# After Effects Advanced Canonical URL: ## Overview Unlock the power of Adobe After Effects in this comprehensive, advanced animation course. Dive into shape layer animation, harness the power of the graph editor, and explore the expansive capabilities of After Effects' 3D features. You’ll also master dynamic text animations, bringing your projects to life with a professional touch. This hands-on course will guide you through real-world projects, ensuring you gain practical experience and a thorough understanding of advanced animation workflows. You’ll learn to create animations, utilize expressions and scripts to accelerate your workflow, and work with masks and track mattes to enhance the style of your projects. By the end of this course, you’ll have the skills to craft sophisticated animations, enhancing your motion graphics and compositing prowess from start to finish. Whether you're looking to elevate your current projects or take on new creative challenges, this advanced After Effects course will equip you with the expertise needed to excel. ## What you'll learn - Work with 3D layers, cameras, and lights to create dynamic scenes - Create and animate custom shape layers using the Pen tool - Develop advanced text animations and save presets for future use - Optimize animations with expressions and wire parameters for complexity - Enhance audio integration by adding markers and applying audio effects ## Prerequisites Participants should be comfortable with the basics of After Effects equivalent to our [After Effects Bootcamp](/classes/after-effects) ## Curriculum #### Working with 3D in After Effects - Working with Layers in 3D Space - Creating & Animating Camera & Light Layers #### Working with Shape Layers - Creating & Formatting Shape Layers - Creating Custom Shape Layers with the Pen Tool - Editing Shape Layer Vertices - Working with Shape Layer Effects (Pucker & Bloat, Repeater, Etc.) #### Advanced Text Animation - Animating Text as a Graphic - Working with Dingbat Fonts - Creating Custom Text Animators & Saving Presets #### Creating Custom Easing with the Graph Editor - Using the Graph Editor #### Animating with Effects - Using Effects #### Optimizing Animations with Expressions - Adding Expressions to Properties - Creating More Complex Expressions - Wiring Parameters with Expressions #### Beyond Position Keyframes - Using the Motion Sketch Panel to Capture Motion - Using the Smoother Panel to Soften Movement - Using the Nulls to Paths Panel #### Working with Audio - Adding Markers to Audio - Working with Audio Effects - Generating Keyframes from Audio Layers ## Schedule - Jun 1, 2026 – Jun 3, 2026 — NYC - Jul 27, 2026 – Jul 29, 2026 — NYC - Aug 18, 2026 – Sep 3, 2026 — NYC - Sep 28, 2026 – Sep 30, 2026 — NYC - Nov 23, 2026 – Nov 25, 2026 — NYC - Nov 23, 2026 – Nov 25, 2026 — NYC ## Instructors ### Jerron Smith — Program Director & Senior Instructor Jerron has more than 25 years of experience working with graphics and video and expert-level certifications in Adobe After Effects, Premiere Pro, Photoshop, and Illustrator along with an extensive knowledge of other animation programs like Cinema 4D, Adobe Animate, and 3DS Max. He has authored multiple books and video training series on computer graphics software such as: After Effects, Premiere Pro, Photoshop, Illustrator, and Flash (back when it was a thing). He has taught at the college level for over 20 years at schools such as NYCCT (New York City College of Technology), NYIT (The New York Institute of Technology), and FIT (The Fashion Institute of Technology). Learn more about [Jerron Smith's](/jerron-smith) background and expertise. ### Stephen MacGillivray — Instructor Stephen teaches classes in the Motion Graphics and Video Editing Certificate programs. In addition to his work with Noble Desktop, Stephen teaches Nonfiction and Fiction Video Production, Motion Graphics, and Introduction to Film Production to grades 9-12 at LREI, a private K-12 school in New York’s Greenwich Village. In addition to teaching media classes, he runs his own production company, Indian summer Media. Through ISM he works as a freelance producer, specializing in documentary style films. Stephen holds a B.A. in Classics from Concordia University in Montreal and an MFA in Screenwriting from Columbia University. While an accomplished professional his most beloved project has been raising his two young daughters, Margaret and Grace. ### Michael Venzor — Instructor Michael Venzor is a multi-disciplinary filmmaker, video editor, and motion graphics artist with over twenty years of professional experience across television and short films, commercial projects, and educational media. His background spans the full post-production pipeline, including editing, animation, visual storytelling, and workflow design. A dedicated educator and mentor, Michael has spent years teaching video editing and animation to students of all experience levels, helping them build both technical proficiency and creative confidence. His teaching style emphasizes real-world workflows, thoughtful problem-solving, and clear communication, empowering students to develop skills they can immediately apply in professional environments. ## FAQ ### Do I need to bring anything to the class? No. We provide computers (Mac or PC) with After Effects installed. Choose your operating system at checkout. ### What computer do I need to run After Effects? After Effects will run on either Mac or PC. Make sure your computer meets the minimum system requirements for [After Effects](https://helpx.adobe.com/after-effects/system-requirements.html) ## Pricing **Tuition:** $975