The next few paragraphs are for those of you habitual daydreamers who constantly get caught doodling cartoon characters instead of paying attention to math lectures. In what your teachers call laziness may lie your future career'Animation. Maybe your classroom doodles are a sign that instead of becoming a nuclear physicist, you're ultimately headed for an animation studio at Disney or Pixar. So now that you know you're not a deadbeat student, what should you do to follow this newfound animation ambition? Well, for starters, you should probably attend animation school. Good animation schools will help artists improve their drawing skills and learn how to draw in the context of an animated environment.... Read More

The next few paragraphs are for those of you habitual daydreamers who constantly get caught doodling cartoon characters instead of paying attention to math lectures. In what your teachers call laziness may lie your future career'Animation. Maybe your classroom doodles are a sign that instead of becoming a nuclear physicist, you're ultimately headed for an animation studio at Disney or Pixar. So now that you know you're not a deadbeat student, what should you do to follow this newfound animation ambition? Well, for starters, you should probably attend animation school. Good animation schools will help artists improve their drawing skills and learn how to draw in the context of an animated environment. Students will take classes on the human anatomy and study how people look when they move around. They will also learn how to use state-of-the-art animation software that is ultimately used at many of the major animation studios. Most of the reputable animation schools will require their students to have a finished animation portfolio or 'reel' upon graduation. This reel is essentially an animator's resume, and is what will be judged by employers. Your goal as an animation student is obviously to create a compelling and quality reel that will hopefully land you a job. Another aspect to eventually finding a job is building your professional career network. Many of the best animation schools team students up with professional animators for small internships or other projects. This real-world experience is invaluable for students, not only because they can further develop their skills, but also because they can hopefully use their newfound mentors to help them find a job. Hide