{"id":150886,"date":"2026-02-18T12:00:54","date_gmt":"2026-02-18T17:00:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/150886///news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/150886//www.ucf.edu/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/150886//news/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/150886//?p=150886"},"modified":"2026-02-24T14:26:08","modified_gmt":"2026-02-24T19:26:08","slug":"the-art-of-evolving-with-animation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/150886///news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/150886//www.ucf.edu/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/150886//news/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/150886//the-art-of-evolving-with-animation/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/150886//","title":{"rendered":"The Art of Evolving with Animation"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Luke Cormican /news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/150886/u201901 still remembers a time when animation meant stacks of paper, sharpened pencils and long nights hunched over a drawing table. It was a far cry from today/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/150886/u2019s fully digital pipelines and global productions. That hands-on foundation, paired with a willingness to evolve alongside rapidly changing technology, helped propel the UCF art graduate to the top of one of television animation/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/150886/u2019s most enduring franchises./news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/150886/n

A 2001 graduate of UCF/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/150886/u2019s visual arts program, Cormican now serves as the showrunner of Teen Titans Go!, a globally recognized series that has redefined how superhero stories can blend slapstick humor, heart and cultural commentary. He oversees every facet of production, shaping a show that has entertained audiences for more than a decade./news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/150886/n

But his path to that role was anything but immediate./news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/150886/n

Betting on the Basics/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/150886/n

Growing up in Hollywood, Florida, Cormican knew early on that drawing and storytelling were more than hobbies. Animation captured his imagination /news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/150886/u2014 from flip books and stop-motion experiments to studying The Illusion of Life, the seminal Disney animation text. When it came time for college, he explored top art schools and even earned a scholarship to the Savannah College of Art and Design./news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/150886/n

Then he visited UCF./news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/150886/n

/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/150886/u201cWe had Disney animators giving lectures and even teaching classes. That kind of access was huge./news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/150886/u201d/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/150886/n

What stood out wasn/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/150886/u2019t just the campus /news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/150886/u2014 it was the animation program, which at the time was uniquely split between traditional hand-drawn animation and emerging computer animation. In the early 2000s, as Pixar ushered in a new era of computer-generated imagery and many questioned whether traditional animation would survive, UCF offered both paths./news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/150886/n

/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/150886/u201cI opted for the traditional route,/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/150886/u201d Cormican says. /news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/150886/u201cI always loved to draw./news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/150886/u201d/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/150886/n

At UCF, Cormican immersed himself in storyboarding, visual storytelling and collaborative creative work /news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/150886/u2014 skills that would become foundational throughout his career. Just as impactful was UCF/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/150886/u2019s proximity to Walt Disney World Resort/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/150886/u2019s then-active Orlando animation studio, which brought industry professionals directly into the classroom./news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/150886/n

/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/150886/u201cIt was kind of a secret gem,/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/150886/u201d Cormican says. /news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/150886/u201cWe had Disney animators giving lectures and even teaching classes. That kind of access was huge./news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/150886/u201d/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/150886/n

Rising Through the Ranks/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/150886/n

After graduating in 2001, Cormican did what many aspiring animators eventually must. He packed up and moved to Los Angeles with little more than a portfolio and determination./news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/150886/n

His first job paid just $8 an hour at a small independent studio /news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/150886/u2014 modest by any standard but monumental to someone being paid to do what he loved./news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/150886/n

From there, he worked project to project, studio to studio, navigating an industry defined by constant change. His career took him through Disney Television, Nickelodeon and Cartoon Network, each stop building both his creative credibility and leadership skills./news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/150886/n