AI Animation Course by Albert Bozesan, Sebastian Ungrad, and Caleb Ward

Free Download AI Animation Course by Albert Bozesan, Sebastian Ungrad, and Caleb Ward

Overview of AI Animation Course

Animation is evolving faster than most studios can update their playbooks. New AI tools emerge weekly, pipelines shift, and the line between concept art, layout, animation, and post gets blurrier by the day. The AI Animation Course from Curious Refuge—created in partnership with Storybook Studios and led by Albert Bozesan, Sebastian Ungrad, with bonus sessions from Caleb Ward—is a four-week, industry-caliber program that teaches you how to build a modern AI-first animation workflow from storyboard to final mix.

This isn’t a highlight reel of flashy tools. You’ll learn a cohesive, production-ready pipeline: how to plan a story, design a look, train/customize models, iterate visuals in ComfyUI with control and consistency, generate or refine 3D assets, automate character rigging and facial capture, composite 2D/3D elements, and deliver polished sound—while maintaining the creative standards clients and audiences expect.

By the end, you won’t just “know about AI.” You’ll ship an AI-animated short, supported by downloadable templates, graded assignments, and an active community of directors, animators, and technical artists. The course meets you where you are—no prior animation background required—then guides you step by step until you can pitch, prototype, and produce with confidence.

Why Should You Choose This Course?

Most AI tutorials chase tools. This course teaches story-first, pipeline-driven production that stays relevant even as the tools change.

• Built by working innovators: Learn the exact workflows used by educators and filmmakers who pioneer AI in real productions, not lab demos.

• A complete pipeline, not fragments: From script beats to animatics, look dev, model creation, rigging, lip sync, compositing, and delivery—the dots are connected.

• Production thinking: You’ll practice versioning, handoff standards, and render strategies that survive client notes, platform constraints, and deadlines.

• ComfyUI, demystified: Turn intimidating node graphs into repeatable recipes for style consistency, motion control, and multi-shot cohesion.

• Career leverage: Build a polished short plus work-in-progress artifacts (boards, tests, comps) that show clients and studios how you think and deliver.

• Global creator network: Get feedback, find collaborators, and access a vibrant Discord with award-winning artists, producers, and technical leads.

• Tool-agnostic foundations: As models and services evolve, your storytelling, visual language, and pipeline design stay valuable.

If you want to move beyond “cool experiments” and deliver client-ready animation, this course is designed for you.

What You’ll Learn

You’ll follow a structured, four-week curriculum with video modules, PDF guides, templates, assignments, critiques, and live Q&A. Each week focuses on one production phase while building toward your final short.

Storyboarding & Animatics: Write visually, decide early

• Transform a premise into visual beats using professional storyboard and animatic practices.

• Use AI for rapid concept frames—while keeping composition, staging, and readability in your control.

• Build timed animatics that lock pacing, camera intent, and transitions before you invest in heavy production.

• Establish shot naming, folder structure, and review cadence to prevent chaos later.

Custom Models & ComfyUI: Consistency on demand

• Train or fine-tune custom models to preserve character identity and world style across sequences.

• Master ComfyUI nodes, graph design, ControlNet/Depth/Normal passes, and batch iteration for multi-shot continuity.

• Implement reference-driven prompts and pose/segmentation controls to steer shape language and motion.

• Build shot recipes you can re-use: input → control passes → style nodes → upscaling → denoise/cleanup.

Look Development: Cohesion is a choice

• Create a look bible: palette, texture rules, lighting keys, lens choices, grain and halation settings, and do’s/don’ts.

• Use AI to harmonize disparate assets so multiple scenes feel authored, not collaged.

• Develop variation sets (day/night, mood shifts) that remain on brand.

3D Asset Creation: From idea to usable models

• Generate base 3D forms with AI-assisted workflows, then retopologize and clean for rigging or projection.

• Leverage text-to-material and procedural tools for surfaces that hold up under lighting changes.

• Export proper UVs, maps, and naming for painless downstream use.

Character Rigging, Facial Capture & Lip Sync: Move with feeling

• Automate body rigging for common archetypes; add FK/IK switches and constraints where needed.

• Pair AI facial capture and smart lip-sync to eliminate uncanny valley and bring nuance to performance.

• Create blendshape libraries and viseme maps that sync cleanly to dialog.

VFX & Compositing: Make it one image

• Composite 2D and 3D layers with depth, lightwrap, and atmospheric passes for believable integration.

• Use AI matte extraction/roto to speed cleanup, then finish with traditional comp discipline (Z-defocus, grain, color management).

• Assemble scenes with node-based logic so changes cascade predictably.

Sound Design & Voice: Emotion you can hear

• Record or generate voice performances that match character intent; direct timing inside the edit.

• Design soundscapes and foley that sell space and scale.

• Explore AI music generation and stem editing for custom cues that support your beats.

World Building & Environments: Make a place worth visiting

• Block master locations with modular sets; apply AI-enhanced texture passes to unify style.

• Plan shot efficiencies (reuse, relight, reframe) to maximize production value.

• Document environment rules so every new shot stays canon.

Production Management & Delivery: Professional from day one

• Adopt version control, naming, and review etiquette that clients trust.

• Build render strategies (passes, ranges, denoise thresholds) that trade time for quality intelligently.

• Package deliverables (project files, comps, audio stems, LUTs, EDL/AAF) so your work is portable and archive-safe.

Career & Client Readiness: Translate craft into opportunity

• Present your short with a one-page pitch and select behind-the-scenes assets that prove process.

• Price and scope real-world engagements: proofs of concept, title sequences, social spots, music videos, pitch films.

• Position yourself in the market with ethical, transparent AI practices that win trust.

What you’ll build

• A 1–3 minute AI-animated short (or a tightly produced proof of concept).

• A look bible and shot recipes that make your style repeatable.

• Reusable ComfyUI graphs, rig templates, comp projects, sound cue sheets, and delivery checklists.

• A portfolio case study with boards → animatic → look dev → final.

Who Should Take This Course?

This course is designed for international creators who want to tell stronger stories, faster—and deliver to a professional standard.

• Aspiring animators & filmmakers who want a guided path from idea to finished short, without a giant studio.

• Editors, designers, and motion artists looking to add AI-driven animation to their service stack.

• Directors, producers, and art directors who need to prototype worlds, characters, and sequences to pitch stakeholders.

• 3D generalists & technologists seeking pipeline clarity: how AI plugs into modeling, rigging, lighting, and comp.

• Agencies and in-house teams exploring AI for branded content, explainers, and episodic prototypes.

• Students and career-switchers who want practical skills, community, and a project that opens doors.

Helpful (not required) foundations: basic familiarity with any NLE or compositing tool, curiosity about node-based workflows, and a willingness to iterate.

Conclusion

AI won’t replace the craft of animation—but it changes who gets to practice it and how quickly ideas can move. The AI Animation Course gives you a principled, end-to-end methodology for turning prompts and prototypes into coherent, cinematic stories. You’ll learn the “why” behind the “wow,” so you can adapt as models and tools evolve—without starting over every few months.

Across four focused weeks, you’ll storyboard with intention, develop a signature look, control consistency with custom models and ComfyUI, accelerate 3D, automate rigging and facial performance, composite like a professional, and ship sound that elevates the whole. Along the way, you’ll gain feedback from a world-class network and assemble a portfolio piece that proves you can deliver.

Ready to stop collecting tools and start making films?

Reserve your seat, meet your cohort, and begin producing the AI-animated short only you can make.