Our Studio Shadowship program is a 12 week, focused animation training program that combines self-directed learning with an onsite studio experience. We provide learning opportunities that are fundamentally unchanged by time or medium and allow you to learn while surrounded by industry professionals and mentors. 

Over the course of the program, you will work from a desk inside a studio, agency, or media arts organization and advance your skill sets by working through a series of prompts. These assignments are based on creative briefs developed by industry experts. We have several 1 and 2-week projects that you get to combine to create the program that makes the most sense for your career goals. 

The briefs are designed to help you build your skills in different areas of animation and design. One-week briefs are very focused on a small set of key items that we want you to learn. Two-week briefs offer a little more time to work. We teach slightly more expansive topics that require you to focus on executing both design and animation. Throughout the program, you will have peer reviews, feedback from professionals, and chances to showcase your work.

You will also work together on two group projects during your time with us. These are an opportunity to learn how to collaborate and solve creative challenges together.

Instead of a traditional internship, our program is an opportunity for you to learn while you’re in a studio. Similar to job-shadowing, you get to see the inner workings of a studio and gain a deeper understanding of how the industry works. You aren’t there to work on projects for the studio. Instead, you’ll be working on our curriculum while being exposed to industry professionals. This is a great way to keep learning while you make valuable connections that could lead to future professional opportunities.

Nope! This is a focused training program for animators. The only similarity is that you work on your assignments while at a desk in a studio. This is so you can experience the inner workings of a studio, not to work on projects with/for them. It’s a great opportunity to make lasting and significant connections with top industry professionals within those walls.

When you work in a studio, you need to be a self-starter who can think outside the box in order to problem solve and deliver for the client. Our program is set up in a way that promotes and strengthens these characteristics. You also get access to mentors that can help you solve problems and challenge the way that you think about your work. You’ll leave the program with real industry connections that can lead to professional opportunities in the future.

Absolutely! As long as your equipment can fit within the space desk space the studio is providing for you to use and is not disruptive to daily studio operations, you can bring it. Please note, neither the studio or the Gunner Trade program are responsible for any lost, stolen, damaged, or broken personal equipment.

Host locations and participating studios will have basic equipment and software (Adobe Creative Cloud, Blender, Rive) on hand for you to use while you are in the program. Some workstations may have other equipment, such as Wacom devices for you to use. 

Some locations may have extra seats available if you can bring your own personal laptop or equipment.

If you are in the online program you will need to provide your own computer and software.