Testimonials

From the Denver Entertainment Art & Design Academy*

* The Denver Entertainment Art & Design Academy was Founder/Lead Instructor Zak Hennessey's previous school before moving to Cleveland, OH.

“Fundamentals, but with a comic style and process. Exactly what I needed to breathe some life into my figures.”
-- Ben P.

“D.E.A.D. Academy’s Action Anatomy class has made me more comfortable with drawing the human form. Before taking this course, I felt as if images and ideas were stuck in my head – and I was frustrated when trying to translate them on to paper. Now I feel like I have tools to translate these ideas into actual drawings.”
-- Robert M.

“D.E.A.D. Academy is a great school. I wish it was around when I was younger! I learned so many tips, tricks, and processes… Great, great school.
-- Ali W.

“Taking D.E.A.D. Academy’s Character Design art class has strengthened not only my skills in the design of characters, but also in weapons and in story and storyboard creation.
-- Dan E.

“Heroic Heads and Hands really opened my eyes to the infinite possibilities of the human face and helped me learn to keep my characters consistent.”
-- Sarah F.

“The D.E.A.D. Academy has helped so many people follow their dreams and strive in their field. Personally, I went to D.E.A.D. to enhance my comic art; one year later after my first class here I was asked to do comics for fun and now for money. I recommend D.E.A.D. for the people that want TONS of knowledge for cheap.”
-- Mason M.

“I’m glad to have found the D.E.A.D. Academy, as I’ve learned many things that helped me as an artist.”
-- Christian R.

“Each class I learned more and more, and by the last class I was amazed at how much I improved. I am always excited for my next lesson and will continue to learn it here.”
-- Caleb H.

“D.E.A.D. Academy is an affordable alternative to the high-priced ‘Art Schools’ that will surely leave you in debt. Industry professionals make the best teachers! Take a class and you’ll see! :)”
-- Amanda W.

“Heroic Heads and Hands really opened my eyes to the infinite possibilities of the human face and helped me learn to keep my characters consistent.”
-- Sarah F.

“After taking Heroic Heads and Hands, looking at people’s facial features will never be the same. I now immediately notice how a person’s face is constructed – what makes it unique from other faces, and most importantly how I can replicate those features in my own drawings or change them to invent my own unique features.”
-- Robert M.

“I came to the D.E.A.D. Academy with no prior art classes, and less than one year of even trying to draw. After only five weeks of Heroic Figures and Forms, I gained the confidence to accurately draw any figure my imagination came up with without any reference photos. I still can’t believe that I improved more during one class than in one full year of teaching myself from books and videos. The one on one time available in each class is something I’ve never encountered before, even in college courses. I’m so grateful that I found D.E.A.D. Academy and can’t wait to take more classes!”
-- Holly S.

“I would highly recommend the DEAD Academy to anyone! Whether you're looking to learn some cool “how-to” fx techniques, expand your portfolio, or just want to learn a new hobby. These guys are great! Very passionate.”
-- Brandon H.

“The DEAD Academy opened up a world of creative opportunities to me. Thanks!”
-- Elena C.

“I’ve always loved drawing super heroes, but my results have been mixed at best. Even when I liked what I was doing, I didn’t know why. Heroic Figure Invention gave me a sense of how to control my drawing and understand what I was doing wrong (and right) and really improve a lot in a very short time.”
-- Ben P.

“Zak, you are an awesome instructor! You have a way of showing us stuff in the easiest, fastest way possible. Photoshop was an irritating blur before I took this class. I feel like I’ve learned SO MUCH! :D
-- Amanda W.

“Instructor Zak Hennessey is a great teacher that has tons of experience in the field. The best part about his teaching is that he closely watches your progress and gives you specific advice and good homework to always be practicing the things you should be practicing. You can tell he enjoys teaching and helping, which makes class even better.”
-- Mason M.

“Through The D.E.A.D Academy I’ve been able to create something amazing from my own imagination ... For anyone who has a passion to create ... D.E.A.D Academy was my stepping stone into the world of Monster Movie Makeup”
-- Lily M.

“Character Design has helped me step up to a whole new level in both my artistic skill set as well as the challenges of expressing my point of view. Developing the characters throughout this class has inspired me to further pursue my dream career in concept art. I now have a basic idea of what will be expected from this job. Thank you so much, Zak Hennessy and D.E.A.D. Academy.”
-- Nikki H.

“Action Anatomy really helped me grow, and made me capable of creating more ‘dramatic’ poses. It was a truly great first formal arts education experience.”
-- Sara E.

“Before taking Action Anatomy, I barely understood how anatomy influenced poses and the overall ‘feeling’ of an illustration. After taking the Action Anatomy class at the Denver Entertainment Art & Design Academy, I can easily fill a page with properly applied anatomy parts and poses! The instructor Zak was definitely helpful in guiding each of us individually, and helping us defeat each of our own struggles. I have most definitely seen great improvement in my work throughout this 10 week course.”
-- Nicole H.