Discover Classes. Earn Rewards.

Animation Classes Chicago

Upcoming schedule view

Unlock your creativity and bring your ideas to life with a wide range of animation classes. Learn the art of storytelling, character design, and digital animation techniques, and gain the skills to create captivating visuals and narratives.

6 classes in-person in Chicago have spots left, and 14 classes live online are available.

Motion Graphics Certificate

Noble Desktop - Virtually Online

Become a skilled Motion Graphics Designer and master the art of animating motion graphics, creating visual effects, and editing videos using industry-standard software like Adobe After Effects, Premiere Pro, and Cinema 4D Lite. Develop a strong portfolio showcasing your creative techniques and gain the skills needed to meet the growing demand for video professionals.

(372) All levels 18 and older
$3,495

16 sessions

Gift it!

After Effects Bootcamp

Noble Desktop - Virtually Online

Discover the secrets of creating captivating motion graphics and animations in this comprehensive course. Gain hands-on experience with real-world projects and learn from a leading instructor, as you delve into techniques like motion tracking and animating 3D layers. Prerequisite: Basic knowledge of Adobe Photoshop recommended.

(372) All levels 18 and older
$975

3 sessions

Gift it!

After Effects Part 1

Computer Training Source, Inc. @ 1821 Walden Office Sq, Schaumburg, IL

Learn how to create stunning motion graphics and visual effects with After Effects. This course covers everything from setting up and pre-rolling to working with text, integrating Photoshop images, using advanced motion techniques, and more. Enhance your skills and bring your creative visions to life.

(21) Beginner 18 and older
$645

2 sessions

Gift it!
Discover Classes. Earn Rewards.

Animation Classes Gift Card

Thousands of classes & experiences. No expiration. Gift an experience this holiday season and make it a memorable one. Lock in a price with the Inflation Buster Gift Card Price Adjuster™

Buy a Gift Card

After Effects Part 2

Computer Training Source, Inc. @ 1821 Walden Office Sq, Schaumburg, IL

Take your After Effects skills to the next level with this advanced course. Learn compositing, rotoscoping, and green screen techniques for creating stunning animations and videos. Enhance your multimedia presentations, create 3D effects, and master the art of rendering and exporting. Sign up now to elevate your After Effects expertise!

(21) Intermediate 18 and older
$699

2 sessions

Gift it!

Adobe Premiere Part 1

Computer Training Source, Inc. @ 1821 Walden Office Sq, Schaumburg, IL

Discover how to master Adobe Premiere, one of the most versatile digital video editing tools on the market, in this comprehensive course. Learn essential video editing techniques, including transitions, filters, audio editing, and more. Take your video editing skills to the next level with this hands-on training.

(21) Beginner 18 and older
$699

2 sessions

Gift it!

Adobe Premiere Part 2

Computer Training Source, Inc. @ 420 N Wabash Ave, Chicago, IL

Master the art of video production with Adobe Premiere Part 2. Learn advanced editing techniques, color correction, transitions, and more in this comprehensive course at Computer Training Source, Inc. Develop a complete workflow from start to finish and create professional-quality videos.

(21) Intermediate 18 and older
$899

2 sessions

Gift it!

After Effects in a Day

Noble Desktop - Virtually Online

Learn how to create stunning animations, add music and sounds, and import files from Illustrator and Photoshop in this hands-on workshop at Noble Desktop. Perfect for beginners looking to master After Effects in just one day.

(372) All levels 18 and older

Video Editing & Animation Certificate (High School)

NextGen Bootcamp @ Live Virtual

Unlock your creativity and bring your video projects to life with the Video Editing & Animation Certificate at NextGen Bootcamp. Master industry-standard software, Adobe Premiere Pro, for professional video editing, and then explore the exciting world of animation with After Effects. Start your journey towards a future in film and media today.

(61) All levels 13 - 18 years old
$2,495

8 sessions

Gift it!

Video Editing & Animation Certificate (High School)

NextGen Bootcamp - Virtually Online

Learn industry-standard video editing and animation skills in this comprehensive certificate program. Master Adobe Premiere Pro to create professional video projects, then take your skills further with advanced techniques in After Effects. Launch your career in film or multimedia with this hands-on course.

(61) All levels 13 - 18 years old
$2,495

8 sessions

Gift it!

Animation with After Effects (High School)

NextGen Bootcamp @ Live Virtual

Learn to create eye-catching animations and dazzling visual effects with Adobe After Effects in this hands-on summer program at NextGen Bootcamp. Dive into basic animation concepts and processes, and then explore advanced techniques such as title and text animation, 3D layer animation, and motion tracking. Suitable for beginners with no previous experience in animation or design.

(61) All levels 13 - 18 years old
$1,299

4 sessions

Gift it!

Animation with After Effects (High School)

NextGen Bootcamp - Virtually Online

Unlock your creativity and bring your imagination to life with Animation with After Effects. Discover the exciting world of animation and motion graphics in this hands-on summer program in NYC. Join us at NextGen Bootcamp and learn how to navigate the After Effects workspace, master basic animation techniques, and create stunning visual effects.

(61) All levels 13 - 18 years old
$1,499

4 sessions

Gift it!

Video Editing Certificate

Noble Desktop - Virtually Online

Master the art of video editing, audio editing, and motion graphics at a leading institution. Learn the creative techniques and workflow required to transform concepts into fully edited videos. Elevate your skills and stand out to potential clients or employers with a compelling video editing demo reel.

(372) All levels 18 and older
$2,995

13 sessions

Gift it!

Adobe After Effects Private Training

Noble Desktop - Virtually Online

Unlock the power of motion graphics with this comprehensive training. Master Adobe After Effects' interface, timeline, and layer animation techniques to craft stunning GIFs, animate logos, and seamlessly integrate artwork from Illustrator and Photoshop.

(372) All levels 13 and older

After Effects Advanced

Noble Desktop - Virtually Online

Take your After Effects skills to the next level with this advanced course at Noble Desktop. Master text and shape animations, learn video compositing techniques, and discover how to speed up your workflow with expressions. Enhance your motion graphics and compositing skills with hands-on projects in this immersive course.

(372) Advanced 18 and older
$975

3 sessions

Gift it!

Cinema 4D in After Effects Bootcamp

Noble Desktop - Virtually Online

Unlock the power of 3D graphics in your After Effects projects with this immersive hands-on course. Learn to create and animate stunning 3D models, apply textures, and seamlessly integrate with After Effects using Cinema 4D Lite. Expand your skill set and take your motion projects to new heights.

(372) All levels 18 and older
$975

6 sessions

Gift it!

Adobe After Effects Level I (Online)

Manhattan Edit Workshop @ Virtual Class room

Learn the essentials of Adobe After Effects for motion graphics and visual effects with this introductory online course. Discover traditional After Effects workflow, basic animation techniques, keying, and 3D effects. Gain the skills needed to create compelling motion graphics and visual effects.

(95) Beginner 16 and older
$1,295

3 sessions

Gift it!

After Effects Bootcamp

Training Connection @ Online

Learn to create special effects and motion graphics in this After Effects course at Training Connection. Perfect for graphic and video professionals looking to enhance their editing and compositing skills, this hands-on bootcamp covers everything from basic animation to advanced concepts like 3D and particle simulations. No prior experience is required.

(158) All levels 14 and older
$1,995

5 sessions

Gift it!

After Effects Fundamentals

Training Connection @ Online

Master Adobe After Effects in this hands-on course at Training Connection. Suitable for graphic and video professionals looking to enhance their editing and compositing abilities, this course offers both beginners and experienced users the opportunity to learn and practice various projects and tricks. No prior experience with After Effects is required.

(158) Beginner 14 and older
$1,495

3 sessions

Gift it!

Adobe After Effects Level II (Online)

Manhattan Edit Workshop @ Virtual Class room

Take your motion graphics skills to the next level with a two-day intermediate class at Manhattan Edit Workshop. Learn industry-standard practices for creating stunning visuals in Adobe After Effects. Enhance your movies with text, graphics, and effects and gain a high level of efficiency in your work.

(95) Intermediate 16 and older
$1,095

2 sessions

Gift it!

After Effects Advanced

Training Connection @ Online

Take your After Effects skills to the next level with this advanced course. Learn motion tracking, advanced masking, 3D effects, and more in this comprehensive training program designed for experienced users. Elevate your video production with Training Connection.

(158) Advanced 14 and older
$995

2 sessions

Gift it!
Reset all filters.

No results found

Try removing some filters.

Reviews for Animation Classes in Chicago

Animation Classes in Chicago are rated 4.6 stars based on 707 verified reviews from actual CourseHorse.com purchasers.

  • Adobe After Effects Level II (Online)

    Reviewed by David S. on 5/27/2021
    Chad was wonderful! Very clear instruction, great attitude, and a lot of fun!
  • Adobe After Effects Level I (Online)

    Reviewed by Kedrick W. on 10/16/2020
    Amazing class taught by Mr.Mark Chandler. The 3 jam-packed days were just a steller foundation on what's possible with creating in After Effects and Premiere. The class was a mixture of informational lessons and real-world perspectives. I feel more confident tackling more AE projects now.
  • After Effects in a Day

    Anonymous review on 11/7/2019
    Amazing instructor!
  • After Effects in a Day

    Reviewed by Mary B. on 10/17/2019
    Great teacher! Learned a lot in one day.
  • After Effects in a Day

    Anonymous review on 8/3/2019
    Very good for learning with no experience or for filling in the gaps from self teaching AfterEffects. Wish there were a little more complex concepts taught other than just moving shapes around on 2D space but you can only teach so much in a day. Got a little too quick towards the end when exporting projects and learning different compressions so it felt arbitrary to even explain. But overall good class and great teacher, perfect pace for learning from scratch and if you need to learn specifically how to make gifs and logos
  • After Effects Bootcamp

    Reviewed by Dov A. on 5/2/2019
    Kalika was a fantastic instructor bringing patience and humor to every lesson. Thanks to her, I have a strong grasp on the topics covered, am confident in my skills and capability to delve further into the app. Kalika is the rare teacher who goes the extra mile for her students because she's happy to. One suggestion note is that there are a few lessons that start off with importing or setting up in more than one way for the sake of learning how different modes function. I think the class would benefit from taking time in between the demonstrations to practice that part before continuing into the bulk of the lesson - I found that I forgot what the take-away was from that initial portion of the lesson by the time the demonstration was over, and conducting that portion on my own created an interruption between the demonstration and going through the section on my own.
  • After Effects in a Day

    Anonymous review on 5/17/2018
    The class was challenging, but it was a great introduction to what's possible in After Effects!
  • After Effects in a Day

    Reviewed by Vanessa S. on 3/19/2018
    Great teacher who's passionate about what she teaches. She's also really helpful and insightful with answering questions.
  • After Effects in a Day

    Reviewed by Neela A. on 9/29/2017
    love it!
  • After Effects Bootcamp

    Reviewed by Eric Vasquez on 7/11/2016
    I had been trying to learn After Effects on my own for a while, but it wasn't until I decided to take the course through Noble Desktop that things really started to make sense for me. Now I feel that I have a solid foundation and am more excited than before about learning After Effects. As much as I enjoyed this class, I only wish that there was a second part to this course or something that would take you into some of the more intermediate/advanced techniques with track mattes, rotoscoping, null objects etc.

Discover the Best Animation Classes in Chicago

Anima is the Latin word for “soul”—thus, “to animate” an object is to imbue it with a soul. Animation in the motion-picture sense is (to borrow the title from Disney animators Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnston’s definitive work on the subject) creating the illusion of life out of a pile of drawings. Animated figures, obviously, aren’t alive, but such is the power of the medium that animated drawings can be received by the human mind as living beings. Think only of how the audience at the world premiere of Disney’s Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs was moved to tears when curmudgeon dwarf Grumpy breaks down by the side of the heroine’s bier. In a sense, it’s only a magic trick played on the limits of human eyesight (animated drawings only appear to move because they go faster than our eyes can), but animation can be so convincing that, for generations of audiences, Grumpy is far more “real” than a lot of movie characters portrayed by human actors.

Animation is a painstaking process whereby upwards of 12 drawings, each one slightly different from the one that goes before it, are prepared for every second of the time an animated film runs. In the days of hand-drawn animation, the process ran from key animators, who drew the main positions of the characters, to inbetweeners, who filled in the blanks between the key animator’s drawings, to the ink and paint department (whose roles were filled, interestingly, by women), which transferred the drawings to cels before the actual filming took place, one frame at a time. More than two million hand-drawn cels were required to create the one hour and 23 minute-long Disney Snow White.

The Little Mermaid (1989) was Disney’s last entirely hand-drawn movie. The computer has since wrought a revolution in animation, and while you still need people who can draw, the media have changed, and animators work on tablets rather than at back-lit drafting tables. Programs such as Adobe’s After Effects have almost completely taken over the inbetweener and ink-and-paint jobs, while the painstaking filming of each set-up of cels has been replaced by a computer process known as rendering.

Animation remains an exciting branch of filmmaking, and, in today’s world, extends from the world of the animated motion picture to much “live-action” filmmaking: CGI (computer-generated imagery) is everywhere, and animators’ contribution to the film industry has never been more significant. Software such as After Effects has also placed animation within the hands of ordinary mortals so that non-specialists can create anything from professional-looking non-professional efforts for social media to professional-looking professional efforts such as short commercial spots. Commercial animation can even entail such grand projects as the Virgin Atlantic Airways safety video, an entire fantasy of remarkable visual imagination that nearly makes you forget you’re watching instructions on how to buckle a seatbelt.

Best Animation Classes & Schools in Chicago

One of the most readily accessible ways to learn to animate using a computer is Adobe After Effects. Chicagoans interested in learning to use Adobe’s motion graphics and special effects program will find a class at Ascend Training, Adobe After Effects Level 1, that, in three full-day sessions, introduces students to the software and delves into its considerable capabilities. The class covers keyframes, layers, masks, modes, and mattes, and by the end of it, students should be able to create video projects for the web and broadcast. A Level 2 class is also available for those who want to deepen their After Effects knowledge. Ascend is an Adobe Authorized Training Center that has been serving Chicago since 1998. Located in the Loop, two blocks from the Tribune Tower (L: Grand), the school is easily accessible. The building it occupies even has a Thai restaurant (with 4.1 stars from Google) on the ground floor that should prove practical at lunchtime.

Also located in the Loop is Ledet Training, which offers an Adobe After Effects Training that encompasses basic animation theory, keyframes, layers, parenting, nesting, and paint and vector paint functions. The school recommends that students be reasonably proficient in Photoshop prior to tackling the After Effects class. Catering primarily to marketing professionals, Ledet Training will have students capable of creating marketing videos suitable for all purposes by the end of the course. The school’s location is two blocks from Millennium Park, with Washington/Wabash the closest stop on the L.

If negotiating the Loop during business hours doesn’t seem like a challenge you’re interested in circumventing, you may wish to consider one of the plentiful online courses that will bring the class to your home, office, or any space with a stable internet connection you may find congenial. Noble Desktop is one such school. Based in New York City, it offers animation classes, both long and short. The long program is a Motion Graphics Certificate that meets for no fewer than 17 days and covers, not just After Effects, but also Cinema 4D Lite and video editing with Premiere Pro. The course also includes portfolio (demo reel) development, and includes 1-to-1 mentoring sessions to help students in the program set off down the proper career path. Noble Desktop includes a free retake option, should you need a brush-up within a year’s time on anything you learned during what are 17 information-packed sessions.

For those who lack the time, inclination, or means for the complete certificate program, or for those who wish to concentrate solely on After Effects, Noble Desktop also offers an After Effects Bootcamp. Running for three all-day weekday sessions, this course shows students through a series of hands-on exercises how to create animations, titles, and even 3D objects. An After Effects Advanced class is also available through the school. Both these classes include 1:1 bonus training, which allows students to meet privately with the instructor to iron out any wrinkles in what they’ve learned in class. Please note that, for these classes as well as for the certificate program described above, a working knowledge of both Photoshop and Illustrator is required.

Another New York-based school that offers live online classes in After Effects is Manhattan Edit Workshop. Their flagship course is a video editing program (Avid, Final Cut Pro), but it also offers instruction in the Adobe Creative Cloud, including Adobe After Effects Level 1, a three-day program that shows students the basics of motion graphics and the After Effects workflow, before moving on to layers, effects, keyframes, keyframe interpolation, masks, animating text and further functions of the software, including rendering and output. The school also makes available a Level 2 and a Level 3 class for those who wish to proceed to such topics as alphas, advanced formatting, and network rendering.

A further option in a different time zone (Mountain) that may be more convenient for students on the West Coast is Adobe After Effects for Beginners (Level 1). The course is offered by Digital Workshop Center, based in Fort Collins, Colorado, which is particularly interested in bringing tech education to non-traditional students, such as those who have been out of school for a while. The class runs for four non-consecutive weekday mornings and teaches how to create visual content for motion picture and commercial video use, as well as graphics that can be used in presentations. Knowledge of Photoshop is recommended for those taking the class. Students are welcome to continue along to Adobe After Effects Advanced (Level 2), in which they will learn to utilize the Puppet Tool, the Roto Brush Tool, and the 3D Camera Tracker. The advanced class also runs for four mornings. Although the L doesn’t reach all the way to Colorado, the course is also available live in-person.

Chicago Industries That Use Animation

Although Chicago doesn’t loom large on the list of hotbeds of motion picture production, the realities of the digital world are such that there is an ever-growing need for smaller video operations that can create video content for the web. Some of these are small entities that work on the ground with Windy City Clients, and others are large, international concerns with offices in major world cities, including Chicago. The output of these production companies is usually marketing material, and they generally work hand-in-hand with advertising agencies or can be hired by firms seeking to strengthen their visual presence on the internet. If making narrative animated films is your goal, Chicago is probably not the place, but if you want to be a working animator, Chicago does have its fair share of employment opportunities.

Animation Jobs & Salaries in Chicago

The United States Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) categorizes animators together with special effects artists, reflecting the role that CGI has started playing beyond what would traditionally be considered animated movies. In the Chicago area (the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin area for BLS purposes), animators wear such professional hats as 3D animator, 2D animator, animator, digital artist, and motion effects artist. A small total of 410 people are employed as animators in the Chicago area, the size of the number reflected in the rather discouraging location quotient of 0.38. (That means that animators are employed in Chicago at 0.38 times the national average. If you’re considering moving to a particular place to pursue a specific career, you want that number to be larger than 1.) The annual mean wage for animators in the area is close to $80,000, which is substantially less than the mean annual wage for animators in the entire country, which is $111,000, although it is more than the mean annual range for the Chicago area of approximately $66,000. You can balance that against the fact that the cost of living in Chicago is a comparatively mere 7% above that of the country as a whole, with the cost of groceries below the national average and that of housing lining out at just about the national average. And a Chicago-style hot dog at a White Sox game will cost you $5.49. If you choose to take your baseball loyalties across town, you’ll be paying a buck more for a hot dog with mustard, relish, onion, tomato, pickle, peppers, and celery salt at Wrigley Field.

CourseHorse Gift Cards

  • Creative & unique gift for any occasion
  • Thousands of classes & experiences
  • No expiration date
  • Instant e-delivery (or choose a date)
  • Add a personalized message
  • Lock in a price with the Inflation Buster Gift Card Price Adjuster™
Buy a Gift Card
gift card with the CourseHorse logo gift card with the CourseHorse logo
Loading...