If you’re familiar with fxphd.com then you know it’s one of the best online VFX, production and post-production training resources out there. They offer courses on how to use tools like Final Cut Studio, Cinema 4D and After Effects, up to VFX tools like Nuke, Maya and Pixar’s RenderMan. There’s also production-related courses in directing, lighting and the RED camera and RED worfkflow that are often offered. While many courses are supplemented with media and project files, one of the strongest elements of fxphd is the online forums where instructors can interact with students and students can interact with each other. Add to that the availability of many high-end software packages for the student’s use during the term as part of your course tuition (which starts at $330 for three courses) and it’s a unique learning experience. Personally, I’ve taken two terms recently and put fxphd at the top of the online learning food chain.

Founded in 2006 by visual effects artists John Montgomery and the Sydney-based Mike Seymour, fxphd.com has amassed quite a back catalog of courses so they recently opened up a resource called “The Vault.” This back catalog of courses isn’t available often and students in the current term can purchase courses from The Vault for an additional $100 each. With that you get immediate access to all ten weeks of classes and supporting course materials. There are no teachers and no forums for courses from The Vault, but what you are getting is access to four years of fxphd courses on a rotating basis, as many of The Vault offerings change with each term. You can check out the current course listing for the April 2010 term and see both the current courses and courses in the vault.

The April 2010 term is currently in its 4th week, so there’s still time to get in before you fall too far behind. New students can join any time, up to week 8 of a term. You must pay and join the current fxphd term to get access, however. The nice thing about buying from The Vault is you can work through those courses at a more leisurely pace or just wait until the break between sessions. There’s a lot of work to do with your three current courses during an active fxphd term but with a lot of learning comes a lot of work. It means you’re getting your money’s worth. I would most definitely qualify fxphd as a useful tool for editors … as well as VFX pros and amateurs alike.