Founder & Senior Instructor: Tony White
For the past 20 years Tony White, has primarily been teaching animation at the highest level to young students at schools and colleges in the Pacific Northwest. For more than 30 years prior to that, he was animating professionally at the highest level, learning through apprenticeships with some of the greatest animators who have ever lived. Tony has never given up animating his own film projects of course, but his primary passion these days is to pass on everything he knows and has learned at the shoulders of giants to the new generations of Master Animators of the future.

Amazing experiences
Tony feels that his knowledge and experience of animation is quite unique, in view of the people he has learned from, worked with and interviewed. Undoubtedly, the most influential and important person in Tony's career was 3-times Oscar winner and animation legend, Richard Williams, who Tony apprenticed with for 18 months and worked with as a director/animator for a further 5 years - prior to Tony setting up his own animation studio in London, which lasted for 20 years, until Tony closed it to move to the USA in 1998.

The Apprenticeship system
Better than any book on animation, or even any degree courses on animation, is the apprenticeship system. There a young novice will sit at the shoulders of a master and learn everything from them by observing and doing. Tony is trying to reinvent this system, by offering selective graduates from his Diploma program the chance of apprenticing with him on his own personal and commercial film projects. There truly is no better way to learn animation than by being an apprentice!

Tony's career
In his lifetime, Tony has created over 200 TV Commercials, 2 TV Specials, several short films, and was responsible for the title sequence in "The Pink Panther Strikes Again" movie at the very beginning of his career. Lecturing on animation around the world, writing several of the finest and most respected books on animation technique, founding the "DRAWTASTIC Animation Festival", the "ANIMAKERS" social network and teaching at the highest level in the USA, makes Tony the perfect person for any young animator to learn from.

Tony's books
Tony is currently working on a new book, "Animation Masterclasses from Pencils to Pixels" for Focal Press - based on his teachings and experiences in hosting his first 48-week, "Tuesday Night Live" online classes in animation. His previous books have been translated into several languages and have been used by generations of students on many of the recognized degree courses in animation around the world. His initial book, "The Animator's Workbook", was the first best-selling textbook on animation in recent times - a digital copy of which will be given to every student who signs up for the full Diploma course.

Tony's current film projects

Actually, there are two, each intimately connected to the other! Tony has always been passionately committed to making his own personal film - a collection of animated meditations, under the collective title of "The Hermit". The Hermit material, although a self-contained storyline in it's own right, will also be intertwined throughout the much bigger animated memoirs movie project, entitled "The Old Man Mad About Animation". Tony's life has been filled with some quite amazing experiences (both inside and outside of the animation world) and he seeks to share many of these life-transforming moments with his audience - in a documentary/fantasy style film in live action and animation. Currently, Tony is working on the Hermit exclusively - but as an inspirational foundational piece for his much longer, movie-length project. Consequently, the ongoing productions of both of these significant and groundbreaking films will be a perfect platform for graduates of the 2D Academy's "Diploma" program, to work alongside Tony as selective apprentices.  Check out the trailer for "The Old Man Mad About Animating" and the first sequence from "The Hermit" via the short videos on the right...


Assistant director of Drawing: Madeline Owen

Madeline’s Education & Training
  • 2D Academy – Assistant director of DRAWING program 2021 - present
  • Gage Academy of Art - Foundation Figure Drawing course taught by Melissa Wienman 2013-2014; Mark Kang O’Higgins Atelier 2014-2017
  • Carlos Madrid Still Life painting workshop (student and assistant) 2016；Steven Assael Figure Drawing Workshop (awarded full scholarship) 2016
  • Animation Mentor Storyboard Fundamentals 2021； Intermediate Storyboarding 2021；Storyboarding with Kris Pern 2021
  • New York Academy of Art Undergraduate program (awarded full scholarship) 2017, Master-to-be 2023.

Madeline’s work


Animal Drawing Instructor: Saille White

Saille’s Education & Training
Saille White has extensive skills as an artist and illustrator. Graduating from the Henry Cogswell College in Everett, Saille obtained a Batchelor’s Degree, majoring in Digital Arts, Animation and Illustration. She graduated summa cum laude, and also reached the Dean's list and President's honor roll. Since graduating, Saille has been specializing in a broad range of art skills, with a special focus on animal art, specifically reptiles and geckos. Saille has managed to successfully combine her passion for drawing and painting with that of the world of wildlife that she loves so much. Indeed, Saille is often found at art, craft and reptile shows, selling her popular artwork – specifically stickers and fridge magnets with an animal or wildlife theme. She is excited to pass on her passion for both drawing and animals to the next generation of artists, through her unique classes. 

Click HERE to see more of Saille's artwork.
2D OR NOT 2D ~ bringing animation to the world!