In my own experience, being good at what you do and having an ‘easy-to-get-along-with’ attitude are key to being considered for a promotion.
If you rock the boat too much at work or you’re too outspoken it’s probably not going to help you, but at the same time being too aloof and not communicating with people isn’t well received either.
You want people to want to work with you again, so here’s eleven ways to put yourself in good standing in the animation production environment and increase your chances of getting a promotion….(in no particular order)
1. Take time to produce the highest quality animation that you possibly can. This one sounds obvious, but if you can impress them with your animation your name will become known around the studio.
2. Mentoring others. This is really important. We’ve promoted people because they were doing this (among other things mentioned in this list). Helping others who are having trouble in production – could be with software or animation skills. If your successful in helping someone else to improve their knowledge and skills, you’ll be seen as a leader.
3. Take direction well. Don’t get irritated with retakes/revisions, or at least don’t show it.
4. Offer suggestions when you see an issue or problem in production. Don’t overdo this one though, you could come off as overzealous. You don’t want to step on the toes of your supervisor or lead (or director). Take the opportunities to offer solutions to a problem that has been identified by someone else.
5. Try not to go to your supervisor with every question or concern that you may have. Make an effort to figure it our on our own first. If they feel like they have to hold your hand, they’re not going to promote you. Besides you are better off answering your own question at your workstation than answering it while standing in front of your supervisor or directors desk. (you will often answer your own question when you start to talk about it out loud).
6. Be easy to get along with and try to maintain a positive attitude. This is important in any work place. Try and stay on good terms with everyone. May not always be easy but try your best. That one person you don’t get along with could end up becoming your supervisor!
7. Work at least eight hours per day or what’s being asked by the studio. Sounds obvious, but most studios don’t have a specific start and end time. It’s usually understood that you are a responsible adult and won’t take advantage. It’s also understood that you have integrity and you’re there because you want to be there.
8. External Contacts. It can come in handy if the studio is staffing up for a production and you’re able to refer them to some good people.
9. Diversity in skills. Having experience in both 2D and 3D Animation makes you a valuable asset to the company. 1.) You’ll be able to work on any type of project that comes through the door. 2.) You can train others in 2D or 3D to work on those productions.
10. Always be willing and ready to help out with any last minute ‘fill-ins’ (work that won’t get done in time), or animation tests that need to be done for a potential project. Sometimes, when you work on an animation test you’ll get promoted if the studio is awarded that project. Show an interest in it and make it clear that you would like to work on it.
11. Be professional. Don’t talk nasty about the director or any other people while you’re at work. Stay positive while your there. If you can’t your better off being quiet. You can vent later at the pub or coffee place.
Follow these suggestions when possible and you’ll likely be in good standing in any production studio. Remember not to be too overanxious or pushy. If you know there is an animation test, ask to work on it but don’t be a pest – that will hurt you more than help.
If your studio offers any on-the-job training, take it. Especially if it’s learning a new software package. Your getting a free course and it shows your employer that your ambitious. Plus your likely to draw from that information sometime in the future. I always have.
Once a project is green lit and is slated for production, the studio which is awarded the job has to figure out how they will actually get it done.
Most of this information is presented at the bidding stage in terms of a schedule and budget – how many people are needed for each department – ie. layout, modeling, animation…and how long each step in production will take.
A production pipeline refers to the production schedule. It’s a pre-decided action plan that outlines the order in which each step in production will occur and on what dates.
The pipeline can be likened to a factory assembly line. It’s important that one step in production happens before the next so that each step is completed smoothly.
When one step isn’t done properly (and it happens), you often have to go back however many steps necessary and then re-do the steps that come after it. I’ve had this happen quite a bit and because we work with deadlines and a tight schedule, it can cause a lot of stress, late nights (I’ll stop there and keep this a happy post).
Here’s the order in which the steps in production take place. Keep in mind this is general – some productions will have additional steps.
This entire process (all the steps above) can take approximately one to two and a half years to complete one season of a show. Also, notice the pipeline is a little different for 2D and 3D productions.
After each step in production there are always retakes/fixes/changes and finally approvals. For simplicity, I didn’t include them in the steps above but you’ll sometimes see them on a real production schedule.
So, depending on the nature of the project – 2D or 3D (or both), and the complexity of the project, studio owners (or producers and directors) begin the daunting task of deciding/estimating which of the steps will be used in the pipeline, how long each step should take and how many people will be needed for each step.
Every animation production, whether it’s a TV series or feature operates in a hierarchy – a command structure developed over 70 years ago during the golden age of the animation industry, around the time when theatrical shorts gave way to TV animation.
It’s evolved a lot since then. Today’s animation productions are totally stream lined in the way that they are created. The people who work in today’s productions are there to make sure the project goes smoothly and is delivered on time and at the highest quality possible.
Not including pre-production or post production (scripts, storyboards, editing, etc…), here’s a common list of positions found within the animation department and their most basic functions:
Lipsync Artist
Lipsync artists are responsible for animating speech. They animate the characters mouths to match up with the recorded dialogue. A team of lipsync artists will normally have a lead lipsync animator to go to with any issues.
Animator
Working in teams, Animators are responsible for character performance – animating all body movements and facial animation (except for the speech when a lipsync team is employed). Also, animating or adjusting camera moves and ensuring proper framing and composition. Animators usually turn to a Lead Animator with any issues that may arise in production.
Lead Animator
A Lead Animator is a team leader. There is usually one Lead Animator for each team. They usually have the same responsibilities as an Animator with the additional task of assisting the Animators with any issues, questions or concerns. Sometimes Lead Animators are given the responsibility of reviewing shots/scenes for quality and calling for revisions (animation fixes/changes). Some studios will put the Lead in charge of assigning shots.
Animation Supervisor
The Animation Supervisor also reviews shots/scenes for quality and calls for any needed revisions. Assigns the shots to the animation teams, and addresses any issues that the Lead Animator or Animators may have during production. Will do a bit of co-ordinating between departments if the animation team is in need of anything from another department (for example – a change to a rig or design).
Assistant Animation Director
The Assistant Director does what the title refers to – helps out the Animation Director to review shots/scenes and filter through retake notes from the Series Director so that they are easier for the animators to address.
Animation Director
A big part of the AD’s job is making sure that the Series Director and Creator’s vision is being met. Reviews all shots/scenes and calls animation retakes. Filters through the Series Directors retake notes to clarify and simplify them (if needed).
Series Director
The Series Director is charged with many tasks. Here’s a list of things that a Series Director is usually responsible for.
- Reviewing storyboards and calling for changes – gives final approval.
- Sitting in on the creation and conforming of the lieca (or animatic), this sets the pacing of the show.
- May direct or give input on voice recordings (dialogue).
- Reviews all main and episodic designs(characters, props, backgrounds/environments)
- Reviews layout and animation – gives revisions and approvals.
- Sits in and makes decisions on sound mix and music, finalizing the edit.
Lucrative studios will sometimes employ all of the positions seen above, but average to smaller animation studios will sometimes combine the tasks of two, or even three positions and load them on to one person. (often due to a budget restrictions).
For example, a studio might put more responsibility on the Lead animators, giving the Leads some supervisory tasks, allowing the studio to avoid hiring Animation Supervisors for the project. This wouldn’t be all bad for the Lead Animators as they gain experience that will help them later in their career.
Another important thing to note. What a Lead, Supervisor or Animation Director is responsible for at one studio might be a little different at another studio. It’s up to the studio owners, or a production manager to determine who is responsible for what tasks.
As you can see, animation departments operate in a hierarchy and are fairly streamlined. But no matter how planned and organized the animation department is, it’s the attitudes and talents of the people in that hierarchy that make a project run smoothly, get delivered on time and at a high level of quality.
The dreaded “D” word…just the word deadline can sound really daunting if you’ve never worked with them – as in, if you don’t cross the finish line in time, your dead – or fired!
Well not exactly.
As a series animator working in production, I suppose that would be true if you were consistently delivering your scenes/shots late and at a poor quality.
When a studio hires you as an animator, especially if your a junior (new animator in the industry), the supervisor (or whoever is splitting up the scenes/shots into animator assignments) will usually do some juggling and allow some extra time to complete your first assignment.
People usually need time to get used to the character rigs or setups. Also to get used to the studios’ operations, especially the production management tool(s), studio environment, and of course where to grab a coffee
Deadlines Can Help You!
The biggest change in your animation skills comes as soon as you start doing it professionally. You’re suddenly given a set amount of frames that has to be done in a set amount of time, and…it has to be production quality.. no pressure.
This big change in your animation skills is your speed. Deadlines teach you to animate quickly and concisely. You have no choice but to find a solution to each shot, quickly and at a reasonably high level of quality. You can’t submit crap to your Lead or Supervisor – they’ll just send it right back and you risk not being around for the next project.
It doesn’t usually take long for most folks,(after spending some late nights at the beginning) and having speed and quality makes you a more valuable asset to any studio.
Pacing and Quality
Deadlines and learning to build up your speed for production while maintaining a high level of quality will be your first and biggest learning curve. Some echoing advise of many fine series animators is to panic early, and that does work, but managing the deadline has worked better for me.
A big part of managing your deadlines is pacing your work. For example, if your assignment adds up to 3500 frames, and you have 5 weeks to do it, you’ll have to complete 140 frames per day
3500 frames divided by 25 working days = 140 per day
Oh, and you thought you wouldn’t have to deal with math? Well, there’s some.
This way you can plan out your own daily assignment, knowing how many frames you need to complete per day will help you to stay on track with your deadline and maintain a higher level of quality in your work because your not rushing through.
Deadlines almost force you into learning to become a pace animator – a production animator.
The result is that you learn other skills such as gaining the ability to plan a scene quickly and stay organized. Deadlines will teach you to develop personal workflow techniques that will allow you to finish assignments on time or early – but also improve your overall animation abilities.
When I started out at my first job as an animator, I thought ‘wow, are all studios like this?’. I was working at a very big studio that had a real corporate feel.
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.
The Job
There’s so much that can be said about this so I’ll try to keep it in a nutshell and as concise as possible.
Series animators are character animators. We’re responsible for all character performance and actions, animating props, and sometimes fx and camera (if working in 3D). In 3D production there’s usually a layout department.
Layout artists will place the camera and animate basic camera moves, but animators almost always need to either re-animate it, or make adjustments to accommodate the action taking place in the scene.
Before we begin animation for a new episode we watch the lieca (or animatic) so we know what the episode is about and get a feel for the pacing of the show. It also gives us a chance to see how our assigned section of the show fits in to the story.
Some studios will have launch meetings before they start a new episode with all animators, lead animators, supervisors, and directors present. This is just an orientation and a chance for the director to make comments on particular sections of the episode and for everyone else to ask questions and express any artistic or technical concerns.
Animating/Workflow
Time to start animating – As mentioned above, we get our scenes from the layout department with characters placed and camera roughed in. From here I start setting the initial poses for all the characters – at the same time paying attention to the staging and framing, making sure that there aren’t any large areas of dead space, also looking at negative spaces to making sure that it has appeal and isn’t cluttered.
We work from a hand drawn storyboard to help us with the staging, framing and composition of the scene, we also use it as a guide for character posing.
The storyboards also give us a ‘feel’ for the acting. A good storyboard artist will convey the acting with loose energetic drawing, strong character poses and telling facial expressions for animators to draw inspiration from.
And, we animate….first setting poses and rough timing, then we adjust timing and employ the fundamental principles of animation to the characters mostly done through the poses we choose.
We work our way through the scene – first blocking out the rough action, then refining our work with software animation editors.
I often play the animation to check it, continually making adjustments and playing it again, often playing just sections that I’m currently refining….. until I’m happy with it.
Posing and timing is the foundation of good character animation – They are the two most important animation principles that help to convey what the character is thinking and feeling – that’s why we usually start with that… make sure it’s working, and then refine from there.
Lipsync is usually done first. Facial animation is done last as we add in blinks, eye direction and expressions to the eyes and eyebrows and mouth.
Equipment – Hardware/Software
Most studios now have dual screen work stations. This allows you more screen space for the various items that an animator will often have open at one time.
These items usually include:
- Software interface where you do your animation
- Digital storyboard, usually in the form of a PDF.
- Internet browser, animators will often get reference from the internet. UTube is fantastic for that.
- Product management tool. All studios have some sort of web system or piece of software that helps keep track of all project elements and tracks the progress of all shots/scenes and episodes in production.
Everyone uses they’re screen space differently. For example, I like to animated with the software interface up on the left screen and have my storyboard and management tool on the right screen. I keep the browser minimized for when I need it.
Occasional Perks!
Many studios owners, and large conglomerate media companies that produce animation like to keep with the tradition of animation studios being a fun place to work. After all, we are making cartoons!
Some studios even bring in beer and pizza on occasion! Gotta love that…many studios have screening rooms (sort of a mini theater) and will sometimes have a movie showing in the afternoon. I’ve been at studios that will allow group video game play on Friday afternoons(along with beverages >
As great as it is to take part in these activities at work, they’re only permitted as long as quotas are met or on track with the schedule.
Almost all studios will throw a wrap party at the end of a production (or season). All the wrap parties I’ve been to, were either at the studio or in a pub. Usually all production staff are there lamenting of the challenges and lessons the project brought, and of course there’s always food, drinks and good times.
In past workshops that I have conducted, students have asked what the job of an animator is actually like.
What’s the environment like? What do you actually do, and how do you do it?
The Physical Environment
Animation studios are usually pretty cool and funky places to work. Most studio owners are also animators and artists along with the people that work there and sometimes prefer moody surroundings.
Studios are sometimes dim with lights casting pools of light and shadow around furniture and workstations. Movie posters and production stills of completed projects hang on the wall.
Some studios that I’ve worked in are renovated warehouses built with beautiful thick wooden support beams and large windows that let in lots of natural light to support the plants and even large trees that you will find in some studios.
You’ll often find skewed placement of the desks to keep the studio from feeling like an office and making the environment more interesting.
Although I have heard some nasty stories of animators sitting shoulder to shoulder at long tables in basement studios, I haven’t experienced it. I have walked through a studio that was something like that, (I took a tour of this studio at a time when they were hiring).
I just thanked the director and left – didn’t even consider it. I can’t mention the name of the studio for obvious reasons, but it wasn’t a work environment that I could live with for the next eight to ten months.
Of course all studios are different. Most are pleasant environments to work in and the people are usually helpful and supportive.
The People
Animation studios employ some of the most diversely talented people in the world.
Often, the animator sitting next to you isn’t just a professional animator they’re also talented musicians, photographers, painters…you always meet interesting and multi-talented people in the animation environment.
People share their talents and knowledge.
In every studio I’ve worked in, I have met someone that has taught me something or given me knowledge that changed my work and my life for the better.
Although there are permanent/full time positions in studios, most animators work on a contract basis.
An employment contract is a legal document which states the terms of your employment including your salary. This contract is an agreement made between you and the employer before you start work.
I know, you want to hear about those permanent/full time positions. (and I use the word “permanent” loosely). I’m going to sound cynical here, but few jobs in the animation industry are really secure…or permanent.
Most studios have a core staff. These individuals are usually the people that were hired when the company started up and have been there since the beginning. Sometimes, they are folks who start later but who are exceptionally talented. They are usually the last to be layed off in harder times and therefore have a more secure job than someone who was hired after the company was established.
It comes with at bit of luck – you have to get hired at a new studio right at the point when they are doing they’re initial hiring. How do you find out about new studios?…..other people. Keep you lines of communication open with people in and around the animation industry to catch wind of these rare opportunities.
Just to sprinkle in some reality here – I was part of a core staff in a studio at one point. It lasted for a few years but I’m working somewhere else now. The company ended up closing down, but that’s not all that uncommon for animation studios. For many different reasons, some stay around for a very long time, and some do not. It’s just the nature of this volatile industry.
I wouldn’t concentrate on getting a permanent job in a studio as your first job because you’ll end up chasing your tail and never starting your career. That “permanent” position can come later – a contract will likely come much faster, so for now just try and land your first gig.
Once you’ve gotten through the interview/follow up, and a studio has decided they want to hire you, they will extend an offer of employment to you. Basically letting you know how much they are willing to pay you. The offer is usually in the form of an email.
If this is going to be your first job, take what ever they offer – don’t try and make a deal by counter offering with no experience because you’re likely to loose the opportunity to get some.
Studios usually offer the industry standard/going rate for your experience. I usually accept unless it’s ridiculously out of the ball park (on the low side of course . At your first job your annual salary should be somewhere between 30,000 – 40,000.
Contracts
Sometime after you accept the offer (usually after your sitting at your desk), you receive the contract. The contract can run for any length of time but are usually between 3 – 12 months long.
The reason studios hire production staff on contract is because animation work is project based. It’s a set amount of work – then it’s finished. Studios then have to find the next project. They usually plan ahead and have future projects lined up.(you hope!)
Most of my contracts have been around 8 months long because I work in series animation. 8 months is generally the amount of time scheduled for the animation teams to complete a season of a show. A season often runs about 24 episodes(22 min. long each). That’s a half hour show without the commercials.
Once your contract is up – hopefully the studio your working at has another project to put you on (assuming you’ve done a good job and they want to keep you). In which case you’ll receive another contract or an extension to your existing contract. As long as they have enough work they usually keep you on board.
It’s not uncommon to get extended multiple times at one studio. I’ve been extended at every studio I’ve worked for at least once – My longest run was three years at one studio, worked on three different projects back to back (so extended three times). There are plenty of animators who have worked at the same studio for 10 years or more.
Animators Salaries In Canada (but probably similar to U.S.)
This can be a bit of a touchy subject for some people because it really does depend on your experience and quality of your work, but also the budget that your employer has to work with and what they’re willing to pay you.
Once it’s been decided that you would be a good fit for the project, studios will often place you in a category of junior animator, intermediate animator, or senior animator based on your experience and skill level. There is a set salary range for each category – an offer is then extended to you (as discussed above).
Series animators generally make between 30,000(to start) and 70,000 per year depending on your experience and skill level you will climb closer to (around) the higher amount of 70K. Of course this is very general and there may be some that make less or more than this, but the majority of series animators are somewhere in this range.
Leads make upward of 70K, Supervisors up from there and of course directors make somewhere around 90K and can get into 100k’s. I won’t get too specific here because it does vary with different studios and projects.
3D animators salaries are usually a little higher than Digital 2D animators. Although this is usually the case, on rare occasion I’ve seen it the other way around.
So if your just starting out, anything less than 30,000 is on the low side. If you do start contract work, open a new savings account at your bank and put enough money away each pay cheque to sustain you for at least a month just in case you don’t get extended or served another contract. This should give you enough time to find the next job.
It's important to get familiar with the drawing tools because Flash Animators use these techniques all the time while animating to create new body pieces for poses, breakdowns and inbetweens.
What you learn:
* How to create and manipulate line work in Flash useing the line tool and brush tool.
* Convert line to fill (paint stroke) and work it into "thick and thin" line art.
Exercise: (See "Training Exercises" in menu bar above)
* Trace various hand drawings with Flash's line tool and get a feel for the line tool functions and abilities.
* Convert the line to fill and practice changing it into a "thick and thin" style of line art.
Quick Animation Review
This bear makes me laugh in almost every episode. The acting is fantastic - notice how you can always tell what the character is thinking/feeling. I first noticed Bernard on Utube over a year ago - seems to be picking up quite a bit in popularity. Great physical comedy. No dialogue. Just one laugh after another.
In my own experience, being good at what you do and having an ‘easy-to-get-along-with’ attitude are key to being considered for a promotion.
