Anim 12 – Michal Makarewicz Mentorship (Open Project) Workshop Winter 2026

Michal is here for you!  The Mentorship Workshop is a small class of up to 7 people. The time spent here focuses on you and your current needs as an animator. Each student gets a half hour block of time with Michal, once a week, along with the opportunity to email him for animation feedback throughout the week and receive notes back. Use the time with Michal however you feel would help your animation grow.

Michal can review your current demo reel and help determine the areas you can grow in, and help you come up with ideas for new shots and work on them with you to improve your demo reel.  Do you want to work on existing shots that need polishing? Do you want to see a LIVE demo on something? Michal is happy to share with you all the details that go into a layered workflow to help improve your speed and efficiency, how to approach a physical or acting shot, lipsync, and all the places you can improve the polish of your shots and what techniques help you to do that more efficiently.

Michal will help you craft your good ideas into great ones.  He will let you know if your goals are within your skill set and achievable, and what to work on next to level up your skillset.  No more wasting time!

You will get a personalized 30 minutes with Michal each week to go over whatever you are working on.

Michal will also provide video notes (when applicable) between each session.

Get to know your instructor:

Michal Makarewicz is a multiple award-winning former Pixar veteran, with 20+ years of experience. During his 20 years at Pixar, he held various roles, including Fixer, Animator, Directing Animator, Supervising Animator, Director (Disney+), and Intern Training Lead.

He contributed to some of Pixar’s most beloved films, including Toy Story 3 & 4, The Incredibles 1 & 2, Finding Dory, Brave, Cars 1 & 2, WALL-E, Up, Soul, and Ratatouille, among many others.

Beyond animation, Michal played a key role in Pixar’s educational initiatives, leading the studio’s internship program and employee training series. He also had the honor of mentoring under Pixar co-founder Ed Catmull.

Michal’s work has earned him multiple accolades, including two Annie Awards (Soul, Ratatouille), as well as nominations for a VES Award (Incredibles 2) and a Reuben Award (Soul). He was also honored with a scholarship in his name at Vancouver Film School.

After Pixar, Michal became Head of Studio Animation at SPIRE Animation Studios before joining Skydance Animation as a Supervising Animator.

Michal is the Founder of:

-The Animation Collaborative – A school dedicated to teaching high-level feature animation, story, and character design, led by some of the industry’s top artists.

-ProRigs – A professional-grade 3D rig library with 40+ characters for students and professionals, available for both training and commercial use.

In addition to his studio work, Michal teaches Animation Masterclasses worldwide, partnering with schools and companies.