Your Animation Road Map

We accept students starting at age 8 for our beginner-level courses like Foundational Drawing, Anime & Manga, Intro to Game Design, and 2D Animation Basics. Our intermediate courses open at age 12, and our advanced pro-track courses — including Figure Drawing, 3D Character Animation, and Illustration — are available for students 15 and older. Adults of all ages are welcome in every course.

No prior experience is needed. Our Foundational Drawing 1 course is specifically designed for complete beginners with zero drawing background. It covers ink, line quality, proportion, perspective, gesture, volume, and shading from scratch. This is where most students start regardless of age, and it provides the foundation for every other course in our curriculum.

Yes. Our lead instructors include animators who worked at Walt Disney Feature Animation and Marvel Studios. For example, Woody Woodman worked as an animator on Disney films including Mulan, Tarzan, and Brother Bear. Combined, our instructors bring over 50 years of professional industry experience to the classroom, giving students direct access to the techniques and principles used in major studio productions.

Absolutely. We offer private 1-on-1 online virtual courses that run for 10 weeks with the same professional instructors who teach in our Orlando studio. Students join from across the United States and internationally. Online courses are available in both English and Spanish. Many of our most popular courses — including Foundational Drawing, Character Design, Anime/Manga, 3D Animation, and Video Editing — are available virtually.

Regular courses run for 10 weeks, meeting once per week — either in-studio on Saturdays and select weekdays, or online virtually. Summer camps are week-long intensive programs running June through August at our Orlando studio, with 4 different camps offered simultaneously each week. Camps are ideal for visiting families or students who want to immerse themselves in a subject quickly. You can mix and match camp subjects across the full 10-week summer season.

Private virtual courses (1-on-1, 10 weeks) are $1,275 per course with a monthly payment plan available — $475 down, then two payments of $400. Summer camps are $475 per week plus a $25 administrative fee, with supplies included for in-studio camps. We also offer a $75 sibling/multi-student discount. Contact us for current in-studio semester pricing.

Yes, portfolio development is a core part of what we do. We have helped multiple students gain acceptance into top art schools including Ringling College of Art and Design, SCAD (Savannah College of Art and Design), the School of the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, Full Sail University, and the University of Central Florida's School of Visual Arts and Design. Our instructors provide personalized portfolio guidance and have written letters of recommendation for students applying to these programs.

Depending on the course path, students learn industry-standard tools including Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Animate (for 2D animation), Autodesk Maya (for 3D animation and modeling), and Unity (for game design). Our Orlando studio is equipped with professional Wacom Cintiq drawing tablets and dedicated digital workstations. For online courses, students may need to obtain their own Adobe Creative Cloud or Maya licenses — we provide guidance on this during enrollment.

Many families visiting Orlando for theme parks add a week at Elite Animation Academy to their trip — we call it the "Animation Vacation." Our summer camps are especially popular for this. Students can attend a week-long camp learning animation, character design, or game development from real Disney animators while the rest of the family enjoys Orlando's attractions. We're located at 3107 Edgewater Drive, about 15 minutes from most major theme parks. Families travel from as far as Saint Augustine, South Florida, and even out of state specifically for our programs.

Yes. We host Digital Arts for Autism (DAFA), a dedicated year-long training program for individuals on the autism spectrum. DAFA covers four courses in Adobe Illustrator, Photoshop, InDesign, Animate, and WordPress — providing real digital art career skills. DAFA is a program partner for Florida's Step Up For Students / Family Empowerment Scholarship, meaning eligible families may qualify for scholarship funding. Visit digitalartsforautism.org for details.