The Creative Talent Network (CTN) and Creative Talent Network Foundation (CTNF) have unveiled the details and submission requirements for their animation and visual storytelling scholarships in 2025. Reflecting the CTN mission of “No Artist Left Behind,” this year’s lineup features 15 dynamic programs — their largest slate of annual awards to date.
The opportunities are 11 discipline-focused scholarships, each in the name of award winning industry luminaries, along with four offerings through the newly launched International Creative Exchange Program (ICEP). These initiatives are uniquely curated to mentor and empower the next generation of young artists across various disciplines. The goal: To preserve, protect, and perpetuate the art of animation and visual storytelling.
The new 2025 Scholarships are:
Aaron Blaise – Filmmaking. Supporting emerging artists and filmmakers who craft compelling stories through animation and visual storytelling. More information here.
Christopher W. Gee – Technology. Honoring Christopher W. Gee (1961-2024), this scholarship supports aspiring film technicians shaping the digital future of storytelling through innovation and visual technology. More information here.
Fabrizio Mancinelli – Music. Celebrating the art of film scoring, supporting aspiring composers who live to craft emotive and dynamic music for animated short and feature films. More information here.
Kent Melton – Sculptor. Honoring the legacy of Kent Melton (1955-2024), this scholarship supports aspiring sculptors who bring characters to life through the art of maquette sculpting for visual storytelling. More information here.
Mary Blair – Women Designers. honoring the legacy of Mary Blair (1911-1978), empowering women designers to bring bold creativity and visionary storytelling to the world of animation, illustration and design. More information here.
Mel Milton – Illustration. Mentored by Mel Milton, empowering illustrators to develop dynamic character designs and bold storytelling in the world of superheroes and beyond. More information here.
Mike Kunkel – Cartooning. Supporting aspiring cartoonists to bring stories to life through the single-panel, comic page or full-length films with a strong storytelling heart, humor and imagination. More information here.
Sam Koji Hale – Puppets Stop Motion. Dedicated to supporting artists passionate about puppetry and stop-motion filmmaking, fostering storytelling and craftsmanship in this timeless art form. More information here.
Stephan Franck – Comics and Graphic Novels. Dedicated to comics and graphic novelists, supporting the development of dynamic characters and compelling narratives through the fusion of illustration and unique storytelling styles. More information here.
Torsten Schrank – Character Design. Character design scholarship celebrating character creation in animation, pushing the boundaries of visual storytelling. More information here.
These programs join CTN’s highly successful initial entry into presenting scholarships that began in 2023 with Disney Legend Andreas Deja’s ‘Character Animation’ Scholarship now entering its third year in June of 2025. More information here.
CTN Foundation also announced three new additions to the International Creative Exchange Program (ICEP), providing a global cross training canvas to learn through the cultural and creative exchanges of students and master educators around the world. The ICEP debuted in June 2024, when six CTN members were awarded the opportunity to travel to Seoul South Korea, to the CK Animation School (Chung Kang College of Cultural Industries) to study, learn and explore with Master Animator Mike Nguyen for four weeks, followed by the program hosting 20 South Korean students travelled to Burbank to showcase their work, expand their creative horizons by experiencing the CTN eXpo, where they were showcase their work, interact and learn from many of the world’s top artists and animators at the annual event.
“I am beginning to think (more) of the emotion behind each of my characters now and how I can depict as a believable, living being. This has also changed how I observe the world now and what I take from those observations. They have gone beyond surface level and I am hungry to learn about all that makes a person unique and imbibe them into my animation.”
— Ramya Hegde, ICEP Korea Scholarship Winner 2024
Submissions for the second year of the ICEP South Korea/CK Animation School Scholarship trip will continue in 2025. Creatives are encouraged to apply here. Deadline: March 16, 2025.
The ICEP additions are:
ICEP Hungary Scholarship with Ion Art Studios (Animation and VFX) – a full service Animation and VFX Studio founded by an award-winning team of industry professionals in 2009. based in Budapest. lonart works in commercials, animated series, film/TV and game cinematics. They are known for their work on the Halo TV series; Semmelweis, a film from Academy Award nominee Lajos Koltai; and other franchises including Warhammer 40K.
ICEP Italy Scholarship with The Nemo Academy of Digital Arts – the Florence school for young talents who want to transform their passion into a real profession as animators, illustrators, character designers, visual development artist or 3D artists, offering professional courses in 2D and 3D Animation Cinema, Entertainment Design, Illustration, Concept & Game Art, Web Design & Graphic Design, 3D Modeling and Rendering.
ICEP Burbank Scholarship – a local CTN Partnership, curating a program to allow young creatives with opportunities to learn, mentor and showcase their work in the ‘Animation Capital of the World.’
“I’m so grateful for the support of those patrons sponsoring these great programs, and the artists giving generously of their time and talents, to make this amazing slate of opportunities come to life,” said Tina Price, founder of CTN. “The addition of these scholarships and ICEP exchange programs are incredible ways for our community to work together to so that all may thrive.”
Learn more about the CTNF Scholarship and ICEP programs and how to apply at ctnfoundation.org/active-programs.
Win a Funko X Lilo & Stitch Prize Pack!
