Photo courtesy of Tomasz Chrupa³a, Poland
I enjoyed the work and was doing well – my director was happy with my animation, but I felt a bit of disconnection with the people around me.
Maybe they were avoiding me because of the annoying perma-grin I had on my face all the time – I was just so damn happy to be there, working as an animator! 
Well, it’s been a number of years since then, and I’ve work for several studios (now sometimes the grin turns into a grimace).
Animation studios are generally one of two types – large corporate studios and small contractor studios.
The large corporate studios are either animation studios that started off small at the right time and grew into a large corporate business or they are entertainment media conglomerates which either swallowed up an existing studio or just started their own animation branch.
When you work at one of these places you do feel somewhat insignificant in regards to the company not matter how polite everyone is to you. They already have a core staff which will continue working there long after your contract ends.
As with all studios if they have another project after your contract ends you will likely stay on if they really like your work and your personality.(yep, it’s like that)
Smaller, contractor studios are usually less than ten years old and are more intimately owned. If they’ve been around for much longer then ten years they’re well managed and connected – meaning the owners have good relationships with producers at larger studios and entertainment companies, enabling them to consistently get projects in to their studio.
Speaking form the ground floor (as an employee working on the front lines) – one of the biggest difference between large and small studios is that in a big studio, you can’t just walk into the owners office and have a chat.
Smaller animation studios are great for that. the owner (or owners) are usually down the hall or in the next room and are usually very friendly and approachable. And why wouldn’t they be, they want their employees to be happy.
It’s good to be able to connect with the owner face to face and casually find out how your doing and what projects are coming down the line. Larger studios have an HR (human resources department), it’s just not the same. No offense to anyone in HR dept’s out there.
The biggest similarity between large and small animation studios are the negative clicks that form with employees. One piece of advise on this…stay away from the toxic crowd!
What I’m calling the toxic crowd are usually a group of people who perpetually complain about everything, say nasty things about other people, and are just very negative. You may find yourself hanging with these folks.
It’s too easy to get sucked into the negativity.
Your better off going on lunch and breaks by your self than with a brooding bunch of people because it can negatively affect your work and your attitude which are the two most important things as an animator – make an effort to keep your work and attitude in a positive light.
Having said that, most people who work in animation studios are extremely talented, supportive and positive.
Operations, pipelines, management, studio rules and policies, etc… even the way you are managed and treated, all vary at different caliber studios. If you have the opportunity, I suggest getting work in both smaller, intimate studio environments and large corporate studios – It will give you a full and rounded experience of the industry and, as they say…expand your horizons.
