Computer Animation Schools and Illustration Degree Programs

With the success of film franchises like "Finding Nemo" and "Shrek", the animation industry has become a huge business. Animated shorts, cartoons, advertisements and full-blown movies have a long history in American culture and worldwide. In fact, some of the most successful movies of the last ten years have been animated films aimed at young audiences and families. As technology is improved and animation becomes more realistic, rich and exciting, a career in animation illustration becomes more and more attractive. Here you will find the essential information related to computer animation schools, and illustration degree programs if you're interested in pursuing a career in this field.

Animation techniques and applications have been continually refined and developed over the last hundred years. Animation was born from the rich human history of drawing and technical drafting. For many years, the standard was cel animation, in which each frame of an animation is drawn by hand. This form of animation will usually be started as a storyboard, with each scene detailed through drawing and text. This provides the general flow of the animation before the painstaking task of drawing each cel begins. When elements of the scene are static, like a piece of furniture or a tree, the cel can be layered on top of a background, so that the background appears stationary and the animated motion takes place over it. The techniques of cel animation are nearly one hundred years old and provide a relatively inexpensive approach to animation. This technique has been utilized extensively by production companies like Walt Disney and Hannah-Barbera.

Another classic form of animation is stop motion, which includes clay animation, model animation and puppet animation. Essentially, stop motion animation is a series of photographic frames that capture the gradual movement of an object, model or figure. With clay animation or claymation, clay figures on wire frames are moved slightly from frame to frame to create the illusion of physical motion. With model animation, inanimate objects are made to appear lifelike within a realistic setting, so that models may end up interacting with real people in a seamless presentation. With puppet animation, puppets are moved slightly frame by frame to create the illusion of lifelike movement. These types of animation techniques have been used extensively for the last seventy years in all kinds of Saturday morning cartoons, commercials, and even full length feature films like "The Nightmare Before Christmas".

The last several years have seen a virtual revolution in animation technologies, with the rise of the computer, big film budgets and other changes in the industry. Flash animation, centered on Adobe's Flash software product, has made animation much more accessible to the common graphic artist. Flash animation is mostly used on the worldwide web and has made professional level animation production much more prevalent and affordable. The classic cartoon "Ren and Stimpy" was one of the first commercial presentations of flash animation.

Special effects in filmmaking have become a proving ground for animation techniques. In modern filmmaking, there has been a growing emphasis on special effects and an ever-growing budget for making things look as real as possible. Computer Generated Imagery or CGI refers to recent innovations in graphical animation. These computer based animations have brought lifelike effects to films like "Jurassic Park", "Terminator 2: Judgment Day" and many other big-budget movies.

This is essentially a new age in animation, special effects, and in moviemaking in general. The enormous revenue stream created by movie and cartoon franchises translates into many technological advances, innovations and a hugely creative environment. While animation has always begun with drawing, the emphasis is now on computer skills and deep proficiency with specific software applications. Movie studios like Disney and Pixar are raising the bar ever higher and are thriving in a high stakes game of creativity and industry.

For many artistic and creative people, the field of animation illustration represents an exciting challenge and an immensely rewarding professional career. There are few careers that allow people to practice their art while earning a handsome living. This is true of animation; it is an artistic space that also generates billions of dollars in entertainment spending. As with actors and movie directors, the product of the animator is heavily marketed and high profile in the glitzy environment of Hollywood. The best animators even take on a celebrity status and their work has a unique cache.

There are many different programs and certifications that can prepare you for a career in animation illustration. It helps to have a passion for the visual arts. Extensive knowledge and experience of design, and drawing in general, provide a great foundation. Training and certification in various technologies like Computer Aided Design (CAD), Flash animation, and digital design provide further background. The more time you can spend with experts and mentors in the field of animation the better. As with most industries, the value of on-the-job training is immense and whatever experience you can bring to the table will increase your opportunities.

Like other forms of graphical design and development, there is a large community of animation professionals that can be leveraged for their deep knowledge, innovative techniques and vast job opportunities. Try to find a mentor in your local community or on the web. There are forums and discussion groups all over the web that create a vast knowledge base and a place to get answers to tough questions. Be sure you are familiar with the biggest forums and discussion boards dedicated to the industry of animation. You are not the first person to start at the ground floor and your knowledge, willingness to learn, and skills of adaptation will determine how high you can climb in this exciting profession.

Animators can potentially become specialized in one specific niche, although a well-rounded knowledge of animation and filmmaking process is always an advantage. Character animators are artists with a penchant for movement, or even acting. Special effects animators specialize in animating things like scenes, machinery, or weather patterns. Whatever your niche, the deeper and more extensive your knowledge, the more highly coveted an asset you will become.

When you've completed your studies, earned your certifications, and are ready to enter the burgeoning field of animation, there are several major employers that you should research. Many are based in Hollywood and are highly funded and well-run companies. Others are smaller boutique agencies:

Computer Animation Schools & Illustration Degree Programs