really cheated.
Make of that what you will.
Your best bet if you go to VFS is to work as hard as you can. Bother the teachers to no end. Get your money’s worth. Stay away from class drama. I was amazed at the amount of student there that were more interested in dating each other than doing any work.
You will get out of the program what you put into it. Plain and simple.