Animator

Career path and progression

With experience, you could:

• become a lead animator or animation director
• work for a large animation studio, games developer, interactive media design business or video post-production company
• become a freelance animator
• open your own animation studio

What it takes

Skills and knowledge

You'll need:

• knowledge of media production and communication
• good art and design skills
• to be thorough and pay attention to detail
• thinking and reasoning skills
• the ability to use your initiative
• the ability to work well with others
• to be flexible and open to change
• the ability to organise your time and workload
• to be able to use a computer and the main software packages confidently

Related subjects

Most relevant

• Art and Design - Animators need strong drawing and visual design skills to create characters, scenes, and storyboards. Whether working by hand or digitally, understanding composition, colour, form, and movement is at the heart of everything they produce.
• Computer Science - Animators use specialist software to build and manipulate 2D and 3D models, add lighting and textures, and combine layers into a final production. Understanding how software works helps them solve technical problems and work more efficiently.
• Design and Technology - Animators build physical models for stop-motion work and design digital prototypes for characters and environments. Understanding materials, construction techniques, and the design process helps bring ideas from concept to screen.
• Film Studies - Animators use many of the same principles studied in cinema – camera angles, lighting, editing, narrative structure, and mise-en-scène. Film Studies helps them understand composition, pacing, and visual storytelling, whether they're working in 2D, 3D, or stop-motion.
• Physics - Animators need to understand how objects move, fall, bounce, and interact in the real world so they can recreate convincing motion on screen. Getting weight, gravity, and momentum right is what makes animation feel believable.

Also relevant

• Media Studies - Animators work across media industries – from film and television to video games and advertising – each with different audiences and formats. Media Studies helps them understand how content is constructed and consumed, so they can tailor their work to suit different briefs and reach the right viewers.
• Mathematics - Animators use geometry and spatial reasoning when positioning objects in 3D space, calculating camera angles, and working with perspective. Mathematical thinking also underpins the software tools and rendering processes they use every day.
• English Language - Animators work closely with scripts, storyboards, and creative briefs that they need to interpret accurately. They also pitch ideas, write proposals, and communicate clearly with directors, clients, and other members of the production team.
• Drama - Animators bring characters to life by giving them personality, emotion, and believable reactions. Understanding performance, expression, and timing – the same things actors work with – helps them create characters that audiences connect with.
• Music - Animators work closely with sound designers and composers, and need to understand how music and rhythm affect the feel of a scene. Timing animation to a soundtrack is a core part of the production process.